Johannesburg Civic Centre Crisis: R3 Billion Needed to Rebuild Precinct, R1 Billion to Refurbish
- The Johannesburg Civic Centre has been abandoned since September 2023 and is a home for vagrants
- Many buildings at the precinct are abandoned and have been vandalised by vagrants over the years
- South Africans have blamed the African National Congress for the sorry state of the 16-storey building
Source: Getty Images
South Africans are appalled at the current state of the Johannesburg Civic Centre.
The 16-storey building has been abandoned since September 2023 after a second fire broke out, leading it to be declared unfit to occupy.
While the 48,000 staff members now work either from home or other offices, vagrants have now called the Civic Centre home.
City must act fast, says Speaker
Johannesburg Speaker Nobuhle Mthembu recently visited the precinct with her team to assess whether the building needed to be repaired or rebuilt.
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The precinct is comprised of several buildings, the oldest of which is the 16-storey civic building, built in 1975. The newest is the Constance Connie Bapela Council Chamber, built in 2021. Many of the buildings in the precinct were unfit for occupation and home to vagrants, with the council chamber being the only one in use.
"This is our building, and we must look after our own before we go out and try and reclaim other buildings from hijackers,” she said.
She added that councillors needed to take a resolution on the way forward urgently, as the building was becoming a home for homeless people.
City left with two options
Following the visit, the Speaker’s team presented a report to the City regarding the future of the building. The City has been given two options: rebuild or refurbish.
Refurbishing will cost approximately R800 million while demolishing and rebuilding will cost the City close to R3 billion. The precinct would then get new buildings with a more modern look.
South Africans unimpressed with state of buildings
@pipey47 joked:
“It has that ANC look to it🤭.”
@dshongwe said:
“South Africa is falling apart. All of this is because of the ANC of Jacob Zuma.”
@makhanip added:
“ANC’s attempts to hold on to power by all means necessary will eventually be its demise. People look at all these messes and point the finger at one organisation. I see a bloodbath in 2026 for the ANC.”
@Sihle_E_Nkosi said:
“30 years is a short period of time to mess things up so bad.”
@iAmSpreadlove noted:
It's because the tender that was meant for maintenance was given to a Minister's stepson, who then bought Louis Vuitton sunglasses and expensive cars. “
338 government buildings hijacked
The Johannesburg Civic Centre isn’t the only building where vagrants have taken over.
Briefly News recently reported that 338 government-owned buildings were hijacked.
The stat was made public by Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson.
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Source: Briefly News
