George building collapse site to go on auction

The site of the tragic George building collapse is going under the hammer, 18 months after 34 construction workers were killed at 75 Victoria Road.
 
Twenty-eight other artisans were seriously injured when a five-storey building collapsed, burying 62 people under 6,000 tonnes of rubble in May last year. 
 
A report by the Council for the Built Environment (CBE) found that the developer, the contractor and the engineer were responsible.

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The developer, Neo Victoria Developments, is under liquidation.
 
A bidding war for the ownership of 75 Victoria Road in George will take place online between 12:00 noon on Tuesday, 25 November and 12:00 noon on Wednesday, 26 November.

Van's Auctioneers CEO Martin Pretorius said the site is valued at R12 million but is expected to sell for between R6 million to R7 million.
 
Pretorius said it was regrettable that the site was a reminder of a tragic incident, but it's valuable and with a great location.
  
"The fact that there was a tragedy on the property is a sad phase; we all know the history. But the punchline is that we are selling a site, maybe it's too soon to rebuild, but once again that's an emotional question."
 
He added that the site was a great development opportunity for residential flats within the CBD and within walking distance of public transport.

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