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Roodepoort | |
|---|---|
 Hoërskool Bastion in Roodepoort | |
  Roodepoort  Roodepoort | |
| Coordinates:26°9′45″S27°52′21″E / 26.16250°S 27.87250°E /-26.16250; 27.87250 | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Province | Gauteng |
| Municipality | City of Johannesburg |
| Area | |
• Total | 161.50 km2 (62.36 sq mi) |
| Population (2011)[1] | |
• Total | 326,416 |
| • Density | 2,021.2/km2 (5,234.8/sq mi) |
| Racial makeup (2011) | |
| • Black African | 51.4% |
| • Coloured | 8.2% |
| • Indian/Asian | 4.0% |
| • White | 35.4% |
| • Other | 0.9% |
| First languages (2011) | |
| • English | 29.8% |
| • Afrikaans | 24.0% |
| • Zulu | 9.0% |
| • Tswana | 8.8% |
| • Other | 28.4% |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (SAST) |
| Postal code (street) | 1724 |
| PO box | 1725 |
| Area code | 011 |
Roodepoort (locally/ˈrʊərdəpʊərt/ROOR-də-poort)[2] is a city in theGauteng province ofSouth Africa. Formerly an independentmunicipality, Roodepoort became part of theJohannesburg municipality in the late 1990s, along withRandburg andSandton. Johannesburg's most famousbotanical garden,Witwatersrand National Botanical Gardens (now renamedWalter Sisulu National Botanical Garden), is located in Roodepoort.
In 1884, brothers Fred andHarry Struben, having discoveredgold on the farm Wilgespruit at the western end of theWitwatersrand, were granted concessions to mine the area. When George Harrison's find atLanglaagte came to light and gold fever took hold, theStruben brothers were joined by a swarm of gold diggers. Other areas such asMaraisburg were prospected and mined by A.P. Marais and atFlorida, the owners were van der Hoven, Bantjies and Lys.[3]: 286 Though the Struben brothers'Confidence Reef bore little gold and their mine was unprofitable, the ramshackle town that grew around it became the Roodepoort Municipality in 1904.[3]: 286 Incorporating the towns of Hamburg,Florida and Maraisburg, Roodepoort became a city in 1977, and has since developed as one of Johannesburg's most predominantlyAfrikaans-speaking districts.[3]: 286
Roodepoort is located approximately 20 kilometres west ofJohannesburg on the westernrural-urban fringe of theGreater Johannesburgmetropolis and at the gateway to theWest Rand. It is bordered by Cosmo City to the north,Randburg to the east,Soweto to the south andKrugersdorp to the west.
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Roodepoort has seen large population growth due to Johannesburgurban sprawl. There are two major malls in the area - Clearwater Mall, the most upscale in Roodepoort, and Westgate Mall, the largest and oldest. Also found in the area is the Hillfox Centre and the Strubens Valley strip malls, which are both large retail centres.
The CBD of the city has shifted from its historical center to a location adjacent to theN1 highway & 14th Avenue interchange inConstantia Kloof.[4] Regional headquarters of banks, a large hospital, various office parks and two hotels are found in the new CBD.[4] Roodepoort still has a large industrial sector along the Main Reef Road (R41) toRandfontein. A number of logistical firms work from the area as well as other light industry.
The city has a large golf course called Ruimsig Country Club in the suburb Ruimsig. Another smaller golf course is the Jackel Creek Golf Estate. In between the two, there is a links golf course Eagle Canyon. Further south in Roodepoort is the CMR Golf Club. Roodepoort Athletics Stadium is also found within the city. It has three mega private gym facilities owned by Virgin Active and Planet Fitness.
The Roodepoort area has numerous parks and green areas.Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden, formerly known as theWitwatersrand National Botanical Garden, is a 300 hectares (3.0 km2) botanical reserve with grass parks, natural cliff face and waterfall. Another large greenspace is theKloofendal Nature Reserve, a 128ha park with trails, amphitheatre, dam and small wildmammals. Further to the south is Florida Lake with its bird life and related aquatic activities.
Although Roodepoort has traditionally been regarded as being part of theWest Rand, it was not made part of theWest Rand District Municipality, instead being integrated into theCity of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, following the post-apartheid re-organisation of local government in the late 1990s.
In 2001,Monash University Australia opened a campus in Roodepoort called Monash South Africa (MSA). The university pulled out ofSouth Africa in 2018 but sold the university to the Independent Institute of Education. Monash South Africa is now the IIE MSA offering the same qualifications as the old Monash University.[5]
TheN1 (Western Bypass) is the mainfreeway providing access to Roodepoort and connects the city withBloemfontein to the south andPretoria to the north. Roodepoort is connected to the N1 by Albertina Sisulu Road, Gordon Road and 14th Avenue.
Threeregional routes intersect Roodepoort including the east–westR41 (Main Reef Road) connecting withJohannesburg andRandfontein, the east–westR24 (Albertina Sisulu Road) connecting withJohannesburg andKrugersdorp, the north–southR564 (Christiaan de Wet Road) connecting withRandburg andSandton.
There are also a number ofmetropolitan routes within theGreater Johannesburg metropolitan region that serve Roodepoort includingM6 (John Vorster Road) to Randburg,M8 (14th Avenue) toRandburg,M18 (Ontdekkers Road) to Johannesburg and Krugersdorp,M47 (Hendrik Potgieter Road) to Krugersdorp (via the R28),M77 (Dobsonville Road) toSoweto and theM86 (Wilgerood Road) to Krugersdorp.
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