Property developer Abland, and its partners on the Irene Link development, Giflo and SOM, will break ground on the second phase of the commercial development at the Irene Link precinct in Pretoria, in October.

The 8 500 m² commercial building will be ready for occupation in October 2020.

The commercial component of the 75 000 m² precinct, which already includes the Barloworld Logistics head office, will range from flexi-suites, which are single 20 m² semi-serviced offices, to 50 000 m² campus-style offices, depending on tenant requirements.

Irene Link will include a 12 000 m² convenience shopping centre, on which construction will start in the fourth quarter of this year and is slated to open to the public towards the end of 2020.

“Irene Link will offer a broad spectrum of mixed-use elements such as office space, medical services, restaurants, a national grocer, a preschool, a hotel, a business centre with conference facilities, beauty and health facilities and big green areas in one flowing organic precinct. The inclusion of an education facility into the development will ensure that Irene Link becomes a destination for the public,” says Abland MD Jurgens Prinsloo.

“Our aim is to make Irene Link one of the first smart precincts or smart cities in Gauteng. At this infrastructure phase, the connectivity of the precinct is planned to link all the functions of the precinct into a smart city with interconnected buildings and security, smart taxi drop-offs and a public WiFi area. We are also designing a Green Star-rated precinct from the ground up and each building on its own is Green Star-rated. This will include backup water and power, with renewable solar energy,” he adds.

Located on Alexander road, just off the Botha avenue interchange, the R2-billion mixed-use precinct is well-located with good exposure to the N1 highway and is easily accessible.

There are plans for a future Gautrain station and bus stations in the vicinity, which is expected to augment interest in the node.