Inside the giant Waterfall Estate property development

20th February 2015

By: Anine Kilian

Contributing Editor Online

  

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The 2 200 ha multibillion-rand Waterfall City development currently under construction in the Midrand area of Gauteng can only be described as a mega property development. Besides a major residential component, the project will also result in the creation of a new central business district for South Africa’s most populous province, with an increasing number of large corporates being attracted to the commercial offering within the hub.

Building is unfolding in stages on land owned by the Waterfall Islamic Institute. The Attacq Waterfall Investment Company (AWIC), which is owned by Attacq, a JSE-listed capital growth fund in the real estate sector, has been given a 99-year lease on the land to develop and run the property.

The development, which will take between 12 and 15 years to complete, will comprise commercial and retail developments, surrounded by secure residential estates, retirement villages, a Netcare hospital and schools, including a Reddam House private school.

“The area is strategically located and is central to Johannesburg and Tshwane, with excellent free-flow interchange access from the N1 freeway in all directions,” says AWIC GM Werner Mulder, adding that the development is also in close proximity to a Gautrain station.

He explains that, in 2008, AWIC secured the rights to develop commercial properties on the Waterfall City development, contained in various land parcels covering about 311 ha, on which 1.75-million square metres of developable bulk has been approved to date.

The rights to develop residential property in Waterfall Estate were secured by property development group Century Property Developments. The residential estates include the Waterfall Country and County Village Estate, the Equestrian Estate, as well as the Waterfall Valley and Waterfall Hills mature lifestyle community estates.

“The mixed-use centre will be anchored by the flagship 120 000 m2 Mall of Africa, which will be completed in April 2016 and is 76% prelet to a tenant base that includes retail clothing outlets Zara, H&M, Forever 21 and River Island,” he notes.

Waterfall Management CEO Willie Vos states that the planning of the development of the broader Waterfall Estate began in 1997.

“Government began expropriating the land for development, with State-owned entity Eskom’s Megawatt Park and the Buccleuch interchange built on what was once the Waterfall farm. A decision was then taken to develop the land,” he explains.

He notes that, as a result, Waterfall Estate has emerged as the largest mixed-use property development in South African history, combining between 8 000 and 10 000 residential units.

This development will eventually house an estimated 35 000 to 40 000 people and accommodate commercial and office space for 60 000 people.

“Waterfall Estate is intended to be an attractive, efficient, secure and easily accessible lifestyle option that is suited to any person – including single people, married couples, families and the elderly. This development has something for everyone, including those who fall within the affordable housing segment,” Vos points out.

City Alignment

City of Johannesburg spokesperson Nthatisi Modingoane says the process followed to realise the development proposal of Waterfall Estate can be summarised in four steps – council policy, township application, site development planning and building plans.

When it comes to council policy, the property owners, through their consultants, approached the council with a draft development proposal to ensure that the development is in line with the council’s development policies and, where necessary, apply for amendments thereof.

“The council’s policy at the time did not have detailed development guidelines for the property and the developer’s proposal was evaluated in terms of the city’s overall development principles and guidelines, applying them to the context of the site in relation to its surroundings,” he says.

Modingoane adds that once the consultation process, including public participation, had been concluded, the proposals were taken up in the Regional Spatial Development Framework for Region A as approved by the council.

An application for township establishment was then submitted to detail the layout of the roads in the development, each with its own unique development rights. This process includes the submission of detailed engineering studies for all services and environmental studies.

Before construction could take place, a site development plan, indicating the detail of the proposed development site, had to be submitted for approval.

“This plan was distributed to all the relevant departments to evaluate services, environmental issues, health, fire and town-planning detail,” he comments.

Modingoane notes that once the site development plan was approved, building plans were submitted for approval in order to pave the way for construction to start.

All bulk services contributions, as well as services upgrades and installations, had to be finalised prior to the approval of building plans.

“Since most of the problem areas have been addressed during the process of the township establishment, there are currently very few sticking points,” he says.

Design Philosophy

Vos states that architectural guidelines have been implemented for the residential development since its conception, aiming to create a residential estate where the architecture responds to the climate and environment, while embracing the use of raw construction materials.

Therefore, there has been a conscious decision to specifically exclude the imported Tuscan, Balinese, Georgian and French styles found in many other new developments in South Africa.

“The aim is to present a truly South African style using natural materials that are perfectly suited to the Highveld climate,” says Vos.

He adds that the design guidelines are broad enough to allow for some personal flair, but the overall character of the estate will emerge through unifying elements, such as the colour and finish of external walls and roof materials.

Waterfall Estate, he says, aims to promote a strong awareness of green living architecturally and in terms of the landscaped park that surrounds it.

Landscaping within the development follows the same theory, Vos adds, noting that if the landscape concept is not followed, the overall look and unity of the gardens will be lost, reducing the visual value of the property.

The landscaping regulations point out that the indigenous plants will attract birds, bees, butterflies and other small creatures.

Infrastructure Roll-Out

“We are planning to develop infrastructure that will expand the development’s future potential, and we have the land available to do just that,” Attacq CEO Morne Wilken said at a media briefing last year.

He commented that the development had attracted the likes of advisory firm PwC, which agreed to establish its 40 000 m2, 25-storey headquarters in Waterfall City’s envisaged business district that will be completed in April next year.

Vos states that several industrial-focused businesses are already operational on the commercial side of the estate and this capacity will increase over time.

“The strategic partners of the development, including Century Property Developments and AWIC, have collectively spent about R1-billion on roadworks to improve the transport system in and around the estate.”

Vos adds that two major projects are currently under construction to ease traffic flow around the development’s perimeters.

The first is the widening of the K71 Kyalami Main road and the R55 from the World of Golf to Maxwell road at Waterfall Corner.

Simultaneously, the construction of the K60 will start this year, which is south of Waterfall Country Estate Extension 19.

Meanwhile, a road and a bridge that will guide traffic to and from the Mall of Africa are being built. They will cross the N1, link up to the K101 Old Johannesburg Road and will be ready to use in April next year.

Competitive Pressures?

Wilken downplays the potential impact of the planned 22 km2 mixed-use Modderfontein City development, announced last year by Shanghai Zendai, arguing that Attacq has already secured first-mover advantage.

In April 2014, Shanghai Zendai outlined ambitious plans for the development of an R84-billion ‘city’ offering mixed land use on the sprawling Modderfontein property bought from South African explosives and chemicals company AECI last year for R1-billion.

The group plans to build a new ecofriendly and low-carbon urban district, which will encompass the features of a conventional city, including finance, trade, logistics, commerce, exhibition, manufacturing, education, healthcare and housing.

“We’re not concerned about the Modderfontein City development, as we are ahead in terms of progress, and this development is still many years away. Shanghai Zendai also has lots of land rehabilitation to do before construction can begin, and Waterfall City has better road access,” Wilken says.

Modingoane says it is not possible to compare these two developments, as Waterfall City is already in its developmental phase, with the Modderfontein City development only in the conceptual phase.

But a comprehensive traffic study has been conducted with urban Shanghai Zendai, as well as Century Property Developments to assess the combined impact of these large developments on the regional roads network.

“[These studies will help] determine what upgrades will be required at which stage and by whom, Modingoane explains.

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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