COJ fines owner for 'illegal demolition' of heritage house

A Parkview homeowner who is in hot water for demolishing a 112-year-old house without the necessary approvals has denied forging documents that purportedly authorised the destruction of the heritage house.

But the Parkview Residents Association (PRA) will have none of it, insisting that the City throw the book at the errant owner.

As a result, the City of Johannesburg (CoJ), Region B Chief Building Inspector, Lebo Theledi, told the PRA that the City’s Development Planning Department had also issued a R4 000 administrative fine to the owner for “illegal demolishing without permission from Council.” The CoJ will also fine the property owner 12 times their rates payable “until the building has been restored to its original condition or brought into full compliance with the requirements of both the City and the Provincial Heritage Resources Agency of Gauteng (PHRAG).

“It is intended as a strong deterrent to encourage the property owner to comply with all regulatory obligations,” Theledi wrote in an email on November 28.

Theledi’s department believes the homeowner submitted fraudulent documents to them and falsified PHRAG’s approval for their building plans. The CoJ has requested that the Provincial Heritage Authority confirm whether the purported approval is indeed a forgery.

“Once PHRAG confirms this in writing, we will immediately initiate the process to withdraw all approvals that were issued by the Department on the basis of the falsified documentation,” said Theledi

Section 34 of the National Heritage Resources Act states that: “No person may alter or demolish any structure or part of a structure that is older than 60 years without a permit issued by the relevant provincial heritage resources authority.”

PRA member Felicity Bailey told Our City News (OCN) that she discovered the house had been demolished on the 12th of November. One of the roles of the Residents’ Association is to comment on applications for renovations of heritage properties in the area.

“We look at building plans, title deeds and planning compliance and if everything is in order we write a letter to PHRAG, with a stamp on the plans that says ‘no objection’,” she said.

Once PHRAG issues a permit, the property owner is required to display it on the boundary wall for a 14-day period to allow for any objections or comments from interested and affected parties before an application is submitted to the City for building approval.

Bailey said the owner of the Westcliff Road property had not submitted any application for comment to the PRA nor had they displayed their permit for the required period before the demolition.

Records show Loch Investment Trust as the registered property owner. Trustee Ravin Moosa denied submitting any fraudulent documents to the City and said his contractors were forced to pivot from their original plans, which he says were approved, to a demolition when they discovered the foundation of the house was structurally compromised.

According to Moosa, they demolished the house before seeking official approval “for safety reasons.”

“We couldn’t leave a cracked wall that might fall on the workers,” he told OCN.

Moosa also told OCN that he was not aware that he was required to consult with the PRA on his construction plans.

But Bailey is not satisfied.

“We've never seen the reports he said he submitted to PHRAG. It's amazing that one supposed collapse of a wall can justify the demolition of the whole house,” she said.

According to the PRA, the original house had not been altered in any way since it was built in 1913.

Bailey says prospective homeowners should not be discouraged from purchasing heritage homes by the red tape. They just need to work with the right professionals.

“We encourage people to use professional architects familiar with heritage requirements. If the architect is experienced, knowledgeable and will respect what's there, these properties can be upgraded for modern living,” said Bailey.

This story is produced by Our City News, a non-profit newsroom that serves the people of Johannesburg.