If the private property sector has its way, the Joburg inner city will become less grime and crime — and it’s getting their hands dirty doing it.

At least eight big private investors — Absa, Divercity Urban Property Fund, Ithemba Properties, Olitzki Property Holdings, Atterbury, Talis Property Funds, FNB and Standard Bank — have come to the rescue of the Joburg inner city by establishing city and retail inner city districts (CIDs and RIDs) in pockets of the area. Property owners collaborate and meet monthly to engage on communal problems. They pay for their own security, cleaning and maintenance, and even repair the municipal pavements and potholes...