Township Establishment

Township Establishment typically refers to the land use application process of changing the designated land use regulations on farmland / portions. The Township Establishment is thus creating erven within a township to enable the development of a parcel of land. The township establishment process involves town planning policy requirements and is required to convert farmland to proclaimed erven within a township establishment area, consisting of erven. 

The term, township establishment is most used in areas outside of the Western Cape and certain other Coastal areas of South Africa. 

A township establishment involves the amendment of the current zoning designations to allow for different types of land uses, such as residential, commercial, industrial, or business for example.

The township establishment process is dependent on Council Policies such as a Spatial Development Framework (SDF), Local Structure Plans or Urban Development Framework (UDF). Township establishments and the creation of erven within a proclaimed township must thus be in line with the various Spatial Planning Policies, guidelines, regulations and By-laws, as set out by the Municipality. 

A township establishment application typically requires notification of interested and affected parties as per the requirements of the Municipal By-laws. Neighbours or community members can object to a township establishment proposal during public participation process. 

The following documents can typically be required for a Township Establishment Application:  

• A Pre-Application as may be determined by relevant Municipality
• Covering letter addressed to the relevant Municipality 
• Completed Application forms. 
• Motivation Report which complies with the relevant Municipality By-laws 
• Locality plan indicating the locality of the property 
• Zoning plan indicating the zoning of the current and surrounding properties on a appropriate scale 
• Land plan indicating the Land Use of the current and surrounding properties on a appropriate scale 
• Site Plan: Scaled drawing that displays the property cadastral, with proposed and existing structures aligned to the township proposal. The site plan can also indicate elevations of the proposed building work.
• Layout Plan – indicating the proposed erven within the new township proposal 
• Details of the surrounding properties requiring notification List of neighbours
• Zoning certificate (issued by the municipality) 
• Proposed Annexure/ Zoning Rights 
• Registered title deed
• Power of attorney signed by owner.
• Consent from the Bondholder (if applicable and if bonded with a bank) – must be submitted with the application. 
• Specialist Studies: Depending on the Township Establishment Proposal and requirements of the Municipality, specialist studies such as Services Report, Geotechnical Report, conveyancing certificate, land surveyor certificate, environmental requirements, Traffic Impact study etc. may be required. 

There are several reasons why a property owner would want to attend to a Township Establishment.  Some general reasons include:

• Changing of land use: Farm portions have limited development potential and this needs to be amended in order to create erven within a township, which may be developed and / or sold as individual erven. 
• Economic benefit: Township Establishment adds value to properties as the process of township establishment enabled the property owner to exercise a multitude of land use rights on the newly created erven within the new township, which may either be developed or sold separately.  
• Legalising existing land use being exercised: many land owners have established businesses and / or any other land uses that are exercised on farm land / Agricultural Holdings, which are not allowed on these parcels. Legalising these land use rights may require township establishment processes

The Township Establishment Process in South Africa is subject to each requirement of the respective Local Municipality. Each Municipality has different requirements for a Township Establishment Application and Township Establishment Process. The following process is generally applicable for a township establishment application: 

• Inquiry Stage: The landowner or developer is interested in the establishment of a township on a parcel of land contact a Professional Town Planner. Basic information should be provided for the purpose of the proposed township establishment. The appointed Town Planner will conduct a desktop assessment to determine if the proposed township establishment proposal aligns with Council Policies. The desktop assessment may also involve identifying certain constraints such as environmental requirements, servitudes, road alignment requirements and detrimental soil conditions. 
• Pre-Application Consultation Stage: A meeting is typically arranged with the municipality’s town planning department and Consulting Town Planner. During this meeting, the potential township establishment is discussed, and the municipality provides guidance on the viability of the proposal based on Council Policies.  The Pre-Application can also be provided in a written format. A Pre-Application process is helpful as it will give guidance if the township establishment proposal will be supported in principle. It also provides the property owner with transparency and assurance that the proposal will be supported in principle and eliminates the risk of receiving a township establishment refusal of the township establishment application, from a land use management point of view. 
• Formal Application Stage: Once the landowner or developer decides to proceed with the township establishment application, a formal application needs to be submitted to the municipality complied by a competent and professional Town Planner. This application includes various documents and payment of the relevant application fees. It is always advised that a Professional and competent Town Planner compiles the application. 
• Public Participation Stage: After submission of the application, the appointed Town Planner must attend to the public participation process. The Public participation process normally runs for a period of 28 days in order to allow any interested and affected party sufficient time to comment or object on the application. Notification is normally consisting of advertisements in the Government Gazette, Local Newspapers, notification via registered post and on-site placard notices. The placard notice needs to be maintained for a period between 14 and 21 days. Comments and or Objections should be addressed to the Municipality. 
• Technical Assessment Stage: Each required department at the Municipality must provide comments on the proposed township establishment application. The municipality may also request comments and input from External or Provincial Department depending on the nature and location of the proposed township establishment application. 
• Evaluation Stage: As soon input from all the respective and required department have been received, the responsible Town Planner at Council may evaluate the proposed township establishment application. The municipality will make a decision on the application. This decision could include approving the township establishment, approval subject to certain conditions, refusal of the township establishment application, or referring it back to the applicant for further information or amendments.
• Compliance Stage: Once a township establishment application is approved, the application will in most cases be subject to certain conditions. It remains the responsibility of the owner to ensure that all the conditions are met based on the  Conditions of Establishment issued by council. An example can be the payment of Bulk Contributions to the Municipality. Once all the conditions have been met for township establishment the new township can be proclaimed in the provincial gazette. 
• Implementation stage: After a compliance stage is completed, the property owner or developer can proceed with implementing the proposed changes in land use subject to compliance with the township establishment requirements.

It should be noted that the township establishment process can vary slightly between different municipalities in South Africa. It is therefore advised that you contact a Professional Town Planner to start the township establishment application process.Â