Chas Everitt - Property in the East Rand

The East Rand region of Gauteng encompasses the towns Alberton, Benoni, Boksburg, Edenvale, Germiston, Brakpan, Nigel and Springs and their surrounding areas. Also included in this region are Kempton Park and the Johannesburg International Airport. All of the aforementioned towns, each of which used to be a separate municipality, have been incorporated into the new Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality. The whole area has grown and developed as a direct result of the discovery of gold in the area, though Springs was founded after the discovery of coal. The East Rand is now an extremely important region in terms of the economics of Gauteng.

The town of Kempton Park owes its growth and development to its proximity to the Johannesburg International Airport. The Airport is South Africa's main point of entry, and from it extends a network of highways that link to all the major cities of the country. Johannesburg International Airport is the most modern airport in the whole of Africa.

For followers of horse racing Gauteng boasts three racecourses, and two of them are located in the East Rand, one is Newmarket Racecourse in Alberton and the other Gosforth Park in Germiston. There are plenty of other outdoor activities to be found in the East Rand though. One very popular venue is Wild Waters, a water park which carries a number of thrilling activities including a wave pool and water slides. In and around Benoni you can visit a honey farm, a koi farm, and a favourite venue for the kids is the Bunny Park, a home not only to numerous rabbits, but also to other farmyard animals including goats, cattle, sheep, pigs and donkeys.

Situated between Edenvale and Boksburg is the East Rand Mall, one of the most prestigious malls of the whole of Gauteng, with its nine cinemas, five banks, thirty fashion shops and numerous restaurants and fast food outlets. A great number of specialist super stores have sprung up in the immediate vicinity of the East Rand Mall, so when visiting the sports super store, for example, you can be assured of finding just what piece of equipment you are looking for.

Close to Edenvale in the East Rand you can find the Franz Hoernig Haus. Built in 1894 as a residence for the original manager of a dynamite factory, this is one of the oldest surviving buildings of the 19th Century. That small dynamite factory grew into the largest explosives factory on the African Continent at Modderfontein. The factory is now surrounded by an 8000 hectare conservation park that is home to the Cape Otter, the grey duiker, steenbok, black-backed jackal and red hartebeest as well as zebra, springbok and more than 200 bird species.

At Germiston in the East Rand there is the Germiston Lake where school eights, quads, double and single skulls from many Johannesburg schools can be seen practicing on a daily basis. The lake is surrounded by a large park and is a favourite venue for weekend picnics and braais. Germiston also is home to the Rand Airport, a general aviation airport that supplements Gautengs other airports.
The town of Springs in the East Rand is to be found in the south-eastern part of the region. Springs sprung up in 1904 and owes its origins to the discovery of coal and gold in the region. It has developed from a pioneering mining town into a prosperous industrial giant. Just outside of Springs is the Blesbokspruit Wetland Reserve. Blesbokspruit is Gauteng's major wetland system, running through Kempton Park, Boksburg, Brakpan, Springs and Nigel, and on to Heidelberg where it flows into the Suikerbosrand River. Within the Springs section alone there are more than 250 species of bird.
To summarise, the East Rand is an important economic and ecological region and one that should not be missed by any visitor to South Africa.

Towns in the East Rand

Alberton

The East Rand town of Alberton started up around a general store that had been opened near to the Klip River 15 kms to the South of Johannesburg in the 1870s, and was named after the community of Prins Albert in the Cape Colony. By 1905 there were five families settled in the area, and the first town hall was built in 1918. Alberton has developed into a major industrial, commercial and residential centre over the last 40 years, the population doubling every 10 years.

Amongst others Alberton is now a major industrial town that houses one of the biggest brewey's in Africa

Major highways are in close reach of Alberton and is only fifteen minutes away from the centre of Johannesburg and the International Airport. There are plans to turn the Meyersdal Kopjie, an excellent place for bird-watching, near to the town into a nature reserve. The well-known Newmarket race-course is situated in the town and the Alberton Mardi Gras Festival is now an annual event.

OR Tambo International Airport

If you are visiting South Africa for the first time there is a very good chance that your first stop will be at Johannesburg International Airport, the busiest airport in Africa handling more than 14 million passengers a year and employing some 18000 people. Johannesburg International Airport has recently completed a three-year rebuilding program. The airport is a 20-minute drive from the eastern suburbs of Johannesburg and a 45-minute trip from Sandton and Rosebank, where most hotels are found. Care should be taken at peak traffic times as the highways around Johannesburg become very congested.

The Johannesburg International Airport has two terminals. Terminal A is for international traffic and Terminal B for domestic flights. The terminals are connected and passengers can easily walk from one to the other. Each terminal has two levels. On the top you will find departures and on the bottom, arrivals. There are two hotels situated within a kilometer of the airport.

The newly completed airport has features that include a terminal for shuttle buses and taxis, a duty-free shop, an emergency medical clinic, prayer centres, a library, hairdressers, pharmacies, luggage deposits and a press-conference centre.

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