2.1 When referring to a “suburb” in the South African urban context, one would usually be referring to areas that were historically designated for white residents that were well-serviced, with public amenities and well-connected to economic nodes. In the post-apartheid period, these suburbs underwent demographic shifts – in some areas more significantly than others, with Johannesburg’s historically-white northern suburbs reflecting the presence of a black middle-class (Wray, 2014; Horn & Ngcobo, 2003; Ballard, 2002). At the same time, significant spatial shifts have occurred in the post-apartheid period: wealthy suburban homes became increasingly fortified, older suburbs enclosed themselves with gates, new gated “townhouse” complexes have been built within and close to these well-established areas, and large gated “estate” developments created exclusive suburbs on the outskirts of cities (Czegledy, 2003; Bremner, 2004 Landman & Badenhorst, 2014; Harrison & Dinath, 2014). Although gated communities are not an exclusively suburban phenomenon in South Africa, in Gauteng many gated communities are found in clusters within or close to core suburban areas (Peberdy, 2014), along major transport routes, and in older well-established areas (Landman & Badenhorst, 2014). All but one of our gated community participants lived in suburban areas that were once-white suburbs, or new areas that developed on the edge of these older suburbs – these included Randburg, Bryanston, Pretoria East, Benoni & Centurion. For the purposes of this report, we’ve included these suburban gated community participants within a discussion of a broader “suburban” experience of lockdown.
The Suburb & Gated lockdown:
Proximity to Neighbours & Cabin Fever Residential gated communities in Gauteng are diverse spaces – they vary from gated complexes of single-storey homes, duplexes and apartments, to the larger and more grand and spacious gated golf and lifestyle estates (Landman & Badenhorst, 2014). Gated communities also refer to “enclosed neighbourhoods”, older suburban neighbourhoods that were enclosed with gates in the post-apartheid period (Landman & Badenhorst, 2014). In Gauteng, the development of privately-governed spaces is clustered along a corridor of development stretching from northern Johannesburg to Tshwane (Peberdy, 2017; Landman & Badenhorst, 2014). North-west Johannesburg, bordering Mogale City, and east Pretoria are also characterised by clusters of these privately-governed residential spaces. Peberdy (2017), in their analysis of Gauteng CityRegion Observatory (GCRO) data, show how gated communities are mostly concentrated within core areas in the province, although high-income estates and cluster development are also being developed on the urban periphery (Harrison & Dinath, 2017). The City Lockdown Diaries confirmed the diversity of gated communities and the spectrum of middle-income to high-income households within them (Landman & Badenhorst, 2014). Of the seven participants who lived in gated communities, four lived in apartments, and three lived in houses. These apartments varied in size and type, most were in security complexes and one was in an enclosed neighbourhood. Three of the apartments had four rooms or less, while one had over seven bedrooms. Those who lived in houses in gated communities, meanwhile, all had six rooms and above. Some people lived alone, and the largest household had four members. In spite of this diversity of gated community living, the regular participants who shared diary entries of lockdown in suburban gated communities had some commonalities: they used a car to buy necessities and had minimal engagement with the street. For those living in apartments, there was a sense of being “stuck” in space, and regular reference was made to neighbours. Accounts of street life were notably absent from the diary entries of lockdown from gated communities. Residents drove their own cars to get basic food goods during lockdown. Their observations of the street were made while driving on the way to the shops or work. 10
