The precinct around ‘Fortress’ Loftus will undergo a major facelift over the next two years. Loftus Park, which may best be described as an exclusive shopping and office precinct, valued at R1,2 Billion on completion, is expected to be fully functional and operational by the beginning of 2016, with actual construction starting towards the middle of 2014.
Blue Bulls Media Release
The overall development, which was presented by developers Abland at Loftus on Wednesday 30 October 2013, will come to life on the northern side of the stadium, and will be managed by Abreal (Pty) ltd. This area was over the past few years utilized for parking, and for those that may remember further back housed the well-frequented ‘Sin-Bin’ restaurant, and previous to that the Northern Transvaal Tennis Union building.
On completion, this modern and state of the art establishment will consist of over 40,000 m2 of lettable space. This will be a combination of offices, a hotel, a Gym, and various restaurants facing onto a Piazza. Ample parking will also be constructed which will assist the precinct greatly on match days. Negotiations with various major tenants, including SPAR and the Tsogo Sun group, are already well underway.
The developers will endeavor to obtain a four star green rating for the precinct which will be a first in South Africa and in Africa, each building will also be four star rated.
The site provides superb accessibility from the north and south as a result of the vicinity to the Hatfield Gautrain Station and the new TRT (Tshwane Bus Rapid Transit system) bus service, which runs past Loftus Versveld in Lynnwood road. The Blue Bulls Rugby Union will have a significant input in the development, and the old Northern Transvaal tennis club building will be preserved in the new development, together with a Sports Exhibition centre. This will be a bonus for supporters, as it will put on display the history and current events of various sporting codes.
Abland is a property development company that boasts a long line of awe-inspiring developments in the province, such as the Centurion Lifestyle Centre, Wonderboom Junction Retail Centre, Riverside in Centurion, Alice Lane in Sandton and The Pivot at Montecasino.
Abland director Thinus Delport: “It is in excess of R1 billion and we estimate that the value will be between R1bn and R1.2bn on completion.”
The Blue Bulls Rugby Union is also set to reap benefits from the development of the precinct, which will go a long way in assisting clubs and the amateur division with the union.
BBRU chief executive officer Dr Eugene Hare said the influx of capital would help club rugby within the city and also help bolster their development programme.
“We are really looking forward to this. For all rugby unions across the country it is a huge challenge to manage amateur and club rugby. This is a huge opportunity for the BBRU to have a sustainable income for the clubs. This constant flow of capital will also strengthen our development with our main focus being on the whole of Tshwane.”
Sounds great. Great idea to generate some extra money. More parking, restaurants. A win-win situation.
1 @ leon:
Dis darem maar flokken bliksems baie geld wat gespandeer gaan word deur die ontwikkelaars!
Dr Eugene Hare?
Is hy die oud-Pukke en W.Tvl skrumskakel en kaptein?
@ grootblousmile:
Ja, dis baie. Maar hulle sou dit nie doen as hulle nie die geld kon terugmaak nie. Ek dink al die gebou naby die gautrain stasie is waarde styg baie. Hatfield moet net skoon gemaak word.
Having spoken extensively to a sports tour operator in 2011 who REALLY knows sports stadia worldwide he was of the opinion that both Loftus and Ellis Park had a further effective life span of 15-20 years before they would become redundant in terms of international standards.
This was after both underwent extensive upgrades for FIFA 2010. At the time the same chap predicted to me that both Newlands and Kings Park would cease hosting international games within 5 years and that both WP and the Sharks would be FORCED to move. Looks like he was right.
That said, with the precinct development that Loftus are planning now, I wonder when they intend to (basically) build a new stadium?
The arguement is that SA’s stadia cannot be upgraded to the ever increasing international standards in their present (40 year old) guise.
@ Pietman:
Einste hy
Interesting move by the BBRU.
Now can the GLRU also start a project to upgrade the areas surrounding Ellis Park. They have UJ around the corner, the technical college right next door. That funny little shopping center next door to Ellis Park can be torn down and a new parkade can be built in its place. Businesses surrounding the area can be incentivised to upgrade their buildings. GLRU can also get a buy in by PRASA to upgrade the station, and provide trains especially for match days. Some urban renewal can happen there and voila! one has an attractive area. But maybe that’s a pipe dream for me.
7 @ Lion4ever:
City of Johannesburg spent over ZAR 1 billion in upgrading the Ellis Park Precinct prior to FIFA 2010 IN ADDITION to the stadium upgrade.
If one cares to go into JHB CBD one will notice MASSIVE changes from say 5 years ago.
The JHB CBD rejuvination is REAL and working.
It will get down to the Doornfontein area in time, when many of the old and delapilated buildings will basically be forced to transform themselves.
7 @ Lion4ever:
It’s definitely not a pipe dream.
When Redefine announced that they were going to sponsor the Lions, one of their principal reasons was the ongoing rejuviniation of which they, as a corporate participant have been part of and which they want to continue to be part of.
What get’s me about those that slag Ellis Park is that (for the most part) they haven’t been to the stadium for many years and still “remember” it as it was around the turn of the century.
Ellis Park is easier to get into and has more parking than both Newlands and Kings Park, and has more open areas around the stadium than the majority of SA’s provincial Rugby stadia.
The biggest problem at EP is the antiquated toilets, and the SA attitude of not giving a sh1t if they p1ss on the floor or have to stand in a pool of p1ss to relieve themselves.
The Millenium Staium and Murrayfield were a MASSIVE eye opener for me in terms of fascilities and the management thereof.
Sien op supersport Brendan Nel skryf daar is ‘n moontlikheid dat Victor Matfield en Derick Hougaard dalk ‘n comeback wil maak vir volgende jaar by die Bulle.
Soos verwag, is bulle teenstanders nie baie gelukkig met so ‘n moontlike verwikkelinge nie, op sommige blogs gooi die meisies al hul speelgoed uit hul prams oor so ‘n gedagte.
Dalk het die Bokke nie hierdie versterking nodig nie, maar die Bulle kort ervaring, die afgelope seisoen het dit baie duidelik uitgewys.
Loch logan waterfront is net langs die vrystaat stadion gebou. Kuier lekker daar voor en na die games, jy park jou kar lekker onder dak en stap net oor die straat stadion toe
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