9.5 CONTRIBUTION TO LOWER CENTRAL KNYSNA DENSITY GOALS

A densification figure of 25 du/ha, as suggested by the Provincial Government, is derived from local and international research, which has found that this is a minimum density at which urban settlements begin to significantly improve their urban performance and thereby enhancing the functioning of the area. According to available statistics the most urban settlements in the Province have average gross dwelling units densities of 12 du/ha. This is approximately half of what average gross densities should be to achieve adequately performing urban settlements.

Knysna Council has identified Lower Central Knysna as the most appropriate area in town to implement the densification policies currently promoted on provincial and national level. Densification in the form of second dwelling units, subdivisions, redevelopment of under-utilized sites, infill development and mixed-use developments are manners to implement this.

According to available Densification Studies, densities as high as 60 to 120 dwelling units hectare gross should therefore be promoted in areas of highest accessibility (like the application site) in order to achieve average gross densities of 25 du/ha, which implies that in other areas densities can remain lower, as little as 4 to 8 dwelling units per /hectare on the periphery of Knysna.

The proposal will have a density figure of approximately 103 units per hectare on the combined three properties.