​The MMC for Development Planning, Cllr Thapelo Amad has welcomed a decision by the Department of Labour and Employment to grant the City temporary access to the Metro Link to retrieve rejected building plans.

Town planners and architects have been trying in vain to access their declined applications for buildings, which had been submitted before November last year, yet remained unprocessed because of a few inconsistencies that needed to be corrected.

The submitted building plans have been inaccessible since the Department of Labour and Employment rendered the Metro Link non-compliant with Covid-19 protocols for public buildings. Workers there had complained of inadequate ventilation and frequent water leaks. The office block was then forced to temporarily close to the public for urgent repair work, leaving scores of industry professionals and their clients in the lurch.

Cllr Amad says the Planning Department has been inundated with calls and emails from planners who wanted to correct their submitted building plans. The planning professionals eventually appealed to the Labour Department for permission to retrieve their declined applications at the municipal headquarters in Braamfontein.

The MMC says the Labour Department’s permission allowing planners to retrieve their documents is a welcome temporary respite, and a critical step towards the speedy delivery of public services.

“The Government of Local Unity has prioritised sustainable service delivery; we would be doing our City and its residents a great injustice if we did not address all these issues with the urgency that they deserve,” he says.

He adds that although the department is operating with a 20% staff complement due to Covid-19 Level 3 regulations, the demand to deliver services remains at 100%.

“We understand that the current situation of the Metro Link closing temporarily has been debilitating for the industry and that its impact has far-reaching consequences. However, the department has had to exercise caution at all times and ensure that it follows, not only Covid-19 regulations but labour and building regulations as well,” he explains.

The MMC notes that clients who wish to retrieve their submitted plans from the Metro Link should provide a list of plans required via email to Emmanuelmu@joburg.org.za or MulaloN@joburg.org.za. Alternatively, customers may telephone 011 407 6058 or 6061 or 081 374 3979.

To obtain assistance in dealing with specific items of their building plans which have been rejected, clients may book an appointment with the relevant planning examiner. Requested plans will be made available after two working days to allow officials sufficient time to search for them.

Refurbishing the Metro Link – on 158 Civic Boulevard – is part of Development Planning’s raft of new measures to combat the vicious spread of the Coronavirus. Once work is complete, the building – an interface between the public and the City’s directorates of Building Development Management, Land Use Development Management and Corporate Geo-Informatics – will offer residents speedy and high-quality services.

“Professionals and residents are dependent on the Metro Link and it would be in the City’s best interest for the building to be prioritised for repairs,” he emphasises.

Cllr Ahmad says once repair work is complete, the City will unlock backlogs in the process of applying for building approval.