The men who started South Africa’s most successful security estate

 ·22 Jan 2025

Midstream Estate is South Africa’s most successful security estate, with its own schools, hospitals, shopping centres, restaurants, and churches.

Four men—Riaan Botma, Chris Smith, Jan Zeederberg, and Johan van Wyk—made this incredible security town possible.

This group of entrepreneurs started with property development in Pretoria in 1995 through their company, Bondev.

The name Bondev stems from the French noun ‘bon’, meaning good, and ‘dev’, which is short for developments.

Their first joint development was in Eldoraigne. After its success, Eldo Estates, Eldopark, and Eldoglen followed suit.

In 2000, Bondev embarked on its most ambitious project. It set out to build a fully-fledged and self-contained security town.

It purchased a 1,300-hectare estate from the Erasmus family and officially established Midstream Estate in 2001.

However, municipal and governmental red tape caused the project to be delayed by eighteen months.

In April 2003, machinery and equipment moved in, and the development of Midstream Estate started.

From the outset, security was a key focus. It is protected by a 2.5m high palisade fence surrounded by a 1.8m wall with electric fencing.

The space between the two fences is patrolled 24/7, and the estate invested in numerous high-end technologies to ensure safety for its residents.

The estate quickly gained popularity because of its exceptional security and the rapidly expanding amenities.

Over the next two decades, Midstream Estate became the most successful security estate in South Africa.

It features numerous residential estates in one, including Midstream Proper, Midfield, Midlands, Midstream Ridge, Midstream Heights, Midstream Meadows, and Midstream Hill.

The estate has its own retirement village, Retire@Midstream, with a frail care facility and a dementia facility.

It offers parents a choice of three baby houses, three pre-primary schools, two primary schools, and a dual-medium high school.

As a self-contained village, it has its own shopping centres, hospitals, churches, sporting facilities, and restaurants.

Restaurants inside the estate include Turn ’n Tender, Mugg & Bean, Salsa, Steers, Godfather, Lupa, Wimpy, and many more.

The sports facilities include a 10-hole par three mashie golf course, tennis and squash courts, a cricket oval, an indoor swimming pool, and a gym.

Midstream has many business parks that offer residents commercial and office space inside the estate.

It also features Co-work @ Midstream, a modern shared workspace environment that offers companies and individuals a professional home for their businesses.

The estate has become very popular among people in Gauteng who are looking for a secure living environment with nearby facilities.

Demand for properties in the estate has seen prices rise significantly over the last few years, outperforming the market.

Recent sales data shows that freehold units with yard sizes between 600m² and 4,000 m² are selling for between R3 million and R35 million.

Sectional title units, ranging from 190 to 400 square metres, have been selling for between R2.5 million and R5.2 million.

Midstream co-founder Chris Smith

In June 2016, Chris Smith passed away after battling cancer. Apart from starting Midstream Estate, he was also a director of Midstream College.

In addition to his success at Midstream Estate, Eldo Park, and Eldoglen, he was also behind the Royal Elephant Hotel and Forever Resorts.

Riaan Botma, a property developer since 1982, remains directly involved in Midstream Estate and continues to serve as a Bondev director.

He has lived in Midstream Estate since 2005 and served on the Midstream Homeowners’ Association board from inception in 2002 until 2009 and again from 2015 until present.

Jan Zeederberg also still lives in Midstream Estate and is involved in numerous aspects of running the estate.

He was also the driving force behind Midstream Estate’s R200 million solar and battery backup system to protect against load-shedding.

Unfortunately, not much information about Johan van Wyk is available, including whether he is still involved in Midstream Estate.

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