November 22, 2004
By Thomas Thale
CONSTRUCTION on the R600-million Clearwater Shopping Centre in Strubens Valley, Roodepoort, is on track to be completed in time for the grand launch on 25 November.
This is according to Louis Novel, CEO of Attfund, the project developers. "We will open just in time for the Christmas shopping spree," he says confidently. Various acts have been lined up to entertain both kids and adults from 25 to 28 November, as part of the opening celebrations.
But some of the key tenants of the mall, including clothing, restaurant, fast food and home decor outlets, are already open for business.
The 60 000m2, double storey complex, on the corner of Christiaan de Wet and Henry Potgieter Drives, an area that has experienced phenomenal growth in residential and commercial property in recent years, promises to revolutionise shopping in the west of Johannesburg.
Novel promises the mall will be "very upmarket. It is very unique, but still comparable to the best in the world," he says.
Novel says the mall is already fully let, with 200 tenants having snapped up available space. The anchor tenants are Edgars, Pick and Pay and Woolworths.
Rob Bray, an architect at Bentel Associates, the designers of the complex, says the mall is configured in a "three-legged triangular format", with an anchor at each point of the triangle.
He says the name of the mall was inspired by the locality of the site, which rests at the base of the Roodekrans Ridge. According to Bray, the mall seeks to recreate the atmosphere of the site, which is home to the black eagle and boasts a crystal-clear stream and waterfall, which cascades into the Kloofendal Nature Reserve.
The mall thus boasts several water features, which set the scene for wonderful pedestrian areas, says Bray. "One of the five entrances gives central access to the entertainment court and incorporates a drop-off zone for the cinemas."
Another attractive feature of the mall is an internal atrium, complete with skylights on the food court. The court is lined with trees and a lawn to create a "street pavement" ambience, says Bray. "The court has a sliding roof which will enclose the restaurant zone when required and the space will then become part of the air conditioned enclosed mall," adds Bray.
The ablutions include spacious mother's and father's rooms, all easily accessible to paraplegics. The mall has undercover garage and roof parking, with a capacity of over 1000 bays.
Bray says the developers spent an extra R55-million upgrading the roads in the vicinity. The development saw a new intersection being constructed at the corner of Christiaan de Wet and Hendrick Potgieter Drives and the streets being broadened to accommodate increased traffic.
The mall will be opened in grand style on Thursday, with all-day entertainment for kids, including jumping castles, clowns and stilt walkers.
In the evening, popular rock band, Wonderboom, will take to the stage to set the Roodepoort night on fire.
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