By Sibonelo Radebe

The Jo'burg Property Company (JPC) has set its sights on producing "serious" black property investors in a new plan that aims to unlock R20bn worth of new real estate development.

The JPC, which administers property assets on behalf of the Johannesburg City Council, has finalised a plan to develop 13 properties into lively mixed-use nodes.

The initiative is in sync with a bigger facelift tied to the city's new transport infrastructure, which is expected to attract a further R30bn investment in the next five years (see Cover Story November 9 2007).

A high-powered advisory consortium has been appointed to assist in the delivery of the grand plan.

Participants of the consortium include Pentagon Africa Holdings, Blackacres Capital, HSB Associates, and Kgomotso Africa/Africa Venture Partners.

Ernst & Young was part of the consortium but has since withdrawn. The consulting firm this week declined to comment on why it did so.

JPC marketing manager Nisha Moodley says in addition to overseeing the financing of property projects, the advisory consortium will act as a sounding board and will liaise with capital raisers. More importantly, it will run a black economic empowerment (BEE) advisory and support service to eligible bidders.

The JPC's plan has stringent BEE guidelines, which are expected to catapult black ownership of major property assets in the city.

The plan covers 13 properties involving mainly undeveloped land spread across the city from Sandton in the north to Bruma in the east. Tenders for their development have been issued.

In Sandton, the plan is to make the Gautrain Station into a precinct which will include retail, commercial and residential property developments. It includes a hotel and a public open space.

Other sites of the R20bn plan include three pieces of land in the Bruma area and another close to the East gate shopping mall, where another mixed-use development with an estimated initial capital cost of R400m is proposed.

One of the more ambitious proposals is a R1,5bn project to turn the 180 ha piece of land that separates Dainfern - an affluent area - from Diepsloot, which is still mostly informal, into a mixed-income residential and commercial node.

The list for development also includes the Arena Sporting Precinct in Roodepoort, Doornkop Greenfields, Fairlands Development Node, River Park in Sandton, Rietvlei Zoo Farm and the Randburg Civic Precinct.