By Don Robertson

MANY property owners and developers believe there will be insufficient service provisions in Rosebank and Sandton to provide for the expected growth in these areas when the Gautrain and rapid bus stations are completed.

More than 25 new buildings, hotels, refurbishments and residential projects are either under construction or are planned in the two nodes over the next few years to cater for the expected increase in facilities provided by the new train and bus services.

It is estimated that during peak periods, about 12000 commuters will use the Sandton Gautrain station.

But there are concerns that service facilities such as electricity, water, sewerage and traffic control are already insufficient to meet growing demands.

John Spiropoulos, planner at Kagiso Urban Management, said there “might” be insufficient service infrastructure in these nodes, but, “we really don’t know”.

The City of Johannesburg has set new “envelopes” for growth in these areas in terms of its Urban Development Plan (UDP), which are based on the expected impact of the Gautrain and the Bus Rapid Transport system.

The UDP will also require more detailed planning relating to service infrastructure, transport and the development of open spaces.

Property owners and developers have accordingly approached Kagiso Urban Management to find alternative ways to finance any additional service infrastructure in these nodes.

Kagiso is in discussions with the Johannesburg City Council in the hope of forming a mutually beneficial partnership between the municipalities and the private sector for this reason.

Spiropoulos is confident that these discussions will be fruitful and, with a mandate from the two management districts, plans are afoot to meet with senior officials and politicians to negotiate a solution as soon as possible.

Allegations have been made that rates and taxes raised in Rosebank and Sandton have perhaps been spent in the wrong communities.

Spiropoulos said, however, that spending in Alexandra, for instance, was not wrong.

“Municipalities must prioritise building infrastructure in poor areas, but if it cannot prioritise expenditure in economic growth areas such as Rosebank and Sandton, it must find ways of allowing the private sector to do so and that alternative methods of financing would be required.”

Old Mutual Property Investments, which is the largest property owner in the area, said only it had had no report of a “challenge with services for the Zone 11 development in Rosebank”.

Source: Business Times