List of tallest buildings in Johannesburg
This list of tallest buildings in Johannesburg ranks all completed buildings by height in the city of Johannesburg, which is the largest city in South Africa. Johannesburg is classified as a megacity,[1] and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world.
Tallest buildings
This list ranks Johannesburg buildings that stand at least 100 m (328 ft) tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires and architectural details.
| Name | Height (architectural) | Floors | Built | City | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Leonardo | 234 m (767 ft) | 55 | 2019 | Johannesburg | Tallest building in Africa since 2019 |
| Carlton Centre | 223 m (732 ft) | 50 | 1973 | Johannesburg | Was the tallest building in South Africa and on the Continent of Africa until 2019 |
| Ponte City Apartments | 173 m (568 ft) | 54 | 1975 | Johannesburg | Tallest residential building in Africa. |
| SABC-South African Broadcasting Corporation | 160 m (520 ft) | 34 | Johannesburg | ||
| Marble Towers | 152 m (499 ft) | 32 | 1973 | Johannesburg | |
| ABSA Tower | 140 m (460 ft) | 32 | 1970 | Johannesburg | |
| KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel Tower 1 | 140 m (460 ft) | 40 | 1970 | Johannesburg | [2] Mothballed since 1998 |
| Trust Bank Building | 140 m (460 ft) | 31 | 1970 | Johannesburg | [3] |
| Southern Life Centre | 138 m (453 ft) | 30 | 1973 | Johannesburg | [4] |
| UCS Building | 128 m (420 ft) | 29 | 1976 | Johannesburg | [5] |
| Kine Centre | 123 m (404 ft) | 27 | 1974 | Johannesburg | [6] |
| Carlton Hotel | 119 m (390 ft) | 30 | 1973 | Johannesburg | [7] Mothballed since 1997 |
| Radiopark | 117 m (384 ft) | 30 | 1962 | Johannesburg | |
| Schlesinger Building | 110 m (360 ft) | 21 | 1965 | Johannesburg | [8] |
| Highpoint Hillbrow | 105 m (344 ft) | 25 | 1972 | Johannesburg | [9] |
Notable buildings in Johannesburg
Johannesburg features a variety of commercial and residential buildings, so there are also a few modern buildings such as the KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel and the Trust Bank Building. The Johannesburg-Pretoria combined metropolitan area has the densest concentration of skyscrapers on the continent and one of the densest in the world.
Carlton Centre is a skyscraper and shopping centre located in downtown Johannesburg, South Africa. At 223 metres (730 ft), it is the tallest building in Africa and about half the height of the Willis Tower (the former Sears Tower) in Chicago. It was the tallest building in the southern hemisphere when originally completed. The Carlton Centre has 50 floors, and is 223 m (732 ft) tall, about 40 m (130 ft) short of featuring in the world's top 100 skyscrapers. The foundations of the two buildings in the complex are 3.5 m (11 ft) in diameter and extend 20 m (66 ft) down to the bedrock, 30 m (98 ft) below street level. The building houses both offices and shops, and has over 46 per cent of the floor area below ground level. A viewing deck on the 50th floor offers views of Johannesburg and Pretoria.
Ponte City is a skyscraper in the Hillbrow neighborhood of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1975 to a height of 173 m (567.6 ft), making it the tallest residential skyscraper in Africa. The 54-story building is cylindrical, with an open center allowing additional light into the apartments. The center space is known as "the core" and rises above an uneven rock floor. Ponte City was an extremely desirable address for its views over all of Johannesburg and its surroundings. The sign on top of the building is the highest and largest sign in the southern hemisphere. It advertises the South African mobile phone company Vodacom.
Marble Towers is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1973 and is 32 storeys tall. The building has an eight-storey parking garage attached to it. It has the biggest electronic sign in the Southern Hemisphere, measuring 44 by 32 by 12 m (144 by 105 by 39 ft). It is made out of a mixture of concrete and marble. Its main use is for commercial offices.
KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. The complex, built in 1970 originally as "The Tollman Towers" (owned by the prominent South African family), were two separate towers, one 40 stories and the other 22, linked by a four-story podium with a pool deck and a running track. The building was empty for many years as the hotel, The Johannesburg Sun, relocated to Sandton. The building was then converted to a Holiday Inn, which also quickly failed. The new KwaDukuza eGoli Hotel opened in 2001, when it hosted 3000 police officers for the world summit on sustainable development, it was owned Mark Whitehead of Whitehead Enterprises, then also soon went out of business. The building is "mothballed."
Sandton City is a shopping centre located in Sandton, Johannesburg that was built as pioneer centre in 1973. The tower was built as part of a business park for downtown Sandton, a suburb of Johannesburg. Liberty Properties announced in 2008 that Sandton City would receive a R1.77 billion upgrade. Liberty Properties Chief Executive Samuel Ogbo envisaged the complex as South Africa's very own Wall Street The redevelopment will include the construction of a 60-storey office tower, new retail and office space and residential apartments. The extension will stretch to 30,000 m2 (320,000 sq ft) and the total complex will have a gross lettable area of 158,000 m2 (1,700,000 sq ft).
Trust Bank Building is a skyscraper in the Central Business District of Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1970 to a height of 140 metres (460 ft). The building is the former head office of Trust Bank of South Africa, and as such has one of the largest bank vaults in South Africa. The building was sold in February 2003 for Rand 6.4 million (USD $640.000), which may prompt the name to be changed to that of the new tenant.
11 Diagonal Street is a skyscraper in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was built in 1984 to a height of 80 metres (260 ft). It is designed to look like a diamond as it reflects different views of the Central Business District from each angle of the building.
Skyscrapers number by cities
This table shows South African cities with at least one skyscraper over 100 metres in height, completed.
| Rank | City | ≥100 m | ≥150 m | ≥200 m | ≥250 m | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Durban | 18 | 1 | – | – | 19 |
| 2 | Johannesburg | 13 | 2 | 2 | – | 17 |
| 3 | Cape Town | 10 | – | – | – | 10 |
| 4 | Pretoria | 6 | 1 | – | – | 7 |
| 5 | Sandton | 2 | – | 1 | – | 3 |
| 6 | Bloemfontein | 2 | – | – | – | 2 |
References
- "Major Agglomerations of the World". CityPopulation.de. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- "Kwa Dukuza Egoli Hotel Tower 1, Johannesburg". Emporis. Archived from the original on 10 February 2007.
- "Trust Bank Building, Johannesburg". Emporis.
- "Southern Life Centre, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
- "UCS Building, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
- "Kine Centre, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
- "Carlton Centre Hotel, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
- "Schlesinger Building, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.
- "Highpoint Hillbrow, Johannesburg". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2010.