From Fever Hospital to Council Chambers – an Exploration of Civic Hill

Sat Jan 28, 14:00 - Sat Jan 28, 17:00

Joburg Theatre

ABOUT

When the Fever Hospital was constructed in the first decade of Alfred Milner’s rule, it was the lone occupant of a neglected area nestled between working class Braamfontein, patrician Parktown, and bustling Hillbrow. But by the 1960s, with land values having skyrocketed in the City and the Council requiring space to grow, this area would become the focus of an ambitious plan to create a “Civic Hill” for Johannesburg.


A competition was held to choose the design, and the winning scheme was described at the time as having the “makings of a great work of contemporary architecture”. Time has been less kind, and Clive Chipkin has described the Civic Centre as “an overpowering bureaucratic presence above desolate, granite-chip piazzas”.  


Join us for a fascinating tour through the now-renamed Metro Centre and surrounding fabric, including the sublime Council Chambers building designed by studioMAS. 


We finish our tour at the top of the ANEW Hotel where we will enjoy a panoramic Johannesburg view and sundowners at the rooftop bar (all drinks are for your own account).

DIRECTIONS

From Fever Hospital to Council Chambers – an Exploration of Civic Hill
Joburg Theatre
163 Civic Blvd, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001
Get Directions