HWANGE Local Board (HLB)’s first master plan to guide future infrastructural development programmes in the coal-mining town is at an advanced stage, Southern Eye has gathered.
HLB’s master plan has been derailed over the years by inadequate funding.
However, the call by President Emmerson Mnangagwa for all local authorities to have approved master plans by June 30 this year, gave HLB the much-needed impetus to complete its own.
HLB spatial planning and development director Themba Sibanda told Southern Eye that the local board had already engaged a consultant to lead in the crafting of the master plan.
“We also held a stakeholder inception report meeting, culminating in the production of an inception report, which was shared with stakeholders,” Sibanda said.
The inception report had already been submitted to the Local Government and Public Works ministry, while the consultant was in the process of gathering data and coming up with diagrams.
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A master plan is a dynamic long-term planning document that provides conceptual layout to guide future growth and development of an urban setting.
It is about making the connection between buildings, social settings and their environs.
Council has also been tasked to conduct a valuation roll, listing all properties situated within the boundaries of the local authority compiled for rating purposes.
“As for the valuation roll, we wrote to the ministry requesting valuers. Thereafter, the ministry requested information pertaining to the number of stands per suburb and category. It also requested information on how many stands are developed and undeveloped, so that it could cost us,” Sibanda said.