The developers of the R4.4 billion block of offices, flats and shops nestled between the Black and Liesbeek rivers say they have met their civil engineering obligations, including a road extension and sewerage upgrades, but a civic leader says the City got the short end of the stick.
The Berkley Road extension, which now links Observatory to Ndabeni with a bridge over the Black River, opened earlier this month. It is part of the mixed used R4.4 billion Riverlands development under construction since 2021.
On Wednesday October 2, City officials and representatives from the Western Cape First Nations Collective and Liesbeek Leisure Properties Trust (LLPT) held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the new road extension to celebrate the completion of most of the development’s civil engineering, which, according to LLPT trustee James Tannenberger, cost R120 million and includes the new roadway and bridge, the upgrade to Berkley Road, bulk works surrounding the development, riverine rehabilitation and upgrades to the sewerage and other external services.
“This project isn’t just about a road or a bridge – it’s about enhancing the quality of life for every Capetonian, creating opportunities for businesses to thrive, and laying a foundation for future growth,” he said.
Deputy mayor Eddie Andrews said conditions for the development included establishing heritage and transport infrastructure and carrying the costs of upgrading water connections and other bulk engineering services to municipal standards.
“We are also continuously monitoring compliance with the said development conditions of this site, amongst which rehabilitating a portion of the Liesbeek River with the Liesbeek Canal along the eastern part of the property is to be rehabilitated into a naturalised ravine corridor,” he said.
Mayoral committee member for urban mobility Rob Quintas confirmed the roadworks, bridgeworks and ancillary services were practically complete and safe for public use.
The Berkley Road extension would “improve traffic flow in the area and provide several access points to the development’s northern precinct”, he said.
The formal handover of the public works to the City was “expected to be concluded shortly”, he said.
The Riverlands development, or River Club development as it was previously known, was mired in a protracted legal battle with an indigenous group, the Goringhaicona Khoi Khoin Indigenous Traditional Council (GKKITC), and the Observatory Civic Association (OCA), who both opposed it after plans for it were unveiled in 2016. That court battle came to an end last July with the OCA finally conceding defeat in its campaign to stop the development (“Final chapter in River Club battle,” Southern Suburbs Tatler, July 6, 2023)
According to OCA chairperson Professor Leslie London, who has fought the development from the start, the claims about the infrastructure upgrades are “overstated”.
The City had got a road out of the deal and the developers had paid for a sewage pump station, but it would pump Riverlands sewage to the Athlone sewage works, where ratepayers would essentially be carrying the cost for it to be treated at an ageing plant that badly needed upgrading, he said.
And the new road would not solve traffic problems, he added.
“If you build more roads, you will get more cars, particularly since the Riverlands development would have thousands of parking bays.”
The parking bays would be reserved for those working at Riverlands or residents of its luxury flats.
Mr Andrews said the developers had agreed to provide more than 3200 parking bays for the site and the City’s urban mobility directorate had supported that.
In a statement, the LLPT said there would be ample parking for the development’s residents, commercial tenants and visitors to the Riverlands Mall and the First Nations Heritage Centre.
The LLPT said the development’s office space had been tenanted since the beginning of October, the retail component was expected to open to the public by next month; and the flats should be completed by the second quarter of 2025.
