Johannesburg Property Company says George Lea Park will remain shared
JPC says George Lea Park’s field will remain a shared facility, rejecting claims that existing users will be excluded.
The Johannesburg Property Company has once again reassured residents and sporting groups that George Lea Park’s cricket field will remain a shared facility.
The clarification follows concerns raised by Ward 90 councillor Renate van Onselen and Sandton Sports Club board member, and Parkmore Community Association manager, Lori Klein.
Concerns over mixed messages
Van Onselen and Klein said, in a public meeting held at the park on April 16, that JPC presented plans to allocate the cricket field located inside the park to the City of Johannesburg community development: Sports and recreation department as part of a legacy project in order to train the team for the upcoming 2027 Cricket World Cup. They said JPC reassured residents that existing users would retain access to other parts of the facility, including five-a-side soccer and tennis courts. However, during the stakeholder meeting held on May 16, they were told that there will be no sharing of the field.
“At a public meeting, JPC and community development provided promises hand-to-mouth that, absolutely, [George Lea Park] is going to be shared, and still usable by the community,” Van Onselen said. “Yet, at the stakeholder meeting, held between community development, Sandton Sports Club, and some of the other sporting stakeholders, where JPC was noticeably absent, community development made it 100% clear that there will be no sharing of the field. Cricket will use it 24/7, depending on the season.”
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Lease renewal delays add to uncertainty
Van Onselen added that the uncertainty surrounding the site has been compounded by JPC’s delays in renewing the lease for Sandton Sports Club, which is located inside George Lea Park.
According to van Onselen, the club started engaging with JPC as early as 2022 regarding the lease renewal, with its agreement due to expire in early 2024.
Klein said they are failing to understand why an active and well-utilised facility is being repurposed at the expense of existing users. “Taking the field away from the community, from all the sport players, it’s like taking a business away from people and telling them I’m sorry you can’t use the space anymore, you can close your business down, or find other premises somewhere.”
She added that, during the public meeting, field users agreed that they’d be happy to work with a cricket club to share the space, “but it seems like there’s no opportunity for them to share the space. It’s as simple as that.”
JPC maintains shared-use commitment
In response to questions from the Sandton Chronicle to provide clarity on the contradicting messages of the meetings, JPC spokesperson Lucy Sindane said they were not aware of any decision to exclude existing users. “We are not aware of such. Our understanding is that community development will co-exist with the current tenant, Sandton Sport Club. The new lease process is underway. Nothing has changed from JPC’s side. The public participation report has been approved by the JPC board, and currently in the city’s committee system, on its way to council for approval.” He continued to say that Faried Loonat, from community development, would have to respond to the queries, since he was not in that meeting.
He added that the sport and recreation department position remains the same. “The facility will be a shared facility and will remain as such. Playing schedules between cricket and soccer will have to be adjusted so that everyone can be accommodated as far as possible, due to the shared use.”
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Playing schedules under discussion
According to Sindane, the stakeholder meeting was convened to discuss playing schedules following commitments made during the public meeting. He said soccer representatives presented seasonal requirements, including weekday afternoon training sessions and weekend matches through to September 2026.
He added that a follow up meeting was held on June 2, between soccer representatives and cricket stakeholders. “At the meeting, it was agreed that the soccer be allowed to complete their current playing season until mid-September 2026, as per their request, which would not cause any inconvenience to them for the current soccer playing season.
“Cricket would have usage of the facility from mid-September until mid-April 2027. The finalisation and approval of further playing schedules and times, as from April 2027, still requires to be finalised.”
Future plans for the facility
He added that the intention is for the sporting codes to continue with the conclusion of the new lease. “The company offering the sporting codes will be the one to determine how to work with current users. As indicated in the meeting the intention is still to serve the community and improve the property with all the capital expenditure expected from the legacy project and new lease investment.”
The publication reached out to community development: Sports and recreation senior manager Loonat for a comment on June 5, 8, 12, and 15, but no comment had been received by the time of print. Updates will be provided once they become available.
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