Street Traders Threatend with Eviction for New Mall in Warwick Junction

Street Traders Threatend with Eviction for New Mall in Warwick Junction

A presentation to a public meeting by Caroline Skinner

Warm greetings to all, Sanibonani

In the light of a number of years of research in Warwick, there are four key concerns I want to raise both about the content and process of the current proposals for a shopping mall development Warwick.

1. The first issue is the number of livelihoods that will be affected.

On a busy day we estimate that there are 8000 street and market traders that operate out of Warwick. The city claims that the redevelopment will only affect the 670 Early Morning Market traders and the 185 traders working around the proposed site.

I would dispute this. As all the traders here will tell you, their business depends on passing feet. The proposals will result in the redesign of the area ensuring that the current foot traffic (estimated to be 460 000 commuters a day) is directed past the formal rather than the informal traders. This will seriously impact on the viability of all street traders in the area.

In addition the redevelopment will introduce many formal shops – Spar, Jet, Foshini, Truworths among others into the area. The informal traders are unlikely to be able to compete with these formal retailers. There is a history of formal business using their economic muscle to out compete the informal traders.

2. The second issue is that street traders are supporting large numbers of dependents located in poorer parts of the city

Our research shows that for every trader on the street there are between 6 and 25 people depending on their income. Unlike the profits of the large formal retailers which go directly to Gauteng, the profits from these very small businesses support large numbers of households located in poorer parts of the city.

3. The third issue is the particular plight of the EMM traders

The site for the first phase of the Mall development is the Early Morning Market. Fresh produce has been sold in this area for over a century. This market was established in 1910 and is a listed building. There are 673 sites there and over 50 market gardeners who sell their goods from here. By month end all these traders will be moved to temporary accommodation without any knowledge of where, and if, they will be accommodated in the long term. The new site is out of the way and has no facilities. It has enough space for 170 traders.

4. The forth issue is that the current proposal threatens an international best practice of street trader management and support.

In 1997 the city established the Warwick Junction Urban Renewal Project. This area based management initiative of the city council has become a model of how to manage, support and provide infrastructure for street traders. Over the years the project has received a number of awards most recently in 2008 the UN Habitat / Dubai International Award for Good Practice.

At School of Development Studies over the last two years we have been carefully documenting the lessons learned from this project. A key finding is the value of the cities approach to consultation in the area. One trader leader described this as follows:

The city afforded informal traders the opportunity to participate on a sustained and continuous basis in negotiations about their needs.’

The City held its first consultation about this new Mall on February 18, 2009 and plans to start construction in early June. Since February there have been a few smaller workshops. In all of these the City has presented the proposals. Although there has been time for questions, many of these have been left unanswered. Traders have said that they are not being consulted but presented something that has already been decided – a fait accompli.

* Why has the city changed its approach to consultation particularly given the history in this area?
* Why was there no call for expressions of interest when the city considered releasing this land? Why was there no tendering process?
* Warwick Mall Pty limited is a black economic empowerment consortium. Existing traders are glaringly absent. Why are the traders not included as part of the share ownership?

This is not to say that the area is not in need of an upgrade, but that the content and process of the current proposals are flawed. Warwick Junction is significant to the city as a whole. It is part of what makes Durban unique. This is not just about street trader livelihoods it is about the vision we have for our city. Durban has prided itself as an inclusive city and we call on the councilors and city officials to continue this.