The Development Tribunal, established under the Development Facilitation Act (DFA) will no longer be able to side-step the zoning and planning frameworks put in place by local authorities. 

The change has come about following a Constitution Court decision this month.  The Constitutional Court has found that the tribunal is unconstitutional and that the Johannesburg municipality has the authority to take decisions about land use.

Elam Kloppers reports that Werkmans Attorneys confirm that property developers will in future have to submit their applications through municipal structures.

The DFA was drafted with the intent of "fast tracking" low-income housing.  The Act has been used by developers to obtain rapid approvals for high-income residential estates and more.  The DFA has allowed many developers to by-pass the processes and frameworks local authorities spend resources developing.  The local authorities implement these policies following public participation processes.  The DFA Tribunals may grant approval for developments even outside of the guidelines.

Developers are now concerned that authorisations will be delayed.