Masvingo (New Ziana) – The Masvingo City Council has shelved expansion plans for the city due to limited space, an official has said.

Instead, mayor Collen Maboke said the council will for now concentrate on re-developing existing neighbourhoods to increase population densities as there was not much room for expansion.

He said an influx of prospective residents had caused land shortage for Masvingo’s expansion, forcing the city authorities to consider re-development of neighbourhoods to accommodate more people.

“With the influx of new residents and with a limited land available for new neighbourhoods, the only way to go forward is to increase density in existing neighbourhoods and ensure we use any vacant lands to their highest and best use,” Maboke said.

He said re-development of existing neighbourhoods, to create space for new residents, would spare the city expenses for road, sewer and water connections.

“This is important because, if we get even more spread out geographically than we are today, the more costly it becomes to service and operate new roads, water mains, sewers and social amenities,” he said.

New Ziana