The transformation of minimum standard housing: Upgrading the housing stock in Ikageng

Abstract

Until recently Blacks were seen as temporary residents of "white" urban areas in South Africa. As a consequence housing provided for them was of a minimum standard, consisting primar­ily of mass-produced four-roomed single or semi-detached dwellings. The predominance of small uniformly designed houses resulted in a monoto­nous residential environment. The Black town of lkageng (official popula­tion approximately 40 000) situated immediately west of Potchefstroom was no exception. During the last decade, however, perceptible improvement in the standard of many public sector houses in lkageng has taken place through a process of upgrading. Since the latter half of 1986 an escalation of this process has been noticed. The aims of this paper are to determine the factors that were responsible for the improve­ment of low income housing in lkageng and 'the escalation thereof since 1986, and to evaluate the potential role of this process in improving the quality of minimum standard dwellings in low income Black residential areas.