NMB sitting on land that could drive tourism and economic growth

Nelson Mandela Bay (NMB) has no shortage of entrepreneurs and developers with concepts in tourism– but for many, the key stumbling block is finding land on which to turn their ideas into reality.

The extent of municipal land parcels in the metro is not easily accessible public information, and it is widely accepted that not even local government and state-owned entities (SOEs) know the full extent of their own land and property holdings.

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What is known is that the metro has made no significant land disposals or concluded any substantial leases in at least the past decade, while publicly owned tourism and leisure facilities decay, and private-sector development projects on land owned by the municipality and SOEs are held up in protracted legal disputes – particularly in the Bay’s prime coastal areas.

The situation is not limited to the key beachfront node.

A coastline of lost opportunities

Nelson Mandela Bay has more than 100km of coastline, stretching from the Van Stadens River mouth in the west, along the “wild side” to Cape Recife and along Algoa Bay to the Sundays River mouth in the east.

At least 40km of this coastline consists of largely unspoilt beaches and is home to numerous public beaches and municipal resorts that could be offering accommodation, conferencing, leisure facilities and access to the beach and sea for fishing and watersports, were they not mostly rundown, neglected or vandalised beyond repair.

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Prime examples are the Beachview, Maitland Mouth and Van Stadens resorts along the metro’s south-western “wild side”, and St Georges Strand along the eastern side.

In the case of Beachview Resort, after years of disputes with private operators, the resort was shuttered and returned to municipal management in 2015 after a drowning incident and concerns about public safety.

It slowly declined into an eyesore over the next decade through contractual disputes, vandalism, and a lack of security and maintenance.

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A demolition certificate was issued in 2024 and approved by the NMB Council last year, but this has yet to be actioned – leaving a gap where there was once a popular camping, braaiing, accommodation and fishing site enjoyed by generations of local and visiting families.

The story is little different at other beaches and facilities that have either decayed or been earmarked for private-sector development – a lack of maintenance and security, and a lack of resolution of protracted legal challenges with private developers.

There are similar stories across the metro.

Summerstrand Extension 14 was developed and serviced by the municipality for sale as residential erven around 2008, but still stands vacant and is likely to require complete redevelopment, as illegal dumping, criminals, vandalism and nature have taken their toll on the services and infrastructure.

This is despite the municipality lifting a protracted moratorium on land sales as far back as 2014.

In 2023, the NMB Council deferred a decision on disposing of scores of residential, commercial and industrial land parcels across the metro, developed and serviced by the municipality but lying unused for years.

The potential to spur investment in commercial and housing development, particularly in the metro’s underdeveloped townships and northern areas, was shot down, and there are no indications that any progress has been made since.

The large areas of municipal- and state-owned land around the Markman industrial area are in demand, sought after for their location and transport connections, but the door remains closed to a willing market.

Valuable land left on the sidelines

Effectively, the very government that should be encouraging economic growth and job creation is putting a lid on this progress through one of the simplest mechanisms it has available as a stimulus.

It appears that there is no comprehensive asset register showing exactly what land is owned and leased, nor is there a coherent plan to utilise these assets for the benefit of the local economy.

We see regular reports in the local media about long-lapsed leases while tenants continue to use and generate income from properties and land, while other leases have continued for decades at rates far below market value without scrutiny.

As far back as 2017, the municipality launched a “rectification project” after finding that only about 10% of its estimated 2 000 rented properties had valid leases, but there is little indication that any progress has been made.

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This is not an argument for releasing sensitive coastal land for unsuitable high-rise or high-density development that would strip Nelson Mandela Bay of its character and relatively pristine coastal environments.

Rather, it is a call to release land in an ethical and well-planned manner and to upgrade already decayed coastal resorts for environmentally sensitive and responsible development.

The resulting income could be used to support sustainable service delivery and address other critical needs in low-income areas of the metro.

Making unused, developable municipal land available for private-sector bids is also a fairly simple route to achieving more equitable land and property ownership, enabling new developers to enter the market.

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Alongside this, the municipality must enforce existing by-laws and regulations to ensure that all developers and landlords operate according to the required standards, and ensure adherence to development and contractual requirements, as well as the ongoing maintenance of buildings and sites.

There are many valid reasons for municipal land ownership, such as public infrastructure and services, planned future expansion, and the provision of low-income housing.

Equally, however, it is questionable whether a municipality should be in the business of being a commercial landlord, landowner or property developer, particularly when these properties are neglected.

When disputes become economic dead ends

In our view, this is the job of the private sector, while the municipality should ensure compliance with its Spatial Development Framework, lease terms, zoning and environmental regulations, as well as equitable access to land and affordable housing.

While legal disputes with private developers drag on for years, even decades, valuable land stands idle, buildings and infrastructure decay, investors lose interest, promised jobs are not filled, and economic spin-offs and tourism potential are not realised.

The municipality loses income, business and public confidence in the metro decline, while the people of the metro lose out on socio-economic development and promised facilities and attractions.

In fact, everybody loses.

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It must then be asked: to whose advantage is it that the municipality and other government entities hold on to unused or underutilised land, or allow proposed developments to stall indefinitely?

A positive signal came in the recent announcement by Transnet that it is seeking offers for 15 commercial properties around the country, including, in Nelson Mandela Bay, the disused Humerail caravan park and sports grounds in Humewood, extending over 200 000m² in a prime beachfront location.

We need to see more of this activity from state-owned entities, and particularly from the NMB municipality.

The overall direct contribution of tourism to the NMB economy in 2025 was estimated at R6.2 billion, implying a contribution of approximately 3.16% of the metro’s gross value added (GVA).

Direct and indirect employment in tourism in the metro is conservatively estimated at 18 500 jobs, or approximately 5% of local employment.

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These economic contributions are not insubstantial, especially given that they come against a backdrop of domestic and foreign tourist numbers that have not yet recovered to pre-Covid levels, along with concerns around safety and crime, the deterioration of tourism facilities and sites, and a widely acknowledged general lack of tourist attractions.

These numbers provide a solid base from which to grow the Bay’s tourism sector, focused on its natural assets and heritage – provided that the basics of security, cleaning and maintenance of infrastructure, facilities and attractions are in place.

Unlocking NMB’s land potential

Much of this growth potential depends on opening up public land and properties for the development of tourist activities and amenities.

The same goes for commercial, industrial and housing development. It is time to lift the lid on the potential locked into unused, publicly owned land.

Denise van Huyssteen is CEO of the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber.

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