Unlocking Soweto as a True City District: The case of the Vilakazi Precinct
Date
2023-12
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Abstract
Soweto is a segregated township which is a product of the apartheid spatial planning legacy. It boasts a population of approximately 1.3 million people. The residents largely consist of lower economic class with indications of a rapidly growing middle class. Its emphasis over the past two decades has been to improve its connectivity, mixed use activities, social infrastructure, and consolidated public spaces. The high population densities and the low built form densities offer a latent potential for densification strategies around established nodes and the recently developed Transit Orientated Development. Focusing on the public transport routes would allow for much more accessible mixed-use nodes which majority are located near strong inter-modal facilities. The focus and strengthening of the existing economic activities would increase and diversify job opportunities for residents. This type of economic strategy would celebrate locally owned small scale and informal businesses located along streets as opposed to large businesses such as malls and other large-scale developments. The Orlando urban hub is home to two Nobel Prize winners Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu. Winnie Mandela’s House, Orlando stadium and the Hector Pieterson Memorial are located a stone’s throw away from the well-known tourist attraction node, Vilakazi Street. These landmarks create a compelling urban node that is accessible from the Johannesburg CBD via the recently upgraded Klipsruit Valley Road and Mooki Street and the Empire Perth corridor. In the Johannesburg Spatial Development Framework 2040 this node is recognized as a Secondary urban hub. This forms part of the basis as I choose it for my focus area. The potential of this area allows for various opportunities and issues to address, namely: the connectivity of amenities, economic potential, built form density, land productivity, development of social infrastructure and consolidated public spaces.
Description
A research report proposal submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture (Professional), in the School of Architecture and Planning, in 2023.
Keywords
Soweto, Township redevelopment, Sustainable, City District, Cultural Heritage, Urban development, African urban design, UCTD
Citation
Qwabe, Batatu Bahle. (2023). Unlocking Soweto as a True City District: The case of the Vilakazi Precinct. [Master's dissertation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg]. WIReDSpace. https://hdl.handle.net/10539/38861