MyJHB

Stuff from Johannesburg

Powering our way out of the carbon economy and into a green hydrogen future

Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa in the news:

  1. Powering our way out of the carbon economy and into a green hydrogen future: The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Competition has mandated the Industrial Development Corporation to be the commercialisation champion for South Africa’s hydrogen economy. It will look to partner … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  2. Local manufacturer produces discreet armouring for passenger cars: An increased concern for the safety of people in light passenger vehicles is driving local safety glass manufacturer South African Bullet Resistant Glass (SABRG) to extend its operations to the full … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  3. Joburg’s Weltevreden Park residents fix potholes themselves for R10k: If you’re a Joburg resident, you might have noticed the untended potholes in the area where you live. The Panorama Residents Association (PRA) in Roodepoort to the west of Joburg says it tried every … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  4. UAE- Emirates suspends flights to Johannesburg: Dubai’s flagship airline Emirates has announced a suspension of flights from South Africa until April 30, 2021, in line with directives that restrict the entry of travellers originating from South … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  5. Weather Watch: Thundershowers expected in Pretoria on Friday: Most parts of Gauteng can expert partly cloudy but warm weather conditions on Friday. GAUTENG: A partly cloudy Johannesburg’s temperatures will peak at 26°C. Pretoria can expect thundershowers and a … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews

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Have you tried: Reach Trust for Solar and Building Management?

Did you know this about Johannesburg? The enormous Carlton Centre, built at a cost of R88 million, contained a fifty-storey office tower, the thirty-storey luxury Carlton Hotel, a five-storey Garlicks department store, three-and-a-half-acre public plaza with a two-story underground shopping centre beneath it and parking garages with space for 2000 cars. The Carlton Hotel (Johannesburg) opened for business on October 1, 1972.

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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.