{"id":802831,"date":"2024-12-04T09:51:15","date_gmt":"2024-12-04T07:51:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=802831"},"modified":"2024-12-04T09:52:01","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T07:52:01","slug":"major-facelifts-coming-for-durbans-iconic-beachfront-hotspots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/property\/802831\/major-facelifts-coming-for-durbans-iconic-beachfront-hotspots\/","title":{"rendered":"Major facelifts coming for Durban’s iconic beachfront hotspots"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Ethekwini Municipality has appointed a developer for the long-term leasing and redevelopment of a once-popular beachfront centre\u2014commonly known as \u201cJoeCools\u201d\u2014in Durban, with plans in place for the shuttered ‘Funworld’ amusement park site as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the city, this follows the municipality’s proactive land release strategy, which invited industry proposals through a request for proposal (RFP) in November 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The successful proposal secured a 45-year lease for the redevelopment of the property.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The redevelopment aligns with the municipality\u2019s Inner-City Local Area Plan, which emphasises protecting and enhancing the beachfront as a key tourism asset,” it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This project will transform the property into a modern facility while retaining its charm and appeal.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The city said that the project will retain current national tenants under the Famous Brands umbrella, including Wimpy, Steers, Fishaways, and Milky Lane. A new Mugg and Bean restaurant will be introduced, with additional tenants to be confirmed as construction progresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Details of the construction timeline and programme will be announced, but the property will remain operational for the upcoming holiday season, the city said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Construction is anticipated to commence after the Easter holidays in 2025, subject to necessary statutory approvals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The redevelopment is expected to create approximately 80 jobs during the construction phase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethekwini mayor Cyril Xaba said the municipality is committed to ensuring that all existing jobs are retained and anticipates additional employment opportunities will be created as the new building will be 68% larger than the current structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis expansion will attract new tenants, further boosting local businesses and job creation. The municipality remains committed to driving economic growth and urban revitalisation through strategic property initiatives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This redevelopment is a significant step toward realising the municipality\u2019s vision of creating a vibrant and thriving beachfront for both residents and visitors,\u201d said Xaba.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The municipality has also finalised supply chain management processes for the redevelopment of the old “Funworld Site.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Funworld was a popular attraction on the Durban beachfront for 75 years before officially closing in April 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Urban decay in Durban had made maintaining the site impossible, and the degradation of municipal infrastructure left the owners with no choice but to shut it down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A formal announcement regarding this site will be made in due course, the city said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Read: Takealot opens massive new distribution centre in Durban<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Ethekwini municipality is working to revamp and revitalise tourist hotspots on the Durban beachfront, which have fallen into disrepair and decay.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":802834,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12755],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-802831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-property"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/802831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=802831"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/802831\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":802836,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/802831\/revisions\/802836"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/802834"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=802831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=802831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=802831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}