These 5 swanky developments will be completed in 2018

While a number of new developments were announced in 2017, several multi-billion rand builds that kicked off three to four years ago are now nearing completion.

Despite an incredibly turbulent time for the construction sector – and the South African economy as a whole – over the past few years, there has been no sign of major developments slowing down in the country’s major cities.

From mega-cities being built in Gauteng and a slew of new developments in Cape Town, to fanciful ideas for ‘old’ areas in Durban and even new cities being built on the outskirts of these economic hubs, we have a lot of new spaces to look forward to in the coming years.

Here are five developments valued over R1 billion, which are set for completion this year.

The Marc – Sandton

The R2 billion-plus Village Walk redevelopment in Sandton – now dubbed ‘The Marc‘ – is expected to be completed in March 2019, with the completion of its Tower A – but the first official opening of the retail segment will be in July, followed by Tower B’s launch in August 2018.

The development consists of the two office towers (A and B) which rise along the Maude Street and Rivonia Road site boundaries respectively.

In addition, there will be a retail centre at the base of towers comprising of restaurants, fashion outlets, general retail, a gym and medical suites, easily accessible from the street and parking levels. The development boast 6.5 basement parking floors offering a total of 3,462 parking bays.

Times Square Hotel and Casino – Pretoria

While the Casino arm of the Times Square development in Menlyn Maine, Pretoria, opened its doors in April 2017, the full completion of the hotel and surrounding features is expected to launch in March 2018.

The full build would have taken more than 3 years, and came at a cost of over R4.3 billion. The hotel and casino was Sun International’s first build in 15 years.

Notably, the Times Square development is part of the wider Menlyn Maine project, which is Prestoria’s first ‘green city’, that has seen well over R8 billion worth of investment, and has been under construction since 2010.

Park Square – Umhlanga

The Nedbank-backed Park Square development in Umhglanga is expected to start occupancy in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Aside from financing the R1 billion build, Nedbank will also occupy around 50% of the 40,000 square metre floor space, which will offer a mix of office space and retail space.

The office space will span five blocks along the perimeter of the development site, while the retail space will be on the ground level surrounding a public piazza.

Park Square is only one of several high cost projects in Umhlanga, which has been pegged as one of the biggest growth areas in the region.

Discovery HQ – Sandton

Those who frequently travel through Sandton would have noticed the progress being made on the new R3 billion Discovery campus building over the past few months.

The building is expected to become the new home base for the insurer with employees moving in during the first quarter of 2018.

The 87,000 square metre building is located on the corner of Rivonia Road and Katherine Street, with developer Growthpoint aiming for a five star green rating for the new build.

Discovery’s move to its new offices will be in the same year as the financial services group is anticipated to enter the retail banking sector.

The Link – Rosebank

The redevelopment of the Rosebank Mews – now dubbed the Rosebank Link – is expected to be completed some time in 2018.

When complete, the building will have an estimated gross lettable area of over 19,000 square metres with approximately 817 sqm of retail on the ground floor.

The developers have not disclosed the cost of the project, construction and project tracking group, Leads 2 Business, estimated the costs at over R1 billion.

It forms part of the R7 billion facelift that the area has been going through over the past few years.

Read: New Menlyn development to become one of the tallest residential buildings in Pretoria