Derelict living spaces have Joburg officials in a bind

It’s a veritable rabbit warren of twists, turns, and dead ends, constructs – both flimsy and solid – with one way in and seemingly no way out. And that’s just the legal snarl up around 39 Davies Street in Doornfontein, where three children died this week after a wall collapsed on them.

Behind the gaping holes in the wall, which still moves alarmingly when pressure is placed on it, nearly 100 people live in shacks, some brick, some wooden, and it’s cleaner than one would expect in a place with limited services.

The pavement outside the wall where the three children died has been swept clean and people step into the street rather than walk across it.

Bongiwe Magume and her baby Tanka are pictured at the building in Davies Street, Doornfontein, Johannesburg, 13 April 2018. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

Johannes Ngcobo claimed to be the owner of the property, and said he has lived there for 16 years.

“I bought this property, and I’m losing so much money,” Ngcobo said.

He said he bought the property from a “crook” agency, which tried to sell it to someone else while he was buying it. Another company also tried to auction the property, he claimed.

It’s all very messy and the matter was before court, Ngcobo said, adding that he was waiting for the court to decide what it was going to do. He noted there were two banks also apparently interested.

Cracks in the wall are pictured at the building in Davies Street, Doornfontein, Johannesburg, 13 April 2018. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

The mortar between the bricks of the inner wall which collapsed appeared to be more sand than cement, collapsing into dust when squeezed.

Nomzamo Zondo of the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (Seri), which has been at loggerheads with the City of Joburg council over the matter, said she was waiting for a report from a structural engineer.

“We don’t know what their current position is. We were told they have tents and nowhere to put them. They are also uncomfortable providing tents because they know in terms of their disaster management plan, people have to be moved out of tents within 72 hours, to somewhere more permanent and there is nowhere for them to go,” Zondo said.

Seri and city officials are meeting on Tuesday to discuss the way forward.

A young boy plays at the building where three children died in a wall collapse in Davies Street, Doornfontein, Johannesburg, 13 April 2018. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

The city’s Property Hijacking Investigative Unit director Victoria Rammala said they had been engaging the property owner about this matter.

“It is the owners’ responsibility to demolish the property should they wish to do so. In this instance, however, the owner did not indicate such intent,” said Rammala.

“The owner is willing and prepared to redevelop his property, however, he could not do so due to the application for eviction being opposed by Seri.”

There were two issues facing the city when it came to relocation of residents of bad buildings – space and cost. It was for these reasons it would be expropriating abandoned buildings while it looked for ways to partner with the private sector to redevelop these properties.

The interior of a make shift apartment is pictured at a building in Davies Street, Doornfontein, Johannesburg, 13 April 2018. Picture: Tracy Lee Stark

Some residents crammed into the space said they were happy living there, citing low rents and proximity to work, while others were concerned about the ever widening cracks appearing in parts of the decades-old building.

Francis Chigumbu said he came to Johannesburg from the Eastern Cape and was living there with his wife Bongiwe and three children because they couldn’t afford living elsewhere.

He lived on the Davies Street boundary wall, and the collapse left a gaping hole in the wall which let the autumn chill in, and was only going to grow worse.

“My wife and I are not working in a place which pays enough money to even make it onto a low-cost housing list,” said Chigumbu.

– amandaw@citizen.co.za

Also read: City of Joburg could have prevented tragedy – Seri

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