PROPERTY owners and developers in Johannesburg’s inner city who are reaping the benefits of the revival of the central business district face mounting antipathy from communities living there.
This emerged in an address yesterday by Ishmael Mkhabela, CEO of the Interfaith Community Development Association, at the launch of residential property manager Trafalgar’s 2006 inner city report.
“We have come to understand that these people are extremely angry and disillusioned about developer- and government-sponsored de velopment in the inner city.
“We also believe that the vast number of these people perceive development as a means of displacing and excluding the poor and less-organised interests from the city, its opportunities and its fortunes,” he said.
Mkhabela said his organisation was afraid that business was fast losing the support of many within the city.
“It is worrying when the stated vision of the city is not embraced by black people who live or work in the inner city.
“The city is still seen as a stubborn expression of white privilege, economic power and continued exploitation of people who occupy vacant or so-called hijacked buildings.”
He said property owners, managers and developers were often cast in a “negative light by the illegal occupants of buildings in the city”.
Mkhabela said the “scourge” of xenophobia in the inner city also had to be stamped out.
“Community development issues which could add value to the lifestyles of tenants living in the buildings, as well as to the long-term performance and returns of the building, could be achieved through consistent rental payments and better tenant retention by addressing the social issues Mkhabela was talking about,” said Trafalgar MD Andrew Schaefer.
He said there were no official statistics on how many black foreigners from other parts of Africa lived in the inner city.
“There could be as many as 150000 foreigners living in Johannesburg’s inner city. The majority are black Africans,” said Schaefer.
He agreed that locals were stereotyping foreigners as “potential troublemakers”.
Schaefer said there was huge demand for affordable accommodation in Johannesburg’s inner city. Property prices for residential flat units were also increasing.
In Berea, the average residential flat unit sold for R33000 in 2000 and had increased to R81000 last year.
“So it’s more than doubled in value from 2000 to 2005,” he said.
Hillbrow’s prices increased more slowly from R31000 in 2000 to R41000 last year, while Yeoville’s average price increased from R45000 to R82000 during the same period.
Schaefer said there was demand for rental accommodation and demand-driven growth was pushing rentals above the inflation rate in Johannesburg. Residential rentals increased 19% over the past two-and-a-half years.
Publisher: Business Day
Source: Nick Wilson
