South Africa is the African continent’s most structurally and economically developed country. As a result, its major cities have experienced construction booms that most other African cities of comparable size have not. Advanced development is heavily concentrated in five cities: Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Bloemfontein, and Pretoria/Johannesburg. However, key marginal areas have grown rapidly. The Garden Route (from Mossel Bay to Plettenberg Bay), Rustenburg, Nelspruit, the Cape West Coast, and the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast are examples of such areas.
Because Johannesburg has a wide range of commercial and residential structures, there are a few modern structures, such as the KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel and the Trust Bank Building. The combined metropolitan area of Johannesburg and Pretoria has the densest concentration of skyscrapers on the continent and one of the densest in the world.
The Carlton Centre is a skyscraper and shopping mall in Johannesburg, South Africa. At 223 meters (730 feet), it is Africa’s tallest building and roughly half the height of Chicago’s Willis Tower (the former Sears Tower). When it was first completed, it was the tallest structure in the southern hemisphere. The Carlton Centre has 50 floors and stands 223 meters (732 feet) tall, falling just 40 meters (130 feet) short of being one of the world’s top 100 skyscrapers. The complex’s two buildings have 3.5 m (11 ft) diameter foundations that extend 20 m (66 ft) down to bedrock, 30 m (98 ft) below street level. The structure houses both offices and shops, with over 46% of the floor area below ground level. On the 50th floor, a viewing deck provides views of Johannesburg and Pretoria.
Ponte City is a skyscraper in Johannesburg, South Africa’s Hillbrow neighborhood. It was completed in 1975 and stands 173 meters (567.6 feet) tall, making it Africa’s tallest residential skyscraper. The cylindrical 54-story building has an open center that allows more light into the apartments. The center space, dubbed “the core,” rises above an uneven rock floor. Ponte City was a highly desirable address due to its panoramic views of Johannesburg and its surroundings. The building’s sign is the highest and largest in the southern hemisphere. It promotes Vodacom, a South African mobile phone company.
Marble Towers is a skyscraper in Johannesburg, South Africa’s Central Business District. It has 32 storeys and was built in 1973. An eight-story parking garage is attached to the building. It has the Southern Hemisphere’s largest electronic sign, measuring 44 by 32 by 12 meters (144 by 105 by 39 ft). It is constructed of concrete and marble. Its primary application is in commercial offices.
The KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel is a skyscraper in Johannesburg’s Central Business District. The complex, originally known as “The Tollman Towers” (owned by a prominent South African family), was constructed in 1970 as two separate towers, one 40 stories and the other 22 stories, linked by a four-story podium with a pool deck and a running track. For many years, the building stood empty as The Johannesburg Sun relocated to Sandton. The structure was then converted into a Holiday Inn, which also failed quickly. The new KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel opened in 2001, hosting 3000 police officers for the World Summit on Sustainable Development; it was owned by Mark Whitehead of Whitehead Enterprises, but it soon went out of business as well. The structure has been “mothballed.”
Sandton City is a shopping center in Sandton, Johannesburg, that opened as a pioneer center in 1973. The tower was constructed as part of a business park for downtown Sandton, a Johannesburg suburb. Liberty Properties announced in 2008 that Sandton City would be upgraded for R1.77 billion. Liberty Properties CEO Samuel Ogbo envisioned the complex as South Africa’s Wall Street. A 60-story office tower, new retail and office space, and residential apartments will be built as part of the redevelopment. The extension will be 30,000 m2 (320,000 sq ft) in size, with a total gross lettable area of 158,000 m2 (1,700,000 sq ft).
The Trust Bank Building is a skyscraper in Johannesburg’s Central Business District. It was constructed in 1970 to a height of 140 meters (460 ft). As the former headquarters of Trust Bank of South Africa, the building houses one of South Africa’s largest bank vaults. The building was sold in February 2003 for Rand 6.4 million (USD $640.000), which may result in the name of the new tenant being changed.
In Johannesburg, South Africa, 11 Diagonal Street is a skyscraper. It was constructed in 1984 to a height of 80 meters (260 ft). It is designed to resemble a diamond because each angle of the building reflects different views of the Central Business District.
Who was the architect of South Africa’s skyscraper?
The Leonardo, designed by Johannesburg’s Co-Arc International Architects, has surpassed the Carlton Centre as the continent’s tallest structure.
Why is the Carlton Centre referred to as a skyscraper?
The Carlton Centre is Africa’s tallest structure. It was the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere when it was finished in 1974. The Carlton Hotel was originally housed in the skyscraper complex. It was once the largest hotel in the Southern Hemisphere.
