Neil Fraser
4 October 2002
Kwa Dukuza Egoli Hotel & Conference Centre. Spent a couple of hours being shown over the Kwa Dukuza Egoli Hotel & Conference Centre by Marian Whitehead responsible for marketing. Kwa Dukuza Egoli? Well if you have been around for a few decades you would have knownpart of it as the Tollman Towers, if less than a few decades, the Johannesburg Sun (Sol Kerzners citycentre flagship hotel), less again, the Downtown Holiday Inn and for the last couple of years the mothballed Downtown Holiday Inn. Still not sure? Well its the soaring blue coloured tower block just east of the High Court and the Jeppe Street Post Office between Jeppe and Pritchard Streets, Smal and von Wielligh.
Both the massive main Tower and the adjacent Tollman building have been completely refurbished and refurnished and opened to absorb 2 800 guests over the World Summit period. Some were S.A. Police Services personnel posted here during the Summit but others included Cabinet Ministers and their entourages as well as foreign government delegates and the staff of at least one embassy.
Had a look at some of the impressive Presidential suites on the 40th floor - great city views thrown in which the hotel offers in addition to Executive Suites and over 700 Luxury Twin and Queen Accommodation rooms. The ground floor provides four choices in restaurants/bars/cafes whilst the first floor offers conference and banquet facilities for 1500 people. With games rooms, a pool terrace, a business centre, internet caf, health hydro, squash courts etc etc etc ITS JUST GREAT TO HAVE A MAJOR HOTEL OPERATING BACK IN THE CITY! If you haven’t heard about it previously, its because, whilst it is open for business, the official launch wont take place until mid-November. Oh yes, Kwa Dukuza Egoli means the Place of Gathering in Egoli or Gathering Place in the City of Gold!
Bram Fischer House. South Africas Chief Justice, Arthur Chaskelson officiated at the renaming of the old Allied Building Society Building on Rissik Street (directly west of Gandhi Square) and the opening of the Legal Resources Centres new offices which occupy three of the buildings nine floors. Quite a legal gathering with judges from the Constitutional Court, High Court, Appeal Court, Land Court, members of the SA Bar Council et al! Friendly mob, much hugging and kissing going on, the legal community are quite human after all!
Bram (Abraham) Fischer was the son of a Judge President of the former Orange Free State and grandson of a Prime Minister of the even more former Orange River Colony. He was a Rhodes Scholar, lawyer and Afrikaner revolutionary who defended Nelson Mandela at the Rivonia Trial, was himself later convicted to serve a life sentence and was only released when it was known that he was terminally ill. There is a website covering Bram Fischer Memorial Lectures and it is worth reading particularly the first of these which was given by Nelson Mandela and which pays tribute to this remarkable man.
The Legal Resources Centre has been in existence for over two decades fighting for the vulnerable and marginalised people in South Africa. It has unwaveringly defended and promoted the rights of the poor and the homeless. It has acted against unfair discrimination and injustice of all kinds and has been at the forefront of promoting a climate of human rights in the country.
The building was acquired by property entrepreneur and city aficionado Gerald Olitzki. I seem to remember Gerald telling me that he had always dreamed of acquiring this classical building as he had spent his articled clerk years there. He has now not only assembled an impressive property portfolio including buildings around two sides of Gandhi Square but has been successful in steadily populating them.
Main Street Pedestrianisation: Another of Gerald Olitzkis dreams moved a step forward as envisaged difficulties by Metrobus were resolved during the week. Now for final design and financing and we could see work commencing early in the new year.
Drill Hall: A workshop was held to provide an opportunity for comment from a wide variety of sources in regard to proposals for the future of the partially fire ravaged historic Drill Hall. I understand that a further meeting is to be held next week to reconcile the design proposals with the needs of heritage conservation.
Chinatown Precinct: Savage & Dodds Chinatown Precinct Urban Design Plan was approved by the Inner City Section 79 Committee. The vision embodied in the plan is to create a distinct cultural precinct with specific identifying landmark features and to enhance the existing qualities of an urban neighbourhood. This is one of the oldest precincts in the city containing two noteworthy buildings, the Chinese Club Building being one of the oldest buildings in Joburg, and the Pabst building, currently undergoing a facelift, which is a landmark building of great architectural significance.
Better Buildings Programme Phase 3: Twelve more bad buildings have been identified for redevelopment, five in liquidation and the balance in process of being attached and sold in execution. Redevelopment will yield over 1000 residential units.
Constitution Hill: Tenders were adjudicated for the construction of the massive super parking basement at Constitution Hill
Newtown: The recent road upgrade in Newtown as part of the Mary Fitzgerald Square reconstruction is to be extended westward to the Oriental Plaza which, with the Nelson Mandela Bridge and offramps will provide excellent access to the Plaza which offers quite unique shopping experiences to locals and tourists alike.
Crime: Was impressed at the Metro Police Report from Gerrie Gernicke at the Inner City section 79 Committee. It appears as if they are starting to get not only more organised and better equipped but also more focused. I believe we will now start seeing a distinct improvement in by-law enforcement. Certainly the strong enforcement of hawker by-laws has turned traders from hurling abuse to queuing to take up space in MetroMall, 200 had registered by mid-week.
Then, in a letter received this week from John Penberthy, MD of Business Against Crime Surveillance Technology, he states that whilst 272 general incidents were recorded by his now 200 CCTV inner city camera system between 26 August and 4 September, less than half involved criminal activities and only one, an armed robbery, would be rated as serious. He records It is very significant to realise that just over two years ago, Joburg was considered practically a no-go area to its residents. Violent crime was rampant with stabbings, shootings and armed robberies seemingly a daily occurrence. It is highly significant that the kind of events being recorded now involve petty and largely opportunistic criminal activities, such as you will find in any major city around the world.
I read Johns comments just after receiving the Institute for Security Studies SA Crime Quarterly. In an article reviewing 2001 Crime Trends, the author, Martin Schonteich states; Contrary to popular belief, the per capita rate of violent crime has since 1994 been consistently higher in the Western Cape than in Gauteng. That is, since 1994 the average resident of the Western Cape has been at greater risk of becoming a victim of recorded violent crime than the average Gauteng resident. So much for the historic reporting of the local media although, even they, have become upbeat about the Citys rebirth. And, in fairness, the Star has stayed right here in the inner city, their presence, if not always their reporting, evidence of their support.
Private Sector Response to the Inner City Renewal Programme. The Inner City section 79 Committee also heard a report this week from Graeme Reid, CEO of the Johannesburg Development Agency as to the growing positive response to the citys revitalisation. Listed were:
- R170 million committed to reinvestment and upgrading in Braamfontein.
- R50 million retail development at Union Square
- New mixed use development over nine sites in Doornfontein.
- Relocation from Durban of an import/export and major printing firm to Jeppe.
- Acquisition of factory premises long vacant also in Jeppe for mixed use development
- Property auctioned in the central city fetching R700 000 above anticipated price
- Increased activity in Newtown property trading in response to the upgrade; five sales in the last 12 months
- MetroMall lettings of formal retail space at R140-00 sq metre
- A-grade office vacancies continue to decline
- R30 million private sector investment in Hillbrow/Berea over past twelve months.
I also hear that an American group are looking to invest one billion rand in the citys real estate, believing that the time is ripe before the upturn really gathers momentum and prices spiral!
Oh well, just another week in a city on its way up!
