“Very Valid Comments”: SA Reacts to Cape Town Man’s Rant About Abandoned Athlone Power Station

• Cape Town resident Johan de Meyer posted a Facebook video criticising years of inaction at the abandoned Athlone Power Station
• De Meyer said the city approved a new airport in two years but left Athlone Power Station idle for decades
• Mzansi flooded the comments, joking the city would rather build a data centre than help the community

Cape Town resident Johan de Meyer posted a Facebook video on 27 July 2026 criticising the city for leaving Athlone Power Station empty for over two decades. The vacant site sits along the N2 highway, close to Langa, Athlone and Pinelands.

De Meyer said he refuses to live in a neighbourhood where everyone looks and thinks the same. He pointed to Athlone Power Station as proof that Cape Town keeps communities separated instead of building spaces that bring people together.

Mzansi reacts to the rant

He compared the stalled site to the Cape Winelands Airport, which he said was approved within just two years. Athlone Power Station, by contrast, was decommissioned by the city almost 20 years ago and still stands unused.

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De Meyer also referenced the missed opportunity to upgrade Athlone Stadium for the 2010 World Cup. He said doing so could have lifted the wider Cape Flats area at the time.

The power station stopped generating electricity in 2003, and its cooling towers were demolished in 2010. A provisional heritage order placed on the site in 2022 has since complicated redevelopment plans, with the city taking Heritage Western Cape to court over the matter.

De Meyer said affordable housing promises from the city often amount to tiny studio units at high monthly rents. He questioned whether Cape Town will ever commit to an ambitious, integrated development on the land.

Mzansi flocked to the comment section with strong opinions of their own. Some raised concerns about foul smells that could affect nearby residents if development proceeds. Others pointed out plans for a golf course estate across from the same site.

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One commenter said the area includes a sacred cultural site near Langa that must be protected. Another noted the city reportedly pays a security company R250,000 monthly just to guard the empty building.

Watch the Facebook video below:

Source: Briefly News