A number of inner city commentators have argued that the reuse of the Johannesburg Sun and Carlton Hotel will signal to the country that the CBD is truly back. In his 2011 book Johannesburg Ten Ahead, Gerald Garner emphasised that mothballed properties such as the Johannesburg Sun 'must be prioritised for the inner-city to be truly regenerated'. We cannot wait for the day when either or both of these properties reopen! In the meantime we thought it would interesting to look back at the Johannesburg Sun during its planning stage. Below is an article that appeared in the Financial Mail in June 1982 announcing the arrival of Africa's biggest hotel.
Southern Sun's (SS) R100m plan for Von Brandis Square has given central Johannesburg its biggest shot in the arm since Carlton Centre. Indeed the development could do much to put the CBD back on the road to full recovery.
There are still loose ends to be tied up, it's true. Not the least of them is provincial approval for the closure of the adjoining portion of Kerk Street to allow the Von Brandis site to be integrated at mezzanine level with with the existing Towers Hotel.
But that should be a formality now that the City Council has given the nod, and there's no good reason why a start should not be made on schedule early next year.
From all accounts it is going to be a wondrous affair - Southern Sun's biggest one-off development to date, bigger than Sun City at...
