Cape Town residents given the opportunity to apply for extension of building plans

The City of Cape Town has granted the opportunity for extension of building plan applications for its residents.

In a statement dropped on Thursday, mayoral committee member for spatial planning and environment – Alderman Marian Nieuwoudt said since there’s a year validation of approved building plans, residents can send in their application for an extension before the validity period elapses.

She further said the extensions will depend on other prerequisites for the due process, which includes the validity of other applicable or approvals in relation to the original approval.

“An extension can be applied for, if done so prior to the expiry date of the approved building plan.”

“Where a building plan has lapsed and no extension was applied for within the 12-month validity period, a full application will need to be resubmitted should the applicant wish to commence the building work.”

“In the case where an application is resubmitted within six months of the lapsed date, only 50% of the applicable plan fee for the particular category will apply. Providing that all of the clearances submitted during the first approval are still valid, this process is significantly shorter,” Nieuwoudt said.

The full tariff will be applicable after the plan has been resubmitted more than six months after the lapsed date.

“Residents wishing to submit building plans must first ensure that the property they wish to build on is properly registered and that they have all the prerequisite approvals in place.”

“These may include land use approvals in terms of the zoning scheme regulations, an environmental impact assessment, heritage clearance, etc.”

“Having these in place will help with the smooth running of the process and save time for both parties,” Nieuwoudt said.