MyJHB

Stuff from Johannesburg

City of Joburg closes a road in Roodepoort due to illegal mining

Johannesburg in the news:

  1. City of Joburg closes a road in Roodepoort due to illegal mining: The City of Johannesburg (COJ) has been forced to close Iridium Street between Randfontein Road and Penny Road in Roodepoort due to illegal … – Google Alert – Johannesburg
  2. Fodor's Investigates: What Is This Glamorous Bird and Where Can I See It?: You'll begin in Durban, and end in Johannesburg, and see all sorts of birds (around 400 different species) including the elusive bird, and my personal … – Google Alert – Johannesburg
  3. Saudi state defense firm pens deal with South Africa's Paramount: JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) and South Africa's Paramount Group have signed a collaboration agreement … – Google Alert – Johannesburg
  4. Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp experiencing problems: JOHANNESBURG – Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp were seemingly unresponsive on Wednesday both in South Africa and around the world. – Google Alert – Johannesburg
  5. South Africa's rand steady as trade woes hit EM currencies, stocks dip: JOHANNESBURG, July 3 (Reuters) – South Africa's rand was little changed late on Wednesday, struggling for momentum along with stocks as worries … – Google Alert – Johannesburg

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Have you tried: Whale and Dolphin Watching in Algoa Bay?

Did you know this about Johannesburg? In 1964 the Johannesburg Botanical Garden was established in the suburb of Emmarentia. The Emmarentia Dam forms part of the Garden. The Garden is best known for its roses.

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Ponte City: Transformation

As the “white flight” of the 1980s and 90s drained the inner city of capital, Ponte City underwent a dramatic and terrifying transformation. By the late 1990s, the building had become a “vertical slum” and a symbol of urban decay. It was famously “hijacked” by gangs; the retail levels were stripped, and the building became a fortress for drug dealing and human trafficking. The most haunting image from this era was the central core. Originally designed to be a light-filled courtyard, it became a literal trash heap. Residents on the upper floors would throw their refuse into the center of the building rather than taking it down. At its worst point, the trash in the core reached five stories high—a mountain of rotting debris, discarded furniture, and even, legend has it, the remains of those who had fallen or jumped.

During this period, the reputation of Ponte was so toxic that there was a serious proposal in 1998 to turn the entire skyscraper into a vertical prison. The plan was eventually scrapped, but the building remained a “no-go zone” for nearly a decade. The turnaround began in the mid-2000s when developers New Metro Property Group and later Dlala Nje began a massive, painstaking refurbishment. They cleared out the tons of trash from the core, restored the lifts (which had often been out of order, forcing residents to climb 50 flights of stairs), and implemented strict security protocols.