The agency, on behalf of the City of Johannesburg, held the meeting at Norwood Primary School to introduce the process that will ultimately lead to the production of the Grant Avenue Precinct Plan.
The plan will guide future development along Grant Avenue in Norwood.
The professional team, appointed by the JDA to manage the planning process, is led by Albonico Sack Metacity Architects and Urban Designers and includes urban managers from RMS Corporate Solutions, traffic engineers from the WSP Group and economists from Demacon.
The key to the success of the precinct plan, however, does not lie in the hands of the professionals alone, but rather in the many hands of the people who make up the Norwood community.
The City of Johannesburg, through the JDA, aims to ensure that any physical upgrades to Grant Avenue are made in collaboration with the needs of the existing and future community that not only live in Norwood and surrounding areas but who also work, shop and commute on and around Grant Avenue.
At the launch, the JDA-appointed consulting team leader, Monica Albonico of ASM Architects and Urban Designers, stressed that the plan is not about changing the avenue, but rather about enriching it. Grant Avenue already plays host to a number of retailers, restaurants, residents and businesses and it is vital to the success of the area that these offerings are enhanced to make the high street even more vibrant and inviting.
The objective of the process is to provide a platform for engagement which enhances the economic and social capital of Grant Avenue. For this reason, a number of project meetings and workshops will be held with members of the public. To this end, volunteers from the local community were invited to join an action committee to play an active role in formulating this plan.
The project team would like to encourage members of the public to voice their ideas and suggestions on how to upgrade Grant Avenue, either by e-mail, Facebook or face-to-face when street activations occur.
Details: MJackson@jda.org.za
