Great meeting yesterday everyone. I think that we all fell alot more assured about the project than we did before. I spoke to Mr Marks today and he said that he will give us a rubric for the project so that we know the general weighting of each section and what is required of us.
Here is the basic information that i managed to jot down during the meeting yesterday. Please if any of you have anything else to add or change, please do so (especially Rumbi who very kindly took a recording of the entire meeting).:)
We met with Waleed Davids (wdavids@communicare.org.za) and Wasima Fisher (wfisher@communicare.org.za) on the 15th August 2012 at 13:30 and the meeting lasted approximately 1hr 30mins. Greg, Rumbi, Lavani and Natasha were present.
They spoke to us about two developments: SAWAS House and Yates Lodge. After the meeting we decided to do Yates Lodge as we believe it is the more interesting project of the two (as it comprises of elderly people and families), it is of a more manageable size for our expertise and we were given considerably more information about this site than the other.
Yates Lodge currently comprises of 10 units and Communicare want to tabke it up to about 20units (minimum, obviously the more the better)
They want to demolish the building and start again.
The new building must have parking for the flats and guest parking (look up City of Cape Town requirements) even though the building is situated on main road Muizemburg and next to the train station.
There is a shopping center close by and schools.
Deed says that they must cater for elderly people "as far as possible".
Maximum rental that we would be able to charge would be about R3500 but they would prefer us to research the market rentals in the area for comparable flats and subtract 20% from that.
They would like a ratio as follows: 70%capital to 30%loan from the Dutch Housing Loan company (their current loan terms are 7%interest for 10-15years).
Communicare only deals with Independent Living (no meals, no care, no 24hr people on duty) that is safe and more conducive to old people.
They would like a ROI of about 3% but recognize the tough economic climate at the moment and said that they are currently getting about 1%return.
Always unfurinshed apartments. Include kitchen and bedroom cupboards. No stove but stove point. Possibly communal washing room? Must have a communal living room with kitchen also so they can socialize and do recreational activities in it.
All finishes must be low maintinance and easy to open and close (bathrooms, doors and windows).
Remember Communicares motto of cultural diversity and integration.
They can pay extra for a call for care system that is a panic button in every room and one for around their neck so that they can call someone if they fall.
Possible activities include: Bingo, arts and crafts, gardening, exercise, outings, training programs, cultural diversity workshops, cooking, baking, market days so that they can utilize their skills and socialize.
We must try and come up with a small rental growth scheme. Not too high, possibly non-existant in this economic climate. Possibly relate it to inflation or CPI.
Rental Includes: rates and taxes, water and services. Currently electricity is separate. in the future they would like to keep rentals the same but make them pay separately for water.
We must design bachelor apartments on the ground floor for the elderly and 1 bedrooms on the 1st floor for prospective families or more able bodied elderly people.
Must have a minimum of 30% elderly people.
They will email us a break down but at the moment, Communicares expenses for Yates Lodge with 10 units is about R350 000/ year. However, there is no security included in this which is a priority for elderly people. Not a security guard, just a buzzer and controlled access and Call for Care. These costs include: cleaning of communal areas, gardening, rates and taxes, water and repairs and maintenance (which is high is such an old building, will decrease once renovated).
The current tenants are on a 2 month notice rental.
Thanks Tash, that’s pretty much everything I got down other than one or two points as follows.
ReplyDeleteWhat is done for sustainability?
• They mentioned the need for solar heating on the roof of the building- not in place currently but possibly for the new development.
Creating opportunities (in line with their motto of cultural diversity and integration)
• The use of market days and training programs to enhance the skills of the occupants.
• This is done in such a way that it provides the opportunity for the occupants to earn some profits from selling their goods such as baking/clothing/ ornaments etc.
• This not only creates the incentive to keep busy but also ensures mental stimulation.
Running Costs:
+- R350 000 for the 10 units
Parking:
• It was mentioned that one of the reasons the Yates Cottage has struggled (at times) to make up number is because of the lack of parking facilities. Therefore it would be essential in the new development, to provide parking. Furthermore, it was emphasized that we consult the necessary regulations in terms of legal documents that are associated with parking bays.
• It would be great to be able to include these bays in the current rental fees but further investigation would need to be completed before a decision could be made.
• However, the site is located near a railway station so accessibility is not necessarily the biggest issue.
Thanks Greg and Tash, you've pretty much covered everything I have in my notes as well. Just another 3 things here that were mentioned:
ReplyDelete1. For rentals they cannot charge a rental more than one-third of the tenant's income e.g. if income is R7 500, rental won't be >R2 500.
2. The number of units will depend on legal restrictions.
3. They are looking for a medium density development