The former Esplanade Government Building on Margaret Mncadi Road and Stalwart Simelane Street which has been left in an abandoned and derelict state . EThekwini Municipality councillors want these buildings to be renovated and utilised, instead of leasing from private property owners.
Image: FILE
eThekwini councillors urged the city to repair derelict government and municipal-owned buildings in the Durban CBD and utilise them for office space to cut exorbitant rental fees paid to private property owners.
At a recent council meeting, the municipality’s Economic Development and Planning Committee noted the Catalytic Projects Directorate's intention to extend the existing lease agreement for office space at the Lion Match Complex on Umgeni Road.
According to the report, the lease will be extended for 36 months, at an estimated R10.3 million, from October 2026 to September 2029. The committee's report motivated the lease extension by stating that the premises were strategically positioned for private sector-led development projects, support project management functions and to enable dispute resolution between developers and municipal departments.
The municipality stated that relocation would cause significant operational disruptions and unbudgeted costs. It would also necessitate decommissioning and reinstalling Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure, security systems, office partitioning, fittings, and equipment, potentially resulting in fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
The second lease amended was the existing contract for office accommodation on Anton Lembede Street, Durban, which currently housed the Legal Services Directorate and other municipal directorates. The total revised gross monthly rental will amount to R156,960.
The current arrangement commenced on February 1 2026, on a month-to-month basis for a maximum period of one year. Following the approval of the revised organisational structure, the Legal Services Directorate requires additional office space to accommodate its expanded functions and increased staff complement, including establishing a new Contracts Management Division.
The municipality will amend the existing lease agreement to include additional office space within the Embassy Building to avoid disruption associated with relocation.
Thabane Miya, EFF eThekwini councillor, raised concerns about why the municipality was not saving money by renovating and using some of the many city-owned abandoned buildings within the CBD.
“There is a need for political will. We are wasting money. We do not want to be drawn into the public perception that some officials are in cahoots with building owners. We should renovate the municipal and government owned derelict buildings,” he said.
Bheka Ntuli, DA eThekwini councillor, said the delay in repairing the Durban City Hall costs the municipality millions of rands annually to hire the Durban ICC for council meetings.
“I have a problem with institutions that kill their internal abilities, making it easy to go out and lease. Council members have not received a register of city assets showing how many buildings the city owns. I doubt an audit report showing you the feasibility of those buildings would be made available because our real estate department is not as transparent as it should be,” he said.
Ntuli called for a report on how much the municipality spent on leases annually and how much could be saved if it revamped existing municipal-owned properties.
“Not using our own facilities opens a huge gap for criminal syndicates to hijack these buildings or use them to create squatter camps inside the CBD,” Ntuli said.
The committee report stated that alternative accommodation within the CBD was explored through tender processes; however, no suitable buildings were identified that met the spatial requirements and applicable health and safety standards.
The municipality will undertake a comprehensive analysis of municipal-owned buildings that could be repurposed to accommodate municipal offices. This analysis includes condition assessments, with a specific focus on the structural integrity of each building.
"The analysis is expected to be completed within three months,” the committee report stated.