Construction on the first modern South African settlement designed to operate completely off the national energy grid is expected to begin early next year.
The complex, Crossway's Village, set on a working dairy farm on the edge of the spectacular Van Staden's River Gorge, outside Port Elizabeth, is
Construction on the first modern South African settlement designed to operate completely off the national energy grid is expected to begin early next year.
The complex, Crossway's Village, set on a working dairy farm on the edge of the spectacular Van Staden's River Gorge, outside Port Elizabeth, is
expected to set the benchmark for green building practices and high-tech infrastructure.
The development was announced by Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, Gugile Nkwinti, in Port Elizabeth earlier this month, and the details were published in the newsletter of the COP17 climate change conference in Durban.
Crossways would also be the first formal rural settlement fully integrated with an existing agricultural component, in this case a professionally run dairy farm, and one in which future food security formed an important component of the overall planning.
In a press release to Grocott’s Mail, developer Chris Mulder, of Chris Mulder and Associates Incorporated, was quoted saying Crossways Farm Village would combine the benefits of a healthy rural existence with all the conveniences of sophisticated urban living.
The village will comprise 747 residential stands of varying sizes, divided into neighbourhoods spread throughout the 563ha site, of which more than half would be a conservation area. The plans for the development have been approved, without any preconditions, both by the Eastern Cape's Department of Economic Affairs, Environment and Tourism and the national Department of Agriculture.
Mulder said Crossways would be the most advanced town in South Africa because of its high-tech infrastructure. He said they planned to take the entire town off the national grid by means of photovoltaic technology.
The implementation of this technology would be made possible by a fibre-optic data communication network installed throughout the development. The alternative energy and energy–saving technology would be built into the town’s infrastructure from the outset, which means all owners will enjoy these benefits as standard features.
Around 80 solar roof panels on each house will provide its full energy requirements, storing the excess produced in an integrated bank of photovoltaic batteries with the capacity to feed into the energy grid.
Rainwater harvested from the roof will be stored in three 1 000 litre tanks built into the structure of the house, while a unique heat-pump system will circulate pool water through the flooring system to heat or cool the building, reducing seasonal temperature variances.
The fibre-optic technology will serve as infrastructure for a wide range of services, from regulating the village's energy grid to controlling infrastructure security systems and providing high-speed connectivity.
Because the telephone system is embedded in this technology, all calls within the town will be free.
Mulder said once the upgraded dairy farm with its stud herd was fully operational and generating profits, it would be ceded, debt-free, to the village. The settlement would have access not only to the range of dairy products, but also to an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables, commercially grown on the property.
According to the press release, issued on 1 November, the installation of all services for the first residential and industrial phases were to start immediately.
At the time, all industrial stands and 70% of the residential stands in these phases had been sold. Construction of the first houses is expected to start April next year.
The industrial stands, located some distance from the residential nodes, are intended for light cottage industries, with a strong artisanal and agri-processing character.
Mulder’s firm, CMAI, won two CNBC International Property Development Awards in 2007, for their Thesen Project in the Knysna lagoon. CMAI is responsible for the design, planning and implementation of the R3.4 billion Crossways project.
