Chapter 6 Conceptualisation of the ‘region’ inherent in RED as exemplified in the
6.2 Notions of ‘region’ associated with the Durban Aerotropolis
6.2.1 Conceptualisations of the function of the Durban Aerotropolis
The conceptualisations of the function of the Durban Aerotropolis reveal the purpose of the project as constructed by respondents and in related strategic documents. This section therefore portrays the many ways in which the project is constructed as an integrated environment with a mixed-use function. These functions include the project being perceived as a space to live work and play, a space for innovation, a space for basic services, a space for industry, a space for world-class logistics and a space for food production. The presentation of the Durban Aerotropolis in this way corresponds with Kasarda’s (2006) explanation that airports have become complex multi-functional enterprises that serve both aeronautical and commercial development.
According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Dube TradePort (12/05/2016), the Durban Aerotropolis is an integrated environment and a mixed-use space. He has aspirations for the project which he expressed as follows:1
Let’s make it a fully integrated environment. I think with aerotropolis [it is an]
integrated environment where you can actually have production as an industrial, you can have commercial office, retail, you can have educational, which is super important, and training.
This understanding is in line with, Hanly’s (2015:1) reference to an aerotropolis as a “sub- regional economy where the airport city is the anchoring economic hub associated with a concentrically expanding mic of clustered uses”.
Furthermore, when asked what spaces the aerotropolis encompasses, the CEO of Dube TradePort (12/05/2016) said,
Right across the board, so commercial and business, industrial, residential, associated with that is your retail and leisure and then specialist things like special economic zones because the whole aerotropolis won’t be a special economic zone.
So special economic zones, certain shared infrastructure, so let’s say rail, road,
1 Text set in italics indicates data collected from participating study informants (e.g. interview responses).
105 bulk infrastructure. Then other specialist zones would be like aviation linked stuff, like we’ve got over here.
When asked what spaces the aerotropolis encompasses, the Director for Research and Development at EDTEA (01/07/2016) said; “it should encompass the spaces of work, the spaces of living and the spaces of recreation”.
The Durban Aerotropolis seeks to become a region within which “people will enjoy a holistic quality of life… where people can be able to enjoy a convenient and healthy live, work and play lifestyle” (EDTEA, 2016). Proposals have been made for a number of housing developments, many of which have a holistic and sustainable work-live-play basis to them.
One example is Cornubia (EDTEA, 2016). It is proposed that it will be both dense and liveable and serves as an example of housing models that are to be adopted moving forward. Inevitably, as the aerotropolis region grows and expands, the need for new housing will arise (Director for Research & Development at EDTEA, 01/07/2016). As a result, the masterplan has identified that there are real opportunities to ensure “better located, better planned housing in the region”.
This is needed to undo the legacy of racial segregation that is still evident in the northern region.
The ‘live, work and play’ narrative, which encompasses mixed-use function and a good quality lifestyle, is evident in Kasarda’s (2001b) argument that the corporate headquarters, regional offices and various professional organisations that gather around the airport, require their staff and people in their employ to undertake considerable long-distance travel, which can be eliminated if the airport city becomes a space to live, work and play.
Further to the project being seen as a space to live, play and work, there are stakeholders that conceive of it as a space for basic services. According to the Deputy Director of Policy and Planning at EDTEA (20/05/2016), the Durban Aerotropolis should not just be “limited to manufacturing, manufacturing, manufacturing”. What he was advocating for is a space where the people who work and live in the Durban Aerotropolis are able to access the basic services that they require. This includes but is not limited to schools, hospitals, police stations, fire station and many other services that are required for great living.
where is the nearest police station to King Shaka, I don’t know it is probably quite a while, so those kind of services would probably have to come through or the nearest school or the nearest fire station or nearest hospital. There is all those spaces not just you know manufacturing, manufacturing, manufacturing, otherwise you’re going to become too big and then there is a crime and the nearest police
106 station might be Tongaat or somewhere, it might take them a while to get there.
(Deputy Director of Policy and Planning at EDTEA, 20/05/2016).
The Durban Aerotropolis is also functionally conceptualised as a space of innovation in response to global change. The Masterplan of the Durban Aerotropolis speaks of “megatrends, disruption and a changing world” (EDTEA, 2016). This, in essence, highlights how the world is changing and how the rate of this change is ever-increasing and unpredictable. Here, innovation is seen as a force that has motivated the master planning team to adapt and be flexible in planning for a sustainable future through a competitive aerotropolis in Durban. The masterplan identifies the following megatrends, “urbanisation, a rising, more empowered middle class, constrained, finite resources, hyper connectivity, the exponential growth of technology and innovation and the renaissance of design and innovation” (EDTEA, 2016).
According to the Director of Research and Development at EDTEA (01/07/2016), the aerotropolis provides spaces of innovation where people can do things in ways that have never been done before. He further believes that within this space of innovation people should compete and set up their business ventures to avoid relying on the government to provide them with opportunities of employment. He stated,
The aerotropolis provides the spaces of innovation where people can do things differently, do things better, compete and set up their entities without having to rely on somebody providing them with jobs, so it affords them the smart way of life. You know you don’t have to live a 100 years to catch up with the developed world.
This innovation is also as a result of companies working together (or coming together in space) to foster a cluster environment, which is further discussed in Chapter 8.
According to the Durban Aerotropolis Masterplan, the project offers prime land for industrial activity within a reasonable distance to King Shaka International Airport (EDTEA, 2016). This further highlights the Durban Aerotropolis as a space for industry or industrial activity.
According to the masterplan;
These areas will need to be flexible to cater for yet undetermined future production/activities that will take place within them. (EDTEA, 2016).
The space for industrial activity has been designated as the Special Economic Zone, a project managed by the Dube TradePort Corporation. Like some of the world’s best aerotropoli, for example, IATN in Brazil and ZAEZ in China, decisions were taken to attract industry, foster business development and create jobs by setting up and establishing SEZs within the
107 aerotropolis (Kasarda, 2013). In this regard, stakeholders speak of the purpose of the Durban Aerotropolis being a space for industry activity.
In relation to integration and innovation, stakeholders also speak of the Durban Aerotropolis as a space for world-class logistics. According to the Durban Aerotropolis Masterplan,
the establishment of a logistics gateway will require an integrated multimodal logistics platform, facilitated movement and processing of goods (secure and bonded), inland transportation networks, high-value agricultural production, creating an enabling environment for new enterprises and attracting private sector participation and investment for specific opportunities. (EDTEA, 2016).
Because the aerotropolis needs to meet the crucial demand for speed, agility and reliability in fulfilment of orders, infrastructure of this kind needs to be set up around airports (Kasarda, 2001a). According to Arend, Bruns and McCurry (2004), airports are economic development engines as they are one of the central factors in businesses’ ability to compete, given the intensified role of logistics and distribution in meeting customer and shareholder demands. In the same way that the Memphis Aerotropolis redefined global logistics (Cox, 2009), the Durban Aerotropolis seeks to provide a space for world-class logistics.
Because South Africa is a food-insecure country, the master planning team identified a need for capitalising on rich agricultural potential. The Durban Aerotropolis is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the rich soils and excellent climate that defines it, according to the Durban Aerotropolis Masterplan (EDTEA, 2016). Within the project, there is Dube AgriZone which is an agricultural production zone for local and export markets. According to the Dube TradePort (2013), the AgriZone is said to be Africa’s first integrated perishables supply chain and is home to the continent’s largest climate-controlled growing area under glass. In this regard, the Durban Aerotropolis is thus perceived as a space for food production.
The foregoing discussion highlights the functions of the Durban Aerotropolis as shared by the stakeholders and as highlighted in the Durban Aerotropolis Masterplan and related documents from the Dube TradePort. In analysing the function of the Durban Aerotropolis, the findings show that integration and innovation are primary and key in its conceptualisation. Integration includes spaces of living, working and playing as well as presence of basic services.
Essentially, this integration can be understood as facilitating connection and assembling of the various functions to co-exist in space. Innovation, on the other hand, is evident in the presence of a world-class logistics platform, a sophisticated industrial area designated as an SEZ, and a food and agricultural complex. This innovation highlights processes of the Durban
108 Aerotropolis through which ‘dispersed parts’ can be connected through logistics. These
‘dispersed parts’ could be individuals, companies or countries. Essentially, the innovation facilitates a connection beyond geographical space and boundary.
Before the form of the project could be decided upon, the function had to be unpacked in detail from the respondents and documents. What follows is a discussion on the form of the Durban Aerotropolis.