A Research Report submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree in Master of Science in Town and Regional Planning, University of the Witwatersrand, 2016 / Public open spaces such as parks provide vibrancy to the ordinary city by means of providing spaces for the community for recreational, health and leisure activities. A sustainable public open space provides an opportunity for a city to become more sustainable where a public open space is more than a space for the community. This research aims at developing a set of principles that may be adopted by the Johannesburg Metropolitan Open Space System (JMOSS) in order to create sustainable public open spaces. The objectives of the research report include unpacking various debates regarding the use, users and definition of public open spaces, identifying what the existing principles are for open spaces as used by JMOSS, identifying where the parks and vacant parcels of land are in the Sandton and surrounding area, identifying what makes a public open space coherent, contextual and co-existent, identifying the shortfalls of the public open spaces in Sandton in terms of their coherency, co-existence, contextuality and sustainability, and identifying local and international precedents of Sustainable Public Open Spaces. The nature of this research report will include qualitative research where in depth interviews, photographs, mapping and case studies will be used in order to develop the principles for sustainable public open spaces. Two main concepts will be drawn on to develop the principles for sustainable public open spaces. Firstly, the concept of sustainable public open spaces by Reiter (2004) whereby the three principles of coherence, co-existence and contextuality are used. Secondly, the concept of sustainability as discussed by Gedikli (n.d.) where sustainable urban development incorporates social justice, sustainable economies, and environmental sustainability. Therefore, the concept of sustainability is the focus of how public open spaces can become more resilient, adaptable, efficient and effective spaces within the city for the public to use, by developing a set of principles for sustainable public open spaces. This research report culminates in the development of a set of principles for sustainable public open spaces, entitled “The Three Cs for Sustainable Public Open Spaces”. These principles can be applied on a generic scale but require guidelines in the context in which they are applied. Therefore, these principles are derived alongside guidelines for the context of the public open spaces within and around the Sandton CBD. / MT2017

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Architecture (Professional) to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Architecture and Planning at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / The aim of the facility being designed is to focus on the resident by utilizing healing architecture, the notion that architectural elements and design effect ones well being. The disease Tuberculosis will be used as a platform for this exploration. After much research, it is evident that the Tuberculosis (TB) problem is worse today due to inadequate health care facilities and ineffective treatment methods, which do not handle the issue with the urgency it deserves. Currently, TB is treated for a very limited period of time in hospitals. Once this time is up, most patients are able to return home where they have to be self medicated. This is a dangerous, expensive and unreliable practice, as neglecting to take ones medication regularly can result in other strains of TB being developed. This is clearly a weak and irresponsible method of treatment, and therefore this report proposes that the health sector returns to the traditional methods of treating the disease, which is through isolation and a long period of confinement in a recovery setting. This investigation will be performed through analysing forms of health architecture and how to achieve a humane space for long term patients. Plants featured strongly in this investigation, and therefore research into the role planting has in healing architecture has been emphasised. / XL2018

A research report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Science in Town and Regional Planning at the school of architecture and planning to the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2016 / Mining and the mining experience is one that has been written about extensively in academia. The history of mining in South Africa has not only shaped the physical landscape of the country but has shaped peoples understanding of the different spaces. The changing dynamics of mining, especially gold mining has played a role on the different experiences in contemporary South Africa. The decline in employment and production in the sector has meant that people in these gold mining towns have had to adapt to the changing times. The concept of resilience allows the research to view spaces such as that of Khutsong to see how people in such places are able to be resilient and the factors impacting on their resilience. / MT2017

Thesis is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Town and Regional Planning) to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / Focusing on Zimbabwean migrants in Johannesburg, this thesis engages the ways in which diverse groups and individuals construct and negotiate spaces in the city. I have looked at how Zimbabwean migrants spatially respond to the regulatory and socio-economic environments within which they lead their everyday lives in Johannesburg. I emphasize the theme of heterogeneity, specifically highlighting the differentiated nature of Zimbabwean immigrants living in South Africa and discuss their movements and spatial identities. Theoretically, I have combined de Certeau's conception of space as represented by the schema of “strategies” of the powerful and the “tactics” of the subordinate with Bourdieu's concept of “habitus”, which operates within a field of social forces that are responsible for, and the result of, its emergence. Following my empirical engagements within the context of Johannesburg, I observe that, the initial decision by Zimbabwean migrants to move to South Africa, be it in search of work opportunities or forced by political circumstances, enable a structure that predisposes them (migrants) to continued mobility. Firstly, as transnational migrants who engage in frequent short term and long term movements between Zimbabwe and South Africa. Secondly, as transient residents of Johannesburg who frequently change residential addresses yet remain largely within the same spaces where they first arrive. Thirdly, as de Certeau's ordinary man who walks the city while engaged in everyday activities such as, shopping, going to places of employment, to places of education, etc. I theorise mobility as a way of making do and an inhabited space that migrants mobilise in contestation with the broader strategic entities such as the City of Johannesburg's regulatory platforms, South African citizens and other migrants. I also argue that, for migrants to engage in different mobility cycles and deploy mobility as a tactical resource, particular dispositions are necessary. I refer to these dispositions as the transnational migrant habitus, which operates within a transnational social field constituted by socio-cultural factors in both South Africa and Zimbabwe. Both, the transnational habitus and the transnational social field are hybrid social formations that are not reducible to either the Zimbabwean or the South African contexts that are responsible for their genesis and ongoing reconstitution. Methodologically, I employed a mixed methods research design, which refers to a procedure by which the researcher mixes two or more methods with different meta-theoretical assumptions in a single study in order to understand a research problem. I used mixed methods because I needed sufficient breadth to explore the diversity of Zimbabwean migrant experiences and spatial decision-making, but also sufficient depth to uncover the reasons for behaviours and decisions. / MT2018

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Urban Design to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Architecture and Planning at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / The report is an investigation of urban parks as public space in Johannesburg inner-city. It investigates the current situation of a deteriorating degree of public space in Johannesburg due to growing levels of privatisation and incapacity of the public sector to design, manage and maintain good quality, inclusive and safe public open spaces in the city. My research aims at being a radical re-imagining of Inner-city of Johannesburg, through urban design, in how the inner-city can be (spatially) transformed and reconfigured through open public space, as part of the decolonization agenda for African cities. In my study, I investigate the nature of urban parks in Johannesburg’s inner-city, in an attempt to understand the ways they are being used by different user groups and how this is affected by the way they are physically designed and managed. It presents three chosen parks of study; Joubert Park, End Street Park (North and South), and Nugget Street Park, located in Doornfontein Johannesburg, and look into the chosen park’s connectivity and accessibility to streets and other public spaces. I assess how the parks’ location and proximity to activities and public infrastructure/amenities (such as housing units, retail outlets, schools and public transport interchanges) affects the number and type of users that use them as well as the kind of activities within them. As part of this assessment will be the issue of safety and security within parks and how current management approaches have been used to address the issue. I, through my research, question current urban design and management approaches; aimed at achieving increased levels of use and safety in terms of the impact they have had on the city’s public open spaces. Questions are asked on the effectiveness of safety measures such as fences, gates and security cameras and personnel and how they impact on the degree of ‘publicness’ and safety in the city’s public open spaces. As part of its aim of understanding the nature of parks in the inner-city of Johannesburg, the research reviews existing literature that has been written on public space/public park use and design and the ‘ideal’ approaches to good design and management. It focuses on the ideal of an ‘Open City’ and questions of ‘publicness’ in park use and management. The notion of decolonising Johannesburg as an African city (in its current neo-apartheid segregatory form) is also interrogated. Questions are asked on the definition of what African urban space is and the principles of its form and function, based on precolonial African city examples. The principle of common space and collective ownership and use is discussed as an essential principle that framed the configuration of african public space, which was lost in the introduction of colonial city formations. The report1 presents an analysis of End Street North and South Park located on the north and south ends of the railway line along Nugget Street in Doornfontein. It assesses the process in which End Street South Park was (re)designed and upgraded in 2009 as part of the Ellis Park precinct development for the 2010 World cup, and critically assesses the outcomes of its design in terms of both the successes and failures of the upgrade. In the analysis the report illustrates how though the park’s upgrade reduced violent crimes such as muggings in the park, the park contains illicit activities such as gambling and drug use spots along its edges and corners. The use of high fencing in the new design and deployment of private security in the park was found not to be entirely solving issues of safety in the park. Although the fence was intended to assist in the management and control of who accesses and uses the park for safety reasons, it contributes towards creating hidden spaces for gambling, drug use and bullying to occur away from the eyes of the public. The analysis of End Street North Park involves the documentation of the End Street North Park upgrade pilot project that tests a participatory approach to park design and management for safety. The objective of the project was to demonstrate an integrated stakeholder approach to public space design and management that involves sector contributions from different city departments as well as engagement with city residents and other park users in designing a safe, inclusive and sustainable public space though participatory tools and methods. This set of findings from End Street North and South Parks reveal that park use and safety issues cannot be completely addressed through design and installation of physical safety measures such as high fences, law enforcement and regulation of use by security guards or park managers alone. The report indeed proposes a radical and aggressive urban design framework and/or strategy towards transforming inner-city Johannesburg’s spatial fabric through urban park and open public space design. Part of this process involves looking into alternative design related ways of dealing with aspects of use and safety in parks as well as aspects of public participation, community co-design and comanagement processes. / XL2018

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the importance of public space and to explore the concept of public living. The concept behind this thesis exploration is to look at the Soweto yard called a `jarata` and to look at various configurations of a Soweto yard. The reason behind choosing a Soweto yard is to conceptualise a public space which has the essence of the sociality of a Soweto yard. The investigation will begin by exploring the concept of social space and to gain an understanding of what a `social space` is in comparison to a physical place. Over the years people have defined and redefined spaces around them. In shared spaces people have used traditions and cultures to dictate the manner in which they use these spaces and have therefore created unwritten rules in these spaces. As people redefine these spaces from their designed or intended use, they essentially create social spaces. These social spaces are not the physical spaces but they happen in the physical spaces, and are driven by events which are part of people’s social and cultural patterns. So therefore the architecture of a place is defined by the social spaces which are the events, activities and the happenings in the place, which are centred on social patterns. Place is the visible space, and space is the hidden place. The architectural response is a public space where public living can be embraced more especially for the residents of Soweto and more specifically to the residents of Mofolo Central where my site is based. The space will be an enabling space which should allow the users the freedom to carry out their traditions and social patterns. The space is also an event space which allows for a variety of recreational activities from musical events, celebrations, ceremonies and play. The design of the space also incorporates an existing old cinema and seeks to revive the cinema and develop it as a cinema and theatre. The purpose of reviving the cin- ema is to bring back a cinema-going culture to the area of Mofolo and Soweto at large. The exterior space will be an extension of the cinema and will function as an open-air cinema among other uses mentioned above. In addition there will be office spaces, trade spaces both formal and informal and recreational facilities. The design plays on the social patterns of public life in Soweto.

The imagery of flight remains one of the most captivating views in history. The bird’s eye view it gives to man has helped him to gain an understanding of a particular area, in addition to broadening his knowledge base. Air travel has time in sense (because of its convenience), and shaped cities, with the airport control tower becoming a dominant icon within the landscape. Its form of communication and navigation is different: having its own language, symbols that have to be comprehended before the journey of flight can begin. The map is one such device that serves as a medium between the technical and the lay – enabling a simpler understanding of a complex subject. It is dexterous in its ability to show detail, aiding the design process by highlighting key elements, summarising others, and giving clues as to the proposed site and programme. The focus of this study is to design a hub for business, as well as a facilitator for improving the knowledge of the visitor through information and networks. Specific functional elements were chosen in an attempt to supplement the existing Lanseria airport, in addition to creating an identity for a gateway into area and its surrounds. In accordance with the co-operative nature of the industry, the proposal can become a marketable feature for the developing, expanding airport. This document examines the context of aviation and theatrical explorations into its methods of communications (Chapters 1 – 2); the search for an appropriate site (Chapter 3) and the formation of programme and precedent studies (Chapter 4); leading up to the final design of the Centre and its technological aspects (Chapter 5).

Thesis is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Architecture (Professional) to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Architecture and Planning at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017 / This research report intends to illuminate the effect of how we can slow down, clear our minds and come to a complete standstill in extremely fast cities. To apprehend these effects the investigation focuses contextually, around the eastern edge of Newtown Johannesburg. This site is juxtaposed within the intensity of major transport nodes. We are living in a world that is accelerating at a frightening pace, and people are not keeping up - there is very little time in one’s day to escape the rapidity, acquire peace of mind and absorb the present moment. This research report acts as a precedent for how future utopian cities can host a space that encourages a meditative-lifestyle of slowing down. I unfold three theories to help support my investigation; Lieven de Cauter’s theory on capsularisation tells us how man has turned to ‘hyper-individualisation’, closing himself off from the world and creating social barriers. The second theory I look at is non-places by Marc Augé who talks about the in between places we pass through such as petrol stations, bus stops, terminals, etcetera, and how these transient spaces have become more meaningful because one is spending more time in them due to technological advancement. I label these as delayed spaces in my thesis which is the third theory I look at by Fardjadi and Mostafavi. I engage with these last two theories by doing an evaluation on them; these include multi-faith spaces, petrol stations, bus stops, terminals and launderettes. I do so because these are spaces where people slow down and pass through within an ordinary day. I suggest how these activities, that are normally considered mundane, can be transcended through different opportunities to slow down through a meditative life-style. Within each evaluation particular lessons are acquired that are integrated in the overall building design. At one point in the research report I take a time-out from the design process to question the value of slow architecture. Much of the working world as well as universities have an uncomfortable urgency when it comes to design. There is no time to reflect on mistakes made or gain perspective on the process which leads to quick decisions without much thought, and often lack in creative depth or meaning. I touch on my own design process and thinking as an example to explain why it is important to slow down and review what has been done to be able to move forward with clear direction. In terms of the architecture for my research report, two specific concepts are unravelled; the first one is movement - how one approaches the building as well as the circulation within it. I used the labyrinth and the notion of time-frames to support this idea of slowing down from speed to stillness which determined my program. The second concept is the ‘consciousness capsules’ which host the main meditative spaces and activities in the building. These activities make up the program and they include a multi-functional gathering space, a communal library to learn about meditation and its philosophy, hand-craft workshops (such as painting, quilting and basket weaving), meditation rooms, collective yoga, a dormitory, and finally a public garden terrace at the very top accompanied by a walking labyrinth. The whole journey through the building portrays a ‘stairway to heaven’ and provides an overview of the city that allows for one to escape the bustle and re-collect ones’ thoughts and immerse in the present moment - as nothing is more urgent today than slowing down. / GR2017

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Engineering. School of Civil & Environmental Engineering Johannesburg, September 2015 / The research presented in this report set out to determine the extent to which cross-enterprise integration between three Municipal Owned Entities (MOEs) in Johannesburg, i.e. City Power, Johannesburg Water and Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), could be beneficial to the Council and users of the Council’s assets. The research included a comprehensive review of available literature to find the needs of / gaps in infrastructure asset management and examples of cross-enterprise integration. Interviews with MOEs’ personnel were conducted to determine current levels of infrastructure asset management. A library of the costs of potential hazards arising from damages caused by MOEs to other MOEs’ assets during maintenance tasks was compiled. A simulation exercise was conducted. The exercise involved the development and application of a computer program using Visual Basic for Applications programming tool. The program created a series of job cards for maintenance works by all MOEs using available asset data for a section of the city. Conflict areas were identified where work on one asset might compromise the integrity of other assets. Costs of the damage to the assets in terms of direct costs of repairs and users’ costs, due to lower levels of service, were quantified for each conflict point. The simulation exercise was run over a thirty year period. The average annual costs were costed using cost to benefit analysis. Expenses associated with the creation of new organisational structures and new cross-enterprise software systems were studied using available data in literature. The expenses and savings formed the basis of the cost to benefit analysis. The study shows that the introduction of a cross-enterprise integrated system can significantly reduce costs to the Council and users. There are several other benefits originating from cross-enterprise integration including more efficient use of skilled personnel, efficiency in issuing of way leaves, and improved integrity of asset data. The installation of such a system need not only service the three MOEs included in the study. It is possible that all owners of assets on Council property, including external organisations such as Telkom, Neotel, and Dark Fibre Africa, will benefit from cross-enterprise integration.

A degree submitted for the requirements of Masters of Arts in Geography School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies / Mary Fitzgerald Square is an iconic public space in Newtown, Johannesburg. In spite of its iconic status, prolific social history and commercial role in the city, there is very little that is known about it and its users. In 2009 and 2010 I undertook an ethnographic exploration of the public space using Henri Lefebvre’s (1974/1991) conceptual spatial triad, the Right to the City and Elements of Rhythmanalysis frameworks. Through informal interviews, unstructured participant observation and exploration of archived newspaper articles, public space governance by-laws, published urban literature and research, I managed to situate this public space in urban geographical discourse as contested public space. By means of conceptual analysis, this research found Mary Fitzgerald Square to be an important public space that is dominated by neoliberal politics that create struggle for inhabitants to use it meaningfully in the context of everyday life. The proliferation of neoliberal relations of urban governance have led to a situation whereby the public space is subjected to private management practices that encourage its elitist uses and thus prioritizing its commercial exchange-value over its use-value. This process as the research uncovered, undermines the public space’s use-value and consequently leads to a subliminal marginalization of ordinary inhabitants who require and desire it for their varied practices in the context of everyday life. Urban management strategies like human surveillance, Public Open Space by-Laws, architecture and planning design, public-private partnerships, and the removal of the television monitor, discourage creative African youths, skateboarders, the urban poor and elderly in the city from appropriating Mary Fitzgerald Square. Inhabitants using Mary Fitzgerald Square manage to do so by overriding and transgressing existing spatial prohibitions by conducting their social practices in the contested space outside official policing times. Other inhabitants, through play and creative expression, have devised alternative means to challenge their marginalization in and uses of the public space in spite of existing by-laws, changing architecture, and visible human surveillance including law-enforcement that are conceived in an effort to deter their social uses of it. This research proposes a return to Mary Fitzgerald Square that warrants a critical discourse analysis of the public space in an effort to gain a better and deeper understanding of inhabitants’ everyday life experiences and their political situation in the current city through the public space. This should enable a sound critique of the production of Mary Fitzgerald Square in the African metropolis where the abstract struggle between private interests and public need for the public space materializes. Key words: Mary Fitzgerald Square, Henri Lefebvre, Johannesburg, Geography, South Africa.