SA Affordable Housing July / August 2017 // Issue: 65 | Page 40

PROJECTS
A rendering of one of the apartments at Forty on L.
The model opens a door for the missing middle as the open
market units absorb most of the development costs.
Having the development in the Bo-Kaap area allows Blok
to be at the centre of the diverse market Forty on L will
serve. “We didn’t want to introduce homogenous
development because we want to add into the diversified
nature of Bo-Kaap,” says Van Embden.
Sale of the open market units has been launched, with
the cross-subsidised units set to be sold via an open draw
system later this year. Construction is expected to start in
September 2017 with completion by July 2019.
“We bring in a wide range of units, we have three, two
and one bedroom units as well as studio apartments,” he
says. The various range of bedroom units are evenly split
between about 69 units. Other amenities in the building
include a gym, a laundromat, an entertainment deck and a
pool area. The development also has schools and public
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JULY - AUGUST 2017
AFFORDABLE
SA HOUSING
The 80:20 concept was borne
out of the rapid escalation of
property prices.
facilities nearby. “One of the benefits of an urban location
is all facilities are nearby,” he says.
While this is by no means being promoted by Blok as the
solution to the current and severe urban housing crisis, it is
nonetheless a means of research-by-design where a
solution is trialled with the understanding that the model
will be evolved from development to development. “We’re
trying to push the conversation forward,” he says.