Kensington, Johannesburg, Gauteng

Steady improvement can be infectious and small visible changes can be the proof people need to be convinced to join a movement to restore broken suburbs. This was the thinking behind a community-driven initiative in Kensington, Johannesburg focused on bringing positive change one street at a time. 

Called Better Queen Street, the idea was launched to clean, repair and restore the high street of one of Joburg’s oldest and largest suburbs. Queen Street had till the years before Covid-19 been beloved and well-known for its antiques stores and its coffee shop and restaurant culture.

What was the problem?

The combination of urban neglect by the City of Joburg over years along with the pressures from Covid-19 hitting small business along the main drag of Queen Street in Kensington particularly hard, sent parts of the suburb into decline.

As a few developers bought up properties in their numbers they changed the trade from quaint and charming to trade focused more on night-time restaurants and noisy entertainment. Neighbours became irritated; people started to feel less safe and comfortable in the street; petty crime and drug use increased and family-friendly trade was worn away. This changed the character of the street, affected the suburb and people felt less inspired to become involved. 

Current chairperson of the Kensington Community Police Forum Richard Francis  says he grew up in Kensington and always felt the high street was special. He spent a short time away from Kensington but returned to the neighbourhood in 2023. 

“I was shocked at how much had changed and how much had deteriorated in such a short time,” he said. With less investment by business owners litter, noise, broken paving, petty crime and vagrants were all adding to mounting negative elements in the suburb. 

How are they fixing it?

Francis together with others, including Juana Martins and Leila Patel decided to relaunch an existing business forum initiative to include community members. They called themselves Better Queen Street.

“People agreed that Queen Street has a huge effect – positive or negative - on how people feel about Kensington as a whole, so we focused on a Queen Street initiative,” says Francis.

They started by speaking to business owners and inviting everyone to a weekly meeting. It helped them find a common agenda that included repairing, cleaning and investing in their businesses and the areas outside of their businesses. This involved getting contributions to pay for local cleaning and to set up a camera surveillance system for the street.

They also launched a festival on Queen Street with the idea to bring residents back to the street and hosted two events coinciding with public holidays in August and September 2025. 

Martins says: “The idea to focus on Queen Street first is that people need to fall in love again with what was special about the street, which means making businesses strong again. If businesses are strong it means property values are stronger and then everybody is happier in their environments and feel more positive about living in this neighbourhood. Kensington is a place that is filled with talented, creative people,” she says. 

What makes it work?

Starting small – The community focused on one of the key business streets in the neighbourhood.

Communicating with all business owners – As the nature of the trade changed, Better Queen Streets has taken an approach of inclusivity and keeping communication open. It means embracing the growing Ethiopian business community and recognising that some trade changes.  

Regular meetings  - Weekly meetings have helped community members stay connected and address issues that arise timeously.

Building community spirit  - Through events like festival days and a heritage walk they have been able to involve the local schools, small traders, crafters and artists. 

Strengthening networks – The initiative has the support of the local police and the ward councillors. They are also working to bring together more interested groups to expand their reach throughout the neighbourhood.

Embracing diversity and change – Working with new businesses and more recent arrivals to the neighbourhood instead of pointing fingers and being fearful has been at the heart of bringing more people on board. It’s grounded in shared values for safer, cleaner and happier spaces to live in. 

Acknowledgements

Author: FixLocal Reporter

Additional articles/sources: Better Queen Street

Photograph: Better Queen Street