The Johannesburg Heritage Foundation and Johannesburg Crisis Alliance laud the Johannesburg City Library’s partial opening on Human Rights Day
Celebrating the partial re-opening of the Johannesburg City Library, the JHF and JCA look forward to the full re-opening, scheduled for the middle of the year.
The Johannesburg Heritage Foundation (JHF) and Johannesburg Crisis Alliance (JCA) welcome the partial re-opening of the Johannesburg City Library (JCL), scheduled for March 21, and eagerly await the full re-opening of the important civic resource towards the middle of this year.
The staggered re-opening is long overdue, following an extended five-year closure that severely affected the local community, students, researchers, and academics.
Read more: Construction and repairs are in full swing at the Johannesburg City Library
The JHF and JCA further note that the City of Johannesburg (CoJ) and Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) were slow to respond to the library’s initial closure, failing to show the necessary sense of urgency until the two entities organised a public protest and petition in May last year.
“Nevertheless, because of this civil action, and the corresponding media attention, we are gratified that the authorities finally agreed to invite us to regular stakeholder meetings, where the contractors shared progress reports, and we were able to offer input. As a result of this open and collaborative approach, we believe that, together, we have realised a positive outcome, which will stand the library in good stead going forward.”
Also read: City of Johannesburg responds to Johannesburg City Librarys closure
The JHF and JCA encouraged the authorities to continue following this productive approach to tackle additional challenges faced by other city-owned heritage properties.
They noted that, in the interest of transparency, they continue to call on the authorities to make public the cost of repairs, especially expenses incurred between 2020 and March 2024, when the work being done seemed to have little to do with the actual reasons for the closure, ie, fire code violations flagged by Emergency Management Services. The issue of costs should also be considered concerning the substantial renovation of the library, which took place in 2010, with support from the Carnegie Foundation.
The JHF and JCA continue to call on the authorities to move with urgency and re-open the several other branch libraries that remain closed, these include: the Louisa Prince Library in Ennerdale, the Protea North Library in Soweto, the Southdale Library in Robertsham, the Brixton Library, and the Murray Park Library in Jeppestown.
“Each one of these facilities plays a very important role as a ‘third place’, not home or workplace, that can foster a sense of community and learning, promote social interaction, and contribute to a more vibrant and engaged citizenry.”
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