Urban decay | Hijacked buildings become crime hotspots
Summary
TLDRIn Johannesburg, urban decay is impacting service delivery and social economics as inner-city buildings become dilapidated and crime hotspots. Angela Rivers from the Johannesburg Property Owners and Managers Association discusses the rapid deterioration over the last decade, the financial implications of hijacked buildings, and the city's ineffective task teams. She emphasizes the need for collaboration between the city and the private sector to address the issue, highlighting the significant loss of property value and the urgent need for safe and secure housing.
Takeaways
- 🏙️ Urban decay in Johannesburg's inner city has been accelerating over the last decade, leading to a significant deterioration in infrastructure and buildings.
- 💔 The hijacking of buildings, particularly those belonging to the municipality or provincial government, is a core issue contributing to the decline of the city center.
- 🔫 Hijacked buildings become crime hot spots, affecting the safety and value of surrounding properties, with incidents of violence and robbery being common.
- 📉 The presence of hijacked buildings leads to high tenant turnover and a decrease in property values, impacting the affordability of housing in the area.
- 📈 A recent revaluation by the city council in July 2023 has seen property values in the inner city increase threefold, significantly affecting affordability for residents.
- 💸 The financial implications of urban decay are severe, with property owners facing increased rates and residents struggling with the rising costs of living.
- 🚨 The city's task team for addressing 'problem properties' has been ineffective, lacking the necessary cooperation from various government departments.
- 🏠 Not all residents of hijacked buildings are criminals; some are there due to the lack of formal tenancy requirements and the need for affordable housing options.
- 🏚️ Many hijacked buildings lack basic utilities like water and electricity, making them unlivable and contributing to the city's failure to provide secure housing.
- 💡 The city is losing revenue from hijacked buildings as they do not receive rates or payments for utilities that are being stolen.
- 🤝 Collaboration between the city and the private sector is essential to tackle the issue of hijacked buildings and urban decay effectively.
Q & A
What is the main topic of discussion in the provided script?
-The main topic of discussion is the issue of urban decay in Johannesburg's inner city, particularly focusing on the impact of hijacked and dilapidated buildings on service delivery and social economics.
How long has the deterioration of Johannesburg's inner city been ongoing according to Angela Rivers?
-Angela Rivers suggests that the deterioration of the inner city has been going on for quite a while, but it has significantly worsened in the last 10 years.
What are the consequences of having hijacked buildings in the inner city, as mentioned by Angela Rivers?
-Hijacked buildings lead to a decrease in property values around them, high tenant turnover, and increased crime, as tenants do not want to stay in buildings near these unsafe structures.
What is the term the city prefers to use instead of 'hijacked buildings'?
-The city prefers to use the term 'problem properties' instead of 'hijacked buildings'.
How has the city of Johannesburg addressed the revaluation of properties in the inner city?
-In July of the current year, the city council implemented their General Valuations Roll 2023, which involved revaluing all properties in Johannesburg, leading to significant increases in property values and rates.
What impact does the increase in property valuation have on the affordable housing market?
-The increased valuations make affordable housing less affordable, as the costs are passed on to tenants, affecting those earning between five and fifteen thousand Rand a month.
What role does the Problem Properties Task Team play in addressing the issue of hijacked buildings?
-The Problem Properties Task Team is supposed to address the issue of hijacked buildings, but Angela Rivers describes it as ineffective due to the lack of coordination between various government departments.
Why is it important for multiple government departments to work together to tackle hijacked buildings?
-Multiple departments such as law enforcement, health, social services, and home affairs are needed to effectively address the complex issues within hijacked buildings, including safety, health, and legal concerns.
How do hijacked buildings affect the city's revenue?
-Hijacked buildings result in the city losing revenue as they do not receive rates or payments for utilities like water and electricity that are being stolen or misused.
What solution does Angela Rivers propose to address the issue of hijacked buildings?
-Angela Rivers suggests that the city needs to work together with the private sector, including property owners and managers with experience in dealing with hijacked buildings, to effectively tackle the problem.
What is the significance of the term 'urban decay' in the context of this script?
-The term 'urban decay' refers to the decline of urban areas characterized by deteriorating infrastructure, crime, and a decrease in property values, which is a central theme of the discussion in the script.
Outlines
🏙️ Urban Decay in Johannesburg's Inner City
The first paragraph discusses the impact of urban decay on service delivery and social economics in Johannesburg's inner city. Angela Rivers from the Johannesburg Property Owners and Managers Association joins the conversation to provide context on the deterioration of the inner city over the last decade. She highlights the issue of wastage and corruption, where funds meant for infrastructure repair are misused, leading to a rise in crime and hijacked buildings. These buildings, often belonging to the municipality or provincial government, negatively affect property values and tenant safety, causing high turnover rates in nearby properties.
📉 Economic Impact of Hijacked Buildings
The second paragraph delves into the economic implications of hijacked buildings. The city council's revaluation in July 2023 has led to a threefold increase in property values, significantly affecting the affordability of housing in the area. The narrative illustrates the case of a developer whose rates account increased drastically, making affordable housing less accessible. The paragraph also addresses the issue of crime in these buildings, which further deteriorates the value of the surrounding area. Angela emphasizes the ineffectiveness of the city's problem properties task team and the need for a collaborative approach involving various government departments to tackle the issue of hijacked buildings. She concludes by stressing the importance of working together with the private sector to address the problem, given the city's current state of deterioration.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Urban Decay
💡Service Delivery
💡Hijacked Buildings
💡Crime Hot Spots
💡Dilapidated
💡Tenant Turnover
💡General Valuations Roll
💡Affordable Housing
💡Problem Properties Task Team
💡Stolen Utilities
💡Private Sector Collaboration
Highlights
Inner city Johannesburg is now associated with dilapidated and hijacked buildings that have become crime hot spots.
Discussion on the impact of urban decay on service delivery and social economics in Johannesburg.
Angela Rivers from Johannesburg Property Owners and Managers Association provides insights on urban decay.
Dilapidation of inner city has worsened significantly in the last 10 years.
Wastage and misuse of funds meant for fixing infrastructure is a major issue.
Hijacked buildings, mostly owned by the municipality or provincial government, are at the core of deterioration.
Properties around hijacked buildings lose value and tenants are reluctant to stay nearby due to safety concerns.
High tenant turnover around hijacked buildings due to crime incidents.
Loss of property value in inner city is significant and alarming.
City council's General Valuations Roll 2023 has led to a threefold increase in property values, affecting affordability.
Example given of a small building's rates account increasing from 15,000 Rand to 50,000 Rand per month.
Hijacked buildings becoming hot spots for criminals, impacting surrounding property values.
The term 'problem properties' is used instead of 'hijacked buildings', seen as an understatement.
Ineffectiveness of the problem properties task team due to lack of coordinated government efforts.
Not everyone in hijacked buildings is a criminal; some are there due to lack of formal tenancy options.
Hijacked buildings result in loss of revenue for the council as they do not receive rates or utility payments.
Collaboration between the council and private sector is necessary to tackle the issue of hijacked buildings.
Private sector has valuable experience in dealing with hijacked properties and can assist the council.
Transcripts
[Music]
welcome back to you slink another joburg
inner city is now associated with
dilapidated and hijacked buildings that
are now crime hot spots let's discuss
the impact on Service delivery and
social economics I'm joined by Angela
rivers from the Johannesburg property
owners and Managers Association this
morning Angela thank you so much for
your time continuing on with our Focus
from yesterday to today about the Urban
Decay that we are unfortunately
witnessing in our inner cities I mean
just take us back in terms of giving us
context in your view when did we really
start seeing more Urban Decay in terms
of our infrastructure our buildings
within our inner cities
good morning thank you so much for
having me on your show
um the deterioration of the inner city
has been going on um for quite a while
I'd say in the last 10 years it really
has deteriorated uh more than we've ever
seen before and for us the the big thing
is the amounts of wastage and that is
going through the city
um and the money that should be used to
fix infrastructure is being stolen or
squandered or misused
um you can see definitely I mean the
majority of the hijacked buildings
within the inner city belong to the
municipality or to the provincial
government and those are those are the
core of the the deterioration because
once you have a hijacked building the
properties around that start to lose
value tenants don't want to stay in the
buildings near hijacked buildings
because they can get robbed and they can
you know we've had a lot of incidences
where people in hijacked buildings are
shooting bullets through buildings that
are well managed and looked after so
refining that um a tenant turnover
around hijacked buildings is very high
and Angela when we talked sorry let me
just come in there when we talk then
about the the the loss of value
obviously there's a monetary value
attached to it I can't even fathom how
much that is in your view what are the
numbers looking like here
the numbers are really scary
um and uh in July this year the city
council implemented their General
valuations role 2023
um which basically they re-evalued all
the properties in Johannesburg I'm sure
a lot of people have got a bit of a
fight when they've got their Council
accounts now in at the end of July and
what we've seen is the majority of our
buildings in the inner city their values
have increased by three increased three
times by the city of Johannesburg to
give you an idea and we have one member
who has a very small building he's a new
developer it's got 30 units his rates
account was 15 000 Rand a month it's now
50 000 ran a month this is the
affordable housing market with people
who are earning between five and fifteen
thousand Rand a month
um so it's not like we're talking about
um you know high-end accommodation this
is affordable housing and it's just not
becoming affordable housing anymore
because these costs ultimately get
passed on to skin in one way or another
yeah does that answer your question yes
yes it does it does um Angela and I'm
also just worried about also these
hijacked Builders since we're talking
about it becoming hot spots uh you know
for criminals I saw you know an article
about the Antiquity municipality having
to demolish a building because it was
operating an illegal Tavern amongst
other things and we know that a lot of
wrongdoing goes on in there is there
anything that the police is doing to
assist when it comes to hijacked
buildings some of the criminal elements
that occur in these buildings because
like you said before they then
deteriorate the value of you know the
other buildings next to it but also the
area in its entity
absolutely and the city does have a they
they don't like to use the word hijack
building so the city prefers the term
problem properties which I think is a
total understatement and they do have a
problem pop properties task team which
has been really ineffective the main
reason being in order for the task team
to be effective and actually get into
these buildings and sort it out you have
to have the peace you've got to have
jmpd for buy law enforcement you have to
have the health departments you have to
have social services you have to have
um the home Affairs departments you need
every single government Department in
order to to tackle a hijacked building
but it's also very important to know to
notes and
um I've seen this quite a lot in a lot
of the conversations that I've had not
everybody that's living in a hijacked
building is a criminal some people are
there purely obesity they don't remit
the requirements of formal tenancy like
payslips and bank statements so this
kind of informal accommodation suits
their and they're able to they've got
somewhere to live which is also shows
the huge downfall in the city for
providing safe and secure housing for
people in their communities and the the
only way to tackle these problem
properties is to actually go in flat by
Flats do by the big thing is a lot of
these properties don't have water they
don't have electricity they are
unlivable and the way that
um the the tenants are treated by the
building hijackers is Criminal the
council doesn't get one cent from a
hijacked building so the council is also
losing money they're not getting rates
they're not getting paid for the water
that's being stolen and they're not
getting paid for this the electricity
that's being stolen so everybody suffers
from hijacked buildings and just before
I let you go you're about to emphasize
the port in terms of what you think
needs to be done uh in the interim then
what do you think can be done to solve
this problem and how long do you really
think fairly it can take
the the
that she needs to understand they cannot
do it alone they mean to the private
sector to help them Jay Perma Joe Palmer
members even non-j permanent members
have years and years of experience in
the inner city and dealing with our own
properties that have been hijacked over
the years and it's very difficult for
them to admit that they need our help or
to I mean I've sat in a meeting with the
council and they're asking to leave
because they they don't want our help
and they need you we have it's the only
way to the only way to tackle hijab
buildings is to work together in fact
anything to do with the city at the
moment because of the deterioration they
have to work with the city with the the
private sector yeah and that that only
solution I will leave it there thank you
so much for adding your voice to this
conversation
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