Renovations are underway to the main gallery

The precinct runs through Orange Grove, Norwood, Orchards and Victoria-Fellside.

Included will be an Art Complex, already partly built and in use, and an urban agricultural training centre at one end of the precinct and at the other end, the combined Norwood and Northern Reference libraries, a redeveloped Paterson Park, the recreation centre, and a proposed township of cluster houses.

Short Street Park will connect the two sections and create free movement from the Art Complex and the urban agricultural training centre to Paterson Park.

Artists at work

The developments date back to proposals in 1998, 2001 and 2004, which were all rejected. After public meetings with, and input from the Joint Oversight Committee and the Johannesburg Property Company (JPC), a precinct plan was developed by town planner Noel Hutton comprising all contiguous council owned land in the vicinity.

The whole Paterson Park area is now under development. In moving through the precinct, the pedestrian's eye will move to visually stimulating elements such as the landscaping, and memorials among other things that are encountered along the pathways.

The Joint Oversight Committee, comprising ratepayers and residents' associations of Orange Grove and Norwood, has been formed to provide input from the affected communities and act as a public forum.

Art Complex
The Art Complex is located on Louis Road in Orchards in the former Spark Gallery, which has been expanded. It comprises the Creative Industries Hub (CIH), which is already working; a roofless building; a storage building; Short Street Park; and a Pikitup depot. The artists already make huge artworks that will be displayed at the Joburg Carnival in December, and others for sale. These artworks include huge bowls and enormous bead and wire flowers.

The CIH is a place where artists from all walks of life can develop their skills. Exciting projects are on the go at the hub. The gallery is currently operating and is packed with loads of artworks.

The half-roofless building is being used as a changing room by Pikitup drivers. Renovations are planned and it will be used by resident artists. There is a storage building next to the half-roofless building, but its role has not yet been defined. Surprisingly, the building has a river running through it. In winter the water sinks, and rises in summer.

Short Street Park creates a link between the Art Complex, a house on 13th Street, and Paterson Park. The house will be used as a training centre to educate people to produce and plant seedlings, indigenous plants and organic vegetables, thus creating a sustainable income for those who will be working at the centre. The house was built in the late 1800s, but it is still in good condition.

Social Park
Developments at the other end of the precinct, in Paterson Park, include the combining of the Norwood and the Northern Reference libraries, housed in the unused Bowling Clubhouse premises. Also included in the precinct are the proposed Victoria Extension Three Township, the park, a community centre, and the Paterson Park Recreation Centre.

The Bowling Club is located in the southeast corner of the park. It is accessed via the parking area off Paterson Road. An information technology centre is planned to be established within the Bowling Club premises to provide more comprehensive facilities for the communities. The well-built Bowling Club, which will be a library, will attract people who will be using the park.

There is also a tennis court and Paterson Park Primary School next to the Bowling Club. Children will be able to use the library and the park because of their proximity.

According to Roger Chadwick, the chairman of the Joint Oversight Committee, the proximity of the library to the park will make a more inviting environment for all users.

"The social park is the de facto Paterson Park," says Chadwick. It has a well-landscaped area with mature exotic trees like willows, pin oaks, oaks, jacarandas, and other exotic species. The park is approximately 13 hectares (about 130 000 square metres) in size.

There is also a playground area with swings and climbing equipment. A World War One memorial, a Johannesburg City Parks depot and a composting area are also located in the park. The rest of the park will be retained as a public open space which will be better maintained to complement the new Residential Two Development.

According to Chadwick, it is contended that the applicable and sensitive design and development of the precinct will not only "bring back the public" to fully use a City asset, but will also ensure that said asset assumes a dynamic and well-profiled role within the City.

Recreation centre
"The recreation centre is key to what exists at present," he says. Across Paterson Road from the Bowling Club, it will also be upgraded. There are five tennis courts next to the centre that bring interactivity. Two of the courts are being used by community members.

Plans are to turn one of the tennis courts into an indoor swimming pool. There is also a proposal to establish two five-a-side soccer fields next to the recreation centre. According to Chadwick, these soccer fields would, if possible, be used for training in the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

Though the community centre, which was previously a First National Bank building, is not within the borders of the planned precinct, it is still seen as part of it because it is the property of the City. The community centre is taken as a gateway to the Paterson Park precinct. It is believed it will encourage pedestrian movement to the recreation centre.

These developments in the Paterson Park area are drawn by the Joint Oversight Committee in conjunction with the JPC and the City's department of arts and culture. Although work is not taking place at some facilities yet, they will be complete within the next few months or year.

"My feeling is that the present focus could be on the Art Complex," says Chadwick.

According to Vishnu Singh, the manager of creative industries at the City, Johannesburg is involved in the developments at Paterson Park because it forms part of their regions. It is in Region E.

Budget
An estimated R1,5-million from the JPC and the arts and culture department has been spent on the developments so far. Another R1,5-million is expected from the City council as part of the 2009/10 budget distribution that will be spent on the library.

This money comes as part of the Integrated Development Plan. Paterson Park is under the scrutiny of JPC for maintenance in ward 73.

A precinct plan is used as a model of community and council interactivity and co-operation for the greater metropolitan development for community-driven projects.

The Paterson Park plan was approved and accepted in 2005. It looks into the connectivity and linkage issues and their effect on the proposed development on Paterson Park.