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Progress in the inner city is impressive, particularly regarding the Bus Rapid Transit system. And the edge structures around Beyers Naude Square will be demolished soon.
 SPENT the first of my "one week a month" periods in Jozi last week and came back invigorated by what I'd seen. I think my visits will definitely keep the adrenaline flowing - a sort of a monthly "fix"!
One of my activities was to take a group on an inner city tour, nearly all of whom hadn't been in the inner city for many years. They were quite stunned - positively - at what they saw. One of the comments that was repeated on a number of occasions was that they couldn't believe how clean the inner city was - admittedly, related to the areas to which I took them.
I was disappointed to find that all the edge structures to Beyers Naude Square were still standing. However, Lael Bethlehem, the chief executive of the Johannesburg Development Agency, assured me that they were slated for removal from 1 April.
I was impressed to see the progress made with the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) roadworks but I must still admit that my apprehension regarding the impact of the system on the inner city remains. I support the principle of a public transport system 110 percent, but remain unconvinced regarding the efficacy of this particular model in relation to the inner city.
I still see it as a South American model - where boulevards are generous and wide - being forced on to the narrow grid of an 1886 mining camp. However, I really hope it works as we need an efficient, effective, safe and cheap public transport system.
BRT concerns
A new BRT concern for me, a bit late in the day I know, was when I saw the BRT station being erected in Market Street. On one side is the City Hall (provincial legislature) built between 1912 and 1914 and on the other 90 Market Street (1899/1902) adjacent to Meischke's Building (1912/13). The ultra modern steel and glass station, in my opinion, doesn't sit well with the marvelous elevations of yesteryear.
This is undoubtedly the result of economics - all the BRT stations are identical to reduce costs - as well as the time pressures placed on the implementation of the system because of the Confederation Cup and 2010. While agreeing that the sports events have provided a wonderful opportunity for achieving many objectives that we probably would have waited years to otherwise achieve, I wonder how many white elephants the delayed response to the events will cause!
I see I wrote about 2010 originally in May 2004 (Citichat 16/2004) - that's five years back yet we only placed the order for the buses during the last couple of months! And, as I write this, sections of the taxi industry are striking - I know how difficult it is to deal with informal industries, but five years is a long time.
Talking to a number of inner city folk about the effects of the economic crunch, the general feeling is that the tempo of physical activity hasn't slackened but new investment has definitely slowed down - a scenario that one would have expected. The Zurich Re building in Ferreirasdorp has topped out and provides an interesting iconic shape; work has started on site on the Atterbury development in Newtown with a number of buildings already demolished to make way for this massive retail/commercial project; the Absa project in the east of the inner city and the FNB project in its west are both well out of the ground and making rapid progress while the OPH developments in Fox Street are moving apace.
In the centre of the inner city (corner Plein and Bree streets), the city's third (?) cathedral is being built - this one a 7 000 seater for the Universal Church. It has also built a cathedral in Soweto. There seems to be a lot of activity on the AFHCO and City Props developments (I see Afhco has also bought the old Stuttafords building which it is restoring into offices and ground floor retail).
Provincial government precinct
I noted hoardings around some of the buildings procured by the provincial government (those saved from demolition) and understand that all the interiors of the buildings are being refurbished. Aengus Lifestyle Properties has purchased the residential investment portfolio of ApexHi for R232-million. Interestingly, its chief executive, Richard Rubin, says: "In contrast to the property sales market, rentals in the city are booming ... We're still generating returns of more than 13 percent with rental escalations of 8 percent up to twice a year."
I believe that work has again commenced on the Urban Ocean development corner of Rissik, Market and Commissioner streets but there appears to be no sign of life on any of its other developments - Corner House, CNA, Shakespeare House, 1 Rissik Street, et al. There is also no sign of life on the Old Mutual "Palace" development, which is understandable given the economic climate (it requires a large anchor tenant) but it cannot leave restoring the Barbican for much longer, as is the case with the "Irish Barracks", which I hear Public Works is going to restore.
The balance of development on Constitution Hill appears to be in limbo - the Rissik Street Post Office still looks forlorn and decaying. However, I also hear that the Public Works Department has agreed to purchase the building from the City and refurbish it for the provincial legislature. Don't hold your breath on this one!
For me the most exciting news since I last wrote has been the action that the Joburg metro police (JMPD) has taken. An editorial I read commented that it appears in South Africa as though real action and implementation only follows the suspension of senior officials; then their subordinates are able to perform!
There can be no reason for the total lack of response by the metro police for all these years to the pleas and criticism of their inaction in implementing the law in regard to traffic infringements (other than cellphone usage). Jack Mabaso, who is running Operation Nomakanjani, is reported as saying: "Look at the impact the operation has made in just one week. The traffic is flowing."
Imagine the impact if the Joburg metro police had done this from day one! The results sound great but, as I've always queried, why do we have to have a specific operation to implement what is in fact the organisation's day-to-day business? Surely every day should be a nomankanjani day? Please JMPD, don't let this be a once off intervention with the media lauding that X number of people were arrested etc and then slump back to our old "so who cares?" attitude.
Brazil
Someone sent me some articles from the Christian Science Monitor about crime in South America in which there is some interesting and pertinent comment (especially the very last one).
"Crime has fallen across Brazil in recent years, thanks to an improved economy, tougher police presence, and restrictions on guns and alcohol. While these factors have helped Vila Boa - which is 100 miles northeast of Brasília, the capital - many also attribute the town's drastic transformation to Mayor de Brito's efforts to tackle the causes of violence, rather than violence itself.
‘The priority was making people's lives better,' de Brito says. ‘I knew that if we improved the quality of life, then we'd reduce crime.'
"De Brito, who has showered the town with public works programmes and social services, says his first aim was to implement public policies designed to ‘help raise self esteem and give people hope".
"The police have also become more visible. In Rio de Janeiro there is a major move to transform a city famous for its ‘anything goes' outlook into a metropolis where laws have meaning again.
‘We Cariocas are famous and proud of our informality, but it had become illegality, too,' Zuenir Ventura, a popular columnist and author, says of Rio's decline into one of the world's most crime-ridden cities. ‘There was no respect for public places, no respect for noise levels, no respect for traffic laws, no respect for rules of any kind.
‘It's going to be difficult to change because you have to change the whole culture. It takes time but you have to start somewhere and we're starting now.'
"Rio, according to most observers here, lost its way as authorities turned a blind eye to lawlessness. Bit by bit the city became a place where anything goes, from street prostitution in tourist areas to drug trafficking in favelas, or slums, to the almost universal flouting of traffic laws.
"When the neighbourhood's going downhill and no one cares about it, it sends a loud message that people can get away with whatever they want. No one is watching it, no one cares about the neighbourhood.
"Almost every day, city officials in Rio fan out and detain unlicensed vendors on beaches, tow off vehicles lacking the proper registrations, and remove street children and homeless adults from main thoroughfares.
"Illegally constructed buildings are being bulldozed and unlicensed billboards have been torn down. Hundreds of tons of pirated merchandise have been seized. The scale of the operation to date means that few Cariocas remain untouched. Many fear the plan is just another example of what Brazilians call fogo de palha, or kindling fire.
"Many such campaigns have been started by newly elected officials, causing both heat and light. But once the fire dies down, authorities lose interest and things return to normal."
Let's hope that the JMPD's good work is not going to be fogo de palha!
Ciao, Neil
Advertising on Johannesburg maps
Sometime ago I expressed my concern at the apparent lack of information regarding 2010 activities and opportunities and was advised that there were in fact a number of initiatives that were being finalised.
These were, in fact, part of the campaign now being advertised by Visa. One of the initiatives involves producing city maps for 2010 and James Delaney from Moja Marketing advises that there are advertising opportunities associated with the maps - contact him should you want more information on
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