BHC To Demolish Old Minestone Houses
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Monday August 14, 2017 15:46
BHC’s senior estate officer-north, Olefile Segokgo, told The Monitor that he cannot state a definite timeframe of when the tenants would be moved from Minestone.
He said this is so because he still has to liaise with the Francistown City Council (FCC), which has promised to help tenants who qualify for the Turnkey programme through the Self Help Housing Agency (SHHA) scheme.
Segokgo said their plan to move some of the 50 tenants at Minestone will be achieved since the Department of Lands has approved plots to be allocated their tenants who qualify under the Turnkey programme at Gerald Estates.
Segokgo said they have been struggling to move the tenants because they had no plots.
“The Department of Lands have finished the evaluation process and approved land to be offered to the tenants.
The tenants have been allocated close to 50 plots at Gerald Estates,” he said.
He said since the Department of Lands has availed plots, they would go back to the FCC to plead with the municipality to help their tenants acquire loans under the SHHA programme.
He added that BHC has great plans to develop its land at Minestone after it has relocated its tenants.
The relocation of the tenants to Gerald and the plans by BHC to build modern houses at Minestone will surely improve the city’s aesthetic.
The current houses are dilapidated and have no electricity supply, which leave some of the residents with no option but to use firewood as their source of energy.
Some homesteads in the area still use paraffin and candles to light their homes, which can be dangerous.
The area is one of the darkest and dangerous places to pass by at night.Some residents of Minestone survive by selling alcohol and dagga at their homesteads.