On the 26th of May 2022 the Executive Mayor, Councillor Mpho Phalatse, and the MMC for Health and Social Development, Councillor Ashley Sauls I, were invited to the site of the future new Bertrams Multipurpose Centre for a soil turning event.
Bertrams is one of the oldest suburbs in our city and will soon boast a shiny new facility offering all the City’s social development products and services to the people of Region F. The skills centre has been serving the community for many years, with sewing, cooking, baking and early childhood development, among other offerings.
The project is being managed by the Johannesburg Development Agency, with the Project Manager explaining that the appointment value for phase one will be R35 million. The project has been broken down into two phases, with the first taking place after the soil turning and focused on demolition and earthworks. This is expected to run until the end of October 2022. Phase two is set to begin on 1 November 2022, with the entire R240 million project expected to be completed by 30 June 2023.
The Executive Mayor, acting in her then capacity as the MMC for Health and Social Development, had condemned the unsafe building in 2018, leading to the facility standing unoccupied since then.
The new centre will include smart libraries, community halls and various community spaces for both the youth and senior citizens. It will also include a bakery and the return of urban farming.
The MMC, addressing the public, agreed that the building had been condemned for good reason as the Executive Mayor’s heart had been to see the City of Johannesburg become a Golden City again.
MMC Sauls I implored all those involved in the construction of the project to execute their tasks with military precision, to produce high-quality work within budget and within the stipulated time frame.
ENDS
For media queries, please contact:
Ewan Botha
Deputy Director: Communications and Stakeholder Management
Office of the MMC for Health and Social Development
083 664 0805
30/05/2022
