The Gauteng Provincial Government has intensified inspections and security measures at several state-owned buildings in the Johannesburg central business district as authorities grapple with decades of decay, illegal occupation, and mounting safeguarding costs.
The intervention follows an inspection led by Gauteng infrastructure MEC Jacob Mamabolo, who conducted a walkabout with a multidisciplinary team of built-environment professionals earlier on Thursday.
Restoration drive
Provincial government spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said the inspections form part of a broader strategy to protect public property and return abandoned buildings to productive use.
“The Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development continues to assess and monitor the condition of government-owned properties in the Johannesburg Central Business District as part of a broader programme to safeguard public assets and ensure that these buildings are returned to productive use,” said Mhlanga.
He explained that the deterioration of the inner city is tied to long-term economic shifts that hollowed out the once-vibrant business district.
“The decline of the inner city is closely linked to the structural changes in the Johannesburg economy,” said Mhlanga.
“As gold mining activity declined and major corporations began relocating their headquarters and investments to northern nodes from the late 1980s and 1990s onwards, the CBD experienced sustained disinvestment and urban decline.”
Costly endeavour
He said safeguarding unused buildings is now consuming significant public funds.
“For example, the cost of securing the Bank of Lisbon site alone amounts to about
R200 000 per month,” said Mhlanga.
“These costs are unavoidable in the interim, as leaving unused buildings unsecured would expose them to criminal activity, vandalism and illegal occupation.”
The intervention measures come after a Sunday World investigation revealed that the Gauteng provincial government is paying more than R34-million a month in rent for office buildings leased from private landlords, despite many of them standing empty. Some of these building don’t even have security guards.
At the same time, at least 41 government-owned buildings in Johannesburg and Tshwane remain abandoned and unused, with taxpayers still footing the bill for security, maintenance, rates and taxes.
Leased properties deserted
Some leased properties, including buildings on Fox Street and Eloff Street in Johannesburg, have been largely vacant after departments adopted remote working.
Premier Panyaza Lesufi previously announced a forensic probe into the leases, but the investigation has not yet been concluded.
Authorities were also confronted with a grim discovery at the site recently.
“The recent discovery of a deceased person at one of the sections of the Bank of Lisbon site has once again highlighted the complex challenges associated with securing vacant or partially unused government facilities in the inner city,” Mhlanga said.
Integrated precinct model
Despite these challenges, government plans to redevelop the properties through an integrated precinct model rather than isolated building upgrades.
“The Bank of Lisbon building remains one of the most significant government assets in the Johannesburg CBD, but the Gauteng Provincial Government’s approach is not limited to the redevelopment of a single building,” he said.
Mhlanga stated that Lesufi has already announced that the province will work with the Development Bank of Southern Africa and the Gauteng Infrastructure Financing Agency to explore redevelopment options and unlock investment for the project.
“The redevelopment programme will pursue a public-private partnership transaction model, which will allow the province to attract private sector capital, expertise and innovation while ensuring that these strategic public assets are utilised for the benefit of the people of Gauteng,” said Mhlanga.
He added that the province would continue updating the public as progress unfolds on the redevelopment of the Bank of Lisbon and the broader government precinct in the Johannesburg inner city.
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