Rising on Market Square, the historic heart of Gqeberha, now stands the home of the Church of Scientology Eastern Cape. The building is situated diagonally opposite a revered national monument: the 19th-century City Hall with its iconic clock tower.

Originally constructed in 1934 for the United Building Society, one of South Africa’s leading banks at the time, the structure was celebrated upon its opening as an “elegant skyscraper.”

After acquiring the 10-storey masterpiece, the Church initiated an extensive project to return the building to its former grandeur.

The façade was meticulously restored to heritage specifications. This undertaking included reinstating the original black granite that graced the lower storeys using stone quarried in the northern city of Rustenburg. Additionally, more than two dozen intricately carved lion-head medallions, set beneath exterior windows, were carefully refurbished and returned to their rightful place.