19 July 2013: Metropolis in Sophiatown

Today, the Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, Cllr Mpho Parks Tau, launched an Xtreme Park in Sophiatown while closing the annual Metropolis 2013 meeting held in Sandton, Joburg from Tuesday.

At the launch, the Executive Mayor paid tribute to the vibrancy, multi-cultural and multi-racial buoyancy of Sophiatown, a place that became the lightning rod of both the anti-apartheid movement as well as the apartheid government's racially segregated and institutionalised policy of separate development.

In February 1955 over 65 000 residents from across the racial divide were forcibly removed from Sophiatown and placed in separate development areas as they were considered to be too close to white suburbia.

Sophiatown received a 48 hour Xtreme Park makeover courtesy of the City as part of its urban revitalisation and spatial planning programme. Said Mayor Tau: "The Xtreme Park concept was directed at an unused piece of land and turning it into a luscious green park. The park now consists of water features, play equipment for children, garden furniture and recreational facilities.

Since 2007 the city has completed a number of Xtreme Parks in various suburbs including Wilgeheuwel, Diepkloof, Protea Glen, Claremont, Pimville and Ivory Park. As a result, Joburg's City Parks was awarded a gold medal by the United Nations International Liveable Communities award in 2008.

"Today we are taking the Xtreme Parks concept into Sophiatown as part of our urban revitalisation efforts in this part of the city. Our objective is to take an under- utilised space, that is characterized by illegal dumping, graffiti, and often the venue for petty crime and alcohol and drug abuse; and transform it into a fully-fledged, multi-functional park," the Mayor said.

Addressing several hundred Metropolis delegates, Mayor Tau said: "As representatives of the world's major metropolitan areas we have a unique opportunity to, once again, stand in solidarity with the people of Sophiatown as we help to improve its physical beauty and create a tranquil and liveable space for residents."

Metropolis is a global network comprising more than 150 cities from across the world that, for almost 30 years, has provided support to cities, interconnects local leaders and academia with civil society and business and set benchmarks on how cities can be effectively managed and run.

It meets annually to discuss issues garnered towards enhancing development and improving the lives of citizens within an urban development context. This week saw it hold its annual meeting for the first time on African soil in Sandton, Joburg.

The four day event saw over 500 delegates comprising mayors, officials, academics, thought leaders, gender activists, civic society officials and leaders from over 78 cities and 40 countries meet to discuss, among other things, rapid urbanisation, spatial planning, food security, resource resilience, safety and security, caring cities, how to create greener cities, social cohesion and greater citizen engagement and developmental funding models.

Some of the highlights from the week include:

- The South African Cities Network (SACN) comprising mayors and city executives from 21 municipalities met with the Metropolis board to discuss issues of mutual interest such as urbanisation, spatial planning, finances and effective and results- driven management,

- SACN also announced it would be releasing its much-anticipated report on the state of finances of South Africa's municipalities next month;

- Mayor Tau revealed how the city would be placing more emphasis on the use of technology to create safer communities and better safeguard citizens;

- Minister in the Presidency, Trevor Manuel, who delivered the keynote address at the Metropolis opening ceremony, and Gauteng Premier Nomvula Mokonyane announced the establishment of a Centre for Urban Innovation, based in Joburg, which would work closely with the National Planning Commission, to track innovative international urban practices so as to create a best practices platform and benchmarks;

- They also announced that this would be complemented by an Urban Innovation Fund;

- The City of Johannesburg's Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit System (BRT) received a "ten out of ten" for its operation and management by a Metropolis-constituted peer review comprising international scholars and global transport leaders who conducted a comprehensive peer review of the system. The BRT system came into being in 2009 and covers over 25km, primarily between Soweto and the Joburg city centre, and has an average of 42 000 passengers a day. In October it will be increased by a further 18km while other phases will also be introduced in time; and

- Mayor Tau called for "bold decisions" to be taken as the BRT system was an "opportunity to restructure the city" and reduce car usage saying "I think there is a need to disincentivise private vehicle usage".

Mayor Tau asserted that Metropolis meeting was a resounding success with many crucial partnerships between the city and its international counterparts being forged. He said the city was also looking at adopting several successful concepts and programmes used in cities across the globe.

“Cities today are facing multiple problems on a daily basis. Often at times, urban development agendas are inextricably expected to balance the objective of delivering services and ensuring a stable state of affairs at the expense of dealing with social problems of urbanisation. Given the current realities facing cities, it is important that cities strike a fine balance to ensure development, service delivery and improve socio-economic conditions,” he concluded.