THE City of Ekurhuleni has won two coveted awards at the South Africa Planning Institute (SAPI) Awards 2016.
The City walked away with the best mentorship programme award for its role in mentoring students of the University of Venda and best municipal plan for development of the city’s spatial development framework.
The SAPI awards focus on all municipalities and metros within the Southern African Region.
In terms of the mentorship programme, the City mentored 20 students in 2014 for five days on precinct planning for the Dries Niemandt and Tembisa Civic Node.
This exercise was to assist the third year students with their metropolitan planning course in a metropolitan municipality.
“We have taken a step in shaping our future planners and expanded their practical knowledge on spatial planning related issues. They learned how to research and develop precinct plans for the selected two precincts, which was included into their semester marks,” head of city planning, Motubatse Motubatse, said.
In 2015 again the city mentored 30 students for five days on the precinct area of Palm Ridge Court. This experience was coupled with tours of the City, O R Tambo Airport and Gautrain.
The second award, best municipal plan award, gave confidence to the development of the Metropolitan Spatial Development Framework of the city and its spatial trajectory as aligned to the GDS.
The Metropolitan Spatial Development Framework (MSDF), approved in 2015, is a planning structuring strategic tool that guides development and investment within the city.
The Metropolitan Spatial Development Framework introduced and placed emphasis on spatial structuring elements (fixed Urban Edge), nodal developments, corridors and mining belt all incorporated under sustainable planning which reduces urban sprawl.
The MSDF provides tactics relevant for spatial transformation.
This is emphasised by the integration of disadvantaged communities into the urban fabrics through infill developments on vacant land located close to CBDs and industrial areas.
