Electronic Theses and Dissertations (Masters)
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10539/37957
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Item An evaluation of city improvement districts in promoting positive social- spatial structures and management processes: a case study of Hillbrow Ekhaya Improvement District, Johannesburg(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Tepkeny, Gloria; Klug, NeilThis study aims to assess the effectiveness of City Improvement Districts (CIDs) in fostering positive social-spatial structures and management processes within urban areas. Specifically, the study focuses on the Hillbrow eKhaya Improvement District in Johannesburg, South Africa, as a case study. The research utilizes a qualitative research design method approach, combining semi-structured questionnaires, in-depth interviews, observation, photography, reconnaissance visits, and qualitative data analysis assessments and transcriptions to provide a comprehensive understanding of the impact of city improvement districts on the local community and urban management. By analysing the Hillbrow eKhaya Improvement District’s initiatives, successes, challenges, and stakeholders' perceptions, the study seeks to contribute valuable insights into the role of city improvement districts in enhancing urban living conditions and social cohesion. Understanding the intricate relationship between physical urban spaces and social interactions is crucial for urban planners, policymakers, and researchers seeking to create vibrant, inclusive, and liveable cities. By evaluating the Hillbrow eKhaya Improvement District, this study intends to provide insights into the potential of improvement districts to promote positive social- spatial structures and effective management processes in urban areas. The findings of this research could inform urban planners, policymakers, and local communities about the benefits and challenges associated with improvement districts, contributing to more sustainable and liveable cities.Item Urban design coding: A Qualitative Study into the Relevance of Urban Design Coding in Informal Settlements: The Case of Mushroomville Settlement, Centurion, Pretoria, South Africa(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Donga-Matambo, Thandeka; Msingaphantsi, MawaboIn the year 1994, South Africa saw the end of Apartheid and the beginning of a new democratic era. The African National Congress (ANC) came into power and adopted neoliberal policies that favor capitalism, entrepreneurship, a free-market economy and the privatization of some economic sectors. This approach benefited and provided resources to a handful of people at the cost of many – the rich became richer, and the poor became poorer. Today, the commodification of all aspects of life has forced the “urban poor” who cannot afford the city lifestyle to turn to informal means in order to be closer to socio-economic opportunities. Informal settlements have become a major concern to capitalists because they affect investors’ perception of an area and reduce the value of surrounding properties. For a long time, the government’s response to informal settlements has either been to upgrade the settlements in their current location or to evict the residents and relocate them on the urban periphery, far from opportunities, services, facilities and institutions. Unfortunately, the government’s efforts have resulted in the further marginalization and segregation of the poor. This research aims to assess the extent to which urban design codes can be used to redevelop informal settlements into livable, good quality human settlements that are stitched into their existing urban fabric. The Mushroomville Informal Settlement in Centurion, Pretoria will be used as a case study. The research will use qualitative research methods to achieve the set aims. The primary sources of data will include site visits, photography, interviews with an attorney and the informal settlement residents as well as observations of the residents within their natural setting. The secondary data will be sourced through desktop research on site-related court cases, newspaper articles, policies, precedents and other relevant literature. It is expected that the research findings will show that urban design codes can be a useful instrument in redeveloping informal settlements into livable settlements with good quality housing.Item Exhumation of forgotten souls: Indigenous knowledge systems and sustainable design approach to Patlong Village Relocation and place of memory(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Matlanyane, Samson Matlokotsi; Matsipa, MphoSince the 1940s, rapidly increasing demand for green energy globally along with water supply demands in growing urban areas have led to de- velopment of hydropower dams and reservoirs at an unprecedented scale across the globe. Although hydro facilities are a relatively clean energy, they have environmental and social impact at country, basin, and regional levels. At country level, construction of these mega hydro-projects comes at a great cost to directly affected communities as they cause involuntary dis- placement, lose of rangelands and means of sustaining livelihood in gener- al. Furthermore, existing social links are broken leaving indigenous knowl- edge systems at risk of erasure. Lastly, affected communities are usually undercompensated, relocated, and hosted in other villages or moved to new designated settlements where resources are already limited thus causing a further strain on such resources. Not only do said hydro-projects have negative impacts in their respective countries, unsustainable management of river flows and unequal use of the Basin’s water lead to conflicts between riparian states. Environmen- tally, damming of valleys negatively affect fauna and flora upstream by flooding and inadequate water downstream. The Lesotho Highlands wa- ter, a 4 phased bilateral agreement between Republic of South Africa and Kingdom of Lesotho is no exception to these negative impacts. This research Report investigated how indigenous knowledge of material and social culture can inform new relocation stratergies which will help anchor a newly developed village. Through recording of oral and literary history, mapping, and conducting semi-structured interviews at Patlong, an understanding of the community’s current livelihood was established. Based on the author’s findings, an Architectural intervention in a form of a settlement anchored by an agricultural skills development centre, a seed bank and a commercial retail node was proposed to ensure a sustainable relocation strategy.Item Spirit of place: demystifying the significance of sangoma practices in our communities, education, and well-being, while looking at how they can exist in modern spaces(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Pitse, DikelediWith the evolution of technology and the modern man, sacred spiritual practice and African tradition has become lost amongst our people. Ancient communities took pride in preserving ancestral teachings and rituals that kept us connected and grounded before the rise of modern medicine as we know it. The role of the sangoma/traditional healer in these communities was seem as extremely significant, in that they can communicate with our forefathers. These modes of communication provide clarity on where we come from, as well as where we should go. Therefore, I will be looking at ways in which this sacred practice can be preserved and have a legacy in the modern environment. Additionally, I will show that indigenous knowledge can form part of higher education. Lastly, through research and interviews, I will show the types of spaces that are required in urban the environment for traditional spiritual practices to remain part of everyday life.Item Community (mis)participation in Urban Green Space restoration: A case of the Wilds Nature Reserve, Johannesburg(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Marere, Nozipho P.; Leuta, TsepangThere is a notable rise in privatized urbanism in South Africa, a trend which re/produces urban inequalities. This research sought to determine whether community involvement in urban green space restoration follows the same trend of private urbanism resulting in an apartheid legacy of separate development, exclusion and segregation. The research followed the qualitative case study approach. Data collection instruments used were semi-structured interviews, with a sample size of twenty-two individuals, selected through a combination of convenience and purposive sampling. Participant observations, which were done over a period of three months, also supplemented by photographs of biophysical elements of note highlighted by participants through transect walks. Findings from this research established that community participation at the Wilds is informal. Challenges in the way of a working and effective public-private partnership include power dynamics, lack of trust and bureaucracy. However, in the absence of a formal working relationship, a novel form of co-production occurs resulting in spaces of hybrid character. Hybrid spaces are therefore the medium of (re)production of power, privilege, exclusion and inequality. Main groups excluded from participation in restoration include Black people, women and children. Their exclusion is based on social class or income level, level of education and awareness and vulnerability of physical assault and abuse. A recommendation for future research is an exploration of local systems of innovation by young people in Urban Green Space development and management.Item The Interface between the Middle- Class Neighbourhood and the Local State: A Case Study of the Melville Precinct Plan, Johannesburg(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Hendricks, Denver MarkItem Communal Equity: Reimaging Educa4onal Infrastructure in Soweto(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Pillay, David JonathanIn defining the urban environments of modern-day South Africa, the remnant history of separate development has so deeply disrupted the equality between our communities that they remain a challenge today. While there are efforts towards seeking a balance between communities, identified in the City of Johannesburg’s nodal development schemes, the approach through which they are carried out may be exhibiting limiting results. Equal development can often be implemented by replicating rigid templates of the ideal infrastructure across communities. These infrastructure which perform essential functions neglect the opportunity to adapt and evolve to the context and history of the populations they serve. Within this research report, the City of Johannesburg’s development of Jabulani, Soweto, will be assessed and their need for improved facilities and access within primary schools will be highlighted and addressed through an architectural intervention which reimagines educational space around the principle of equity.Item Future Living: Exploring decarbonization in a mixed-use development for Waterfall Cit(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Tsang, Chun; Van Rensburg, Ariane JanseIn this human-dominated ecosystem, the intensive use of fossil fuels is increasing carbon emis- sions. The environmental implications have emerged as a worldwide concern. Despite extensive research on the reduction of carbon emissions, this issue remains a persistent dilemma, with energy generation for transport and built environment sectors being the largest contributors. Cur- rent solutions, such as using batteries for energy storage, introduces additional sustainability problems. In built environment, sustainability is often overlooked in comfortable lifestyle develop- ments. This research explores alternative approaches through qualitative methods and proposes a mixed-use development at Waterfall City as a creative outcome. The study investigates the viability of integrating green hydrogen technology to create a comprehensive development that addresses living, working and transportation needs. Through this research, developers will be made aware of the implications of prioritising commercial gain and market appeals over a healthy environment. The outcome is to offer an innovative model that appeals to client and developers seeking forward thinking, sustainable solutions.Item Fetching fietas: Reclaiming memory through Urban Design(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Kalla, Zakeeya; Makhubu, Jabu AbsalomThis Project aims to bridge the gap between an urban context that acknowledges the past with a constantly evolving urban fabric through the lens of memory. The objectives are to understand Apartheid planning and its consequences in terms of forced removals and the impact thereof on the current urban fabric of Fietas Johannesburg. This project will also study the city of Johannesburg’s initiatives thus far and intended, for renewal and upgrading of Fietas to enable a strategy to assimilate the current and evolving urban landscape of Fietas with the memory of its past. The project will be focused on Fietas in Johannesburg, south Africa. The research will focus predominantly on site analysis and overall observations gained from site visits and secondary sources of information such as previous projects, frameworks from the city and existing data such as zoning and land uses etc. This information together with interviews with previous community members (5 interviews in total) will help guide the design development towards a framework that incorporates the past memory of Fietas with its current and con- stantly evolving urban fabric.Item Ruins as Record: Reconstructing narratives on a former miners' compound in Germiston(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Morkos, VerenaPost-apartheid South Africa contains within it the embedded and residual pain of an oppressive regime. Untold narratives are contained within its scarred landscape. Hidden amongst an overgrown landscape, dilapidated concrete and brick walls protrude, presencing forgotten narratives. Once a miners’ compound, owned by Simmer and Jack, these material fragments contain traces of the past. They are archives of erased memories and bodies. One walks amongst the grass-enshrouded ruins as an architect, archaeologist and archivist. Through the lens of architecture and archaeology, the ruins are not seen as static remnants of the past but as a means to understand the past lived experiences of the miners who inhabited the space. The absences among the ruins are a dynamic void within a spatiotemporal realm, bridging the past and the present. This liminal space allows the viewer to interpret the past in a continually evolving manner, allowing for the reconstruction of counter-narratives. The ruins tell a story of the everyday living conditions of thousands of miners on the Witwatersrand. The compound was a machine of oppression and control. In many ways, it acted as a panopticon; it made prisoners out of labourers. The compound barely had the bare necessities to keep the miners alive enough to work. They lacked basic amenities, freedom and were not given the chance to have a voice. Looking at the present-day context of the site, it is central to many industrial factories with blue-collar and precariat workers. They face various challenges in their everyday lives, such as commuting times, inadequate amenities and the need for representation. Their everyday lives are considered and are further explored in terms of ‘tactics’ and ‘strategy’ as written about by Michel De Certeau. Strategy is a system of control imposed on a group of people, and tactics are a way that the ‘everyman’ escapes the control in their daily lives. Looking at the past with the current context of the site raises the question: How can a site of control serve as a canvas for the reconstruction of forgotten memories and the inscription of present-day workers’ counter- narratives? This thesis looks at juxtaposing the site’s history by transforming it into a site that stimulates dialogue between the past’s traumas and the present-day workers’ counter-narratives. The architectural intervention gives control back to the worker, opposing the past conditions where workers were oppressed and controlled. The main programs include a workers’ centre and a counter-archive. This represents the narratives of the present-day worker and the forgotten narratives of the miners. It is an ever-growing archive of the past and the present. Additionally, there are exhibitions representing the everyday life of a mine worker; this leads to the representation of the modern day worker, which takes place amongst the ruins. This allows for the intertwining of new narratives with the old