Parkmore community gives derelict property a new life
Parkmore community dedicated their 67 minutes for Mandela Day to restoring a neglected property, which had become an eyesore for the community.
Members of the Parkmore Community Association, residents, volunteers and local sponsors spent July 18 painting the boundary wall of a derelict property located opposite Montrose Primary School.
According to the Parkmore Community Association chairperson Anthony Gardner, the initiative formed part of Mandela Day’s call for citizens to dedicate time to making a positive difference in their communities.
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“The property, which has stood abandoned for years, looks terrible. What we’ve done is we’ve come together as a community, and we’ve done lots of painting,” he said.
Parkmore suburb manager Lori Klein said the property was demolished about eight years ago.
“We did, at some point, have vagrants living on the property. Together with the community and 24/7 security, we managed to secure the mini-substation that’s next door to the property, which was used to access this property,” Klein said.
“We then removed the vagrants and informal structures that were built inside the property.
So, since we have secured the substation and security is more focused, we as a community have our eyes and ears on this property. And we haven’t had any issues with anyone staying on this property.”
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Gardner said the initiative was made possible through generous support from local businesses and community members.
He thanked the sponsors who donated materials, saying the initiative came at no cost to the association.
“We actually didn’t pay anything for the painting of this home.
@caxtonjoburgnorth Parkmore community celebrated Mandela Day by transforming a long-neglected property into a symbol of community pride. Parkmore Community Association chairperson Anthony Gardner says the initiative brought neighbours together to repaint the derelict property, and suburb manager Lori Klein explains how the once-abandoned property has been secured and restored through ongoing community vigilance. Video: Xoliswa Zakwe #mandeladay#Johannesburg #SouthAfrica #LocalNews #TikTokNews #tiktoknews #BreakingNews #cityofjoburg #satiktok_sa #foryourpage #localnews #2026 #government #Sandton ♬ original sound – Caxton Joburg North
It was the community coming together. Morningside Mica sponsored all the paint brushes, and we had some other sponsorship for paint, so we would like to say a big thank you to them.”
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