Permit - 355427

This permit is issued to the applicant, Mr Mike Scurr (Rennie Scurr Adendorff Architects) on behalf of the Development Bank of South Africa for the proposed redevelopment of the Old Assembly Building, Parliament Precinct, Cape Town. 

Thank you for submitting your application for the proposed redevelopment of the Old Assembly building, Parliament, following fire damage. This permit is issued in accordance with Section 27(18) of the National Heritage Resources Act no 25 of 1999. It is understood that the purpose of this rebuilding is to restore and update the Old Assembly building by means of alterations, additions and conservation methods available. Furthermore, the Old Assembly building forms part of a larger site, the Parliament Precinct, and therefore must contribute to its landscape context. 

The following documents were submitted for review by the SAHRA:

• Vol 1 Parliament S27 Submission _30.09.2024
• Vol 3 Parliament S27 Submission Old Assembly_01_10_24
• Vol 4 Parliament S27 Submission _01_10_2024
• Vol 5 Parliament S27 Submission_0
• Vol 1 Annexure E_ Parliament building design narrative_Dr Maape Presentation 07 Aug 2024
• Vol 3 Annexure B_Architects  Proposal_Osmond Lange Architects 2024
• Vol 5 Parliament S27 Section 4 Annexures
• Annexure A Section 3.3 Collated Chatbot Comments
• Power_of_Attorney_Mike_Scurr (QC) [1]
• pop-sahra-parliament-23669-27-beu

Overview of content:

The documentation submitted gives an overview of the history, development and significance of the various aspects that make up this National Heritage Site. Furthermore, a summary of the status quo starting from the fire of 2nd January 2022, proceeding to accounts of initial reporting, subsequent clearing and stabilising at the site, and ending at the present day of demolition and clearing is given. 

Stemming from the brief received, legislations and frameworks much was considered in the redevelopment of the National and Old Assembly at the Parliament Precinct. A detailed study covers characteristics of the precinct highlighting several important aspects in the history of the site and the evolution of South Africa to a democratic society. This report gives insight into the various layers of history, heritage and significance of the site. Furthermore, a literature review and precedent study are included and have gone on to contribute to consideration of several rebuilding approaches. The site is categorized into three areas, namely, National Council of Provinces (out of scope), Old Assembly Project Area and National Assembly Project Area.  While this application focuses on the redevelopment of the Old Assembly, consideration is given to the National Assembly, the relationship between these two buildings and several others as well as the larger landscape context. 

The SAHRA hereby permits the proposed interventions, proposed new design and reworking of remaining elements of the Old Assembly per the submitted scope of works. Based on the strength of the application submitted for the proposed strategy to adapt and reuse in the rebuilding of the Old Assembly building, the SAHRA hereby issues this permit with the following conditions.