Lagos State Government said it has concluded a plan to relocate residents of the 900 housing units at Adeniji Adele due to the fact that where the estate is sited is under water.We have a freeland just by it in Adeniji Adele.
“We will develop that land for about 98 people, take the 98 people, and put them in the new houses. Then, where those 98 people were taken away, we will demolish the house, raise it to the level of the other one, and build new housing units for another set of people. Then we will bring another set of people into that one until we finish it.
“There are about 900 units of houses; we may not be able to finish them under this administration because we have the plan in place to start with 98 people. We will try as much as possible and do what we can. We expect that the succeeding administration will follow suit until they finish it.
“Some houses in Adeniji Adele have already sunk.The occupants are already being resettled, and the government is paying their rent as we speak,” he said.
Babatunde further disclosed that the state government was planning to rebuild Obalende, saying that the state government had a court ruling backing its action.
He said the state had already started holding meetings with the residents of the area in order to agree on the specifications of buildings required for the area.
Babatunde maintained that the state government was working hard on her plan to relocate the Computer Village in Ikeja to Kantangowa, assuring that plans to relocate the Oko Baba Sawmill in Oyingbo to Agbowa were continuing as, according to him, the state government has built two bedroom housing units for those that will occupy the sawmill.
On planning permit approval, the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr Oluyinka Olumide, said the state government had announced a 40 per cent rebate on planning permit payments to Lagosians.
The commissioner said this was arrived at in a bid to ensure that the state maintains its high developmental standard and also to encourage property owners in the state to do the right thing by ensuring their properties pass all official procedures.
Besides, he disclosed that Governor Sanwo-Olu had equally graciously granted a 90-day amnesty period to owners and developers of existing properties to regularise their properties and help in promoting a sustainable physical environment.
Olumide said that the Amnesty initiative would allow owners and developers of existing buildings to obtain planning permits without the payment of statutory penal fees within the amnesty window from May 2 to July 30, 2024, with a 5% discount applicable to payments completed within 10 working days of the bill’s issuance.
The commissioner described the rebate to civil servants and the Amnesty Programme as a relief measure to mitigate the effects of the current economic hardship being experienced in the built environment, saying that applicants were expected to submit all relevant documents for assessment through the LASPPPA Head Office and District Offices in the 57 local government areas and local council development areas.
“The Mr Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu-led administration is not leaving any stone unturned in bequeathing a Lagos Smart City that is premised on a sustainable functional physical environment, achievable only by wholesale compliance with regulatory requirements.
“The administration, which is people-oriented and compassionate in formulating policies that favour inclusiveness, ease of compliance, and citizens’ participation, has given the 40 per cent rebate in planning permits for civil servants to get more and more of them to experience the process and become wilful advocates of the good works of the government in the sector, and also the Amnesty Window of three months that we just opened last week to allow planning permit applications from owners of existing developments without payment of the statutory penalty is a good case in point.
“For emphasis, the window opens from May 2nd to July 30th, 2024, when the waiver on penalty payments on existing developments shall subsist,” he stated.
The commissioner, however, warned that non-compliance would draw the wrath of the government, saying that the administration would not compromise the safety of every individual in the state.
“I, therefore, solicit the continued cooperation of the general public to adhere strictly to the Physical Planning Laws of Lagos State by following the standard steps to the planning and construction of buildings to promote safety and an orderly, livable, and sustainable environment for the wellness and wellbeing of the people.
“Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu has charged every officer under this responsibility to take the life of every Lagosian as important as theirs and be steadfast in discharging their duties to ensure no further collapse of buildings, nor should there be the loss of any life.
“With this rebate and after the 90-Day Amnesty, any property that falls on the wrong side of physical planning laws shall face the consequences squarely,” he warned.
Speaking further, Olumide highlighted some of the activities embarked upon by the Office of Physical Planning, including the over 74% rate in the grant of planning permits in the last year and the preparation and review of master plans and model city plans such as the Lagos Island Model City Plan and Alimosho Model City Plan.
Others, he said, were the preparation of 9 action area plans, 9 development guide plans, and the delivery of the right of way for 16 public infrastructure projects in the state.
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