Neil Fraser
October 8, 2003
SO it's official and we can all breathe a sigh of relief! The 'Recovery of the CBD' has been recognised by none other than the Financial Mail. So, it must be true. Whew!
Whilst the FM posters advertising the September 19th edition proclaim the "recovery" of the CBD which is detailed in their lead property article "The City Comes to Life", the sub-title is "Even those intimately involved in the revival have been caught off guard by new developments". Readers of Citichat have been kept up to date for five years and particularly over the past 21 months, with all the activity that we have been able to share with them (and there is always some that we can't for one reason or the other) so the suggestion that the FM has a magic ball that has revealed all whilst the rest of us have been nodding off is so much journalistic clap-trap. In fact, there is actually much more happening than has been 'revealed' to us by the FM. Well, maybe we should be thankful that at least it was a positive article.
But prompted by the article followed by Wednesday's public holiday, Heritage Day, we need to draw back and consider what the implications of revitalisation are on heritage. Many of the buildings that have been purchased with an eye to conversion into inner city residential are buildings of great significance. I think of Corner House, Stuttafords and 77 Harrison Street which were all mentioned in the FM article. In fact the city has dozens of fine old buildings many of which have been allowed to decay and are now quite sought after in what the FM describes as "a buying spree by private developers". Hence the dichotomy we face – recognition that the city offers something quite special particularly in relation to residential accommodation on the one hand and the need to preserve as much of our built heritage as possible on the other.
Take Corner House for instance - the existing building is the third to bear that name – it was built in 1902/04, and was one of the two tallest buildings in Johannesburg before the skyscrapers of the 1930s – the other was the third Thorne & Stuttafords Building. The Stuttafords Building referred to in the article is also the third to bear that name and was erected in 1927/28. Interesting that within a relatively short space of time from the founding of the city, buildings were already in their third cycle. I guess the answer was that the first buildings were limited in size, particularly height, due to materials and construction techniques of the time – the first reinforced concrete framed building (The Transvaal Hat and Cap Factory corner Pritchard and Troye Streets) was only constructed in 1920.
Corner House is described by Gerhard-Mark van der Waal – 'From Mining Camp to Metropolis' - as follows "The Commissioner Street facade has rather pleasant proportions and the classicist ornamentation and bronzed bay window section and dome make this structure a memorable milestone in the Beaux Arts mode and the architectural development of Johannesburg in general. The Simmonds Street facade is equally striking, but for a different reason. The building was constructed in two sections to improve the illumination of the offices and these two sections were dramatically joined by a bridge on the ninth floor." As an aside, WC Scully, writing in 1912 wasn't as complimentary – "I wander down Commissioner Street past the Corner House, the Standard Bank, the Stock Exchange, and many another exaggerated human ant-hill throbbing with energy. It is all a gloomy inferno of stone – a series of linked Babylon towers of masonry heaped menacingly against the almost obliterated heavens". Wonder what he'd say about some of the more modern monstrosities that deserve names nothing better than his initials! However! It is encouraging to read that the buyers of Corner House appreciate "the city's priceless treasure trove of history, architecture and infrastructure" but I wonder if all purchasers are going to be as discerning.
There is of course a watchdog, in fact a watchdog with three heads, for the National Heritage Resources Act involves all three tiers of government –
The South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) has overall responsibility for heritage resources of special national significance.
The Provincial Heritage Resources Authority (PHRA) has the responsibility for managing heritage resources of significance within a Provincial or Regional context and,
The Local Authority is responsible for managing and protecting other heritage resources as well as being responsible for decisions regarding structural changes affecting a National or Provincial heritage site.
All buildings older than 60 years are 'protected' i.e. a permit is required for ANY alterations or the demolition of any building or part of a building built before that time. However younger buildings which are considered to have great historic importance can also be afforded formal protection under the Act.
Unlike the three headed dog of Greek mythology, Cerberus, ours appears to be more than just a little ineffectual which can be seen from a quick look around the city. Just note the number of buildings that are being allowed to decay - demolition by neglect - both private and public sector owned. Many of our Art Deco buildings are so neglected as to be eyesores rather than the attraction that they would be in any other city. Within a few city blocks of where we work are the old CNA building and Shakespeare House, the Barbican and the Rissik Street Post Office – the first three privately owned and the latter – besides the Fort, the only significant 19th Century government building left in the city – publicly owned. All are in the most dreadful state and are blots on the cityscape making the area look no better than a slum. If we are unable or unwilling to manage such visually prominent buildings what hope is there that this new rash of developers are going to toe the line when altering their new acquisitions? It all comes back to a zero tolerance approach and a strict enforcement regime and these are areas in which we haven't distinguished ourselves.
And it is so stupid! We are by no means a beautiful city able to capitalise on locational attributes or, any longer, blessed with mineral resources so that we must now concentrate on place economics. We need to recognise the five senses identified by Donovan Rypkema that have a considerable impact on the economic health of cities. A sense of place – we need to differentiate ourselves and express the particularity of our city. A sense of identity – cultural and physical attributes are critical to differentiation. A sense of evolution – the physical fabric of a city must reflect its functional, cultural aesthetic and historical evolution. A sense of ownership – one American Mayor wrote that a good city has always been one that teaches citizenship in the deepest sense of the word, and such cities are not only teachers but are themselves always learning how to be better cities. A sense of community – an acknowledgement of the obligations to and interconnectedness with the other residents of the place.
Rypkema goes on to observe that historic preservation has moved from being an end in itself – saving old buildings in order to save old buildings – to being a vehicle of broader ends – center city revitalisation, job creation, cultural stewardship, small business incubation, housing, tourism, etc. Two examples of what he means are to be found in Jonathan and Lorien Gimpel's conversion of the Atlas Bakery in Milpark into the Atlas Studios for TV and film (Citichat29/2003) and the Premier Milling building in Quinn Street, Newtown. Bought some time ago by the design practice of Urban Solutions (who battled to find a financial institution to support their venture) the latter is a prime example of careful and sensitive restoration adding value to an area. In fact I received an e-mail just this week from a Citichat reader recently moved into the Inner City who took a drive through Newtown and stopped to look at the building. He wrote "It was so apparent to see that the architect took special care to preserve the building and restore it to its former glory. Floor boards are carefully sanded down, while new gantries and steel stairways are in keeping with the old plaster work and over-head steel ceiling grids. Heavily studded metal beams and supporting columns are painted traditional black at the base with "milky" white uppers. The place smacks of artists, designers and Avante Garde tea room visitors. Just what Jo'burg needs!"
The "recovery of the CBD" isn't something that has just happened – it is the result of an awful lot of hard work, frustration and dedication on the part of a large team of people in both the private and public sectors over a number of years. Now comes the even harder part - ensuring that its recovery is managed and based on sound regeneration principles rather than on short term opportunism which treats our heritage as disposable.
