Plans for a massive R500 million development in Belmont Valley and new housing estate on the current Grahamstown Golf Course are on the verge of being finalised. The project hopes to raise the appeal of Grahamstown, remaining loyal to local heritage sites.
Plans for a massive R500 million development in Belmont Valley and new housing estate on the current Grahamstown Golf Course are on the verge of being finalised. The project hopes to raise the appeal of Grahamstown, remaining loyal to local heritage sites.
When completed, it will include a housing complex, shopping mall, replacement golf course, soccer and agricultural academies and will also have upgraded the city’s water treatment plant. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project has been submitted to the Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism and is awaiting approval.
Rezoning applications and an assessment of bulk services to the proposed construction sites are being assessed by the municipality and are also expected to receive approval in the weeks ahead. “We expect to get authorisation by 7 September 2012 and hope to begin construction by the following month,” says David Davies, of the BEE company and project managers of the operation, Izenzo Consulting.
The EIA paid particular attention to wetlands, and a South African War-era trench system and memorial situated on the Grahamstown Golf Course. Davies said he guaranteed the integrity of these sites: “We are definitely preserving the wetlands and we are going to clean up the trench and provide access to the memorial. We’re trying to build the appeal of Grahamstown and we think this lies in education and tourism. History is big part of that,” Davies said.
“The starting price of one of our properties will be R750 000.” He believes this is “competitive” when compared to prices in established suburbs. While some have voiced concerns that even this price is out of the range of many Rhodes staff, Davies asserts that the project is not reliant on support from the University.
The Makana municipality ceded its pre-emptive right to have ‘first claim’ to purchasing the land where the Golf Course is currently situated, in favour of what it will bring to Grahamstown. The developers are now able to purchase it directly from the Course’s owners.
Development highlights
The Grahamstown Golf Course will be moving south, to Belmont Valley, allowing for the construction of a housing estate on its current site. This estate will be a secure community, featuring a 25 000 square metre shopping mall surrounded by 650 houses, and an apartment complex of 250 flats. Among the parties Davies hopes to entice are current and potential Rhodes University staff: “Rhodes has been held back by high property prices, which have made potential staff wary of moving to Grahamstown,” said Davies.
The Belmont Development Company is contractually obliged to provide new grounds for the Grahamstown Golf Course before starting on the residential project, a requirement that must be met before the Golf Course will give up its title to their current site.
This new golf course will be central to the developments taking place in Belmont Valley, which will also see the establishment of a soccer academy.
Davies said this academy will offer places to talented soccer players between the ages of 12 and 18, providing them with both training and education. The idea would be to create not only future soccer stars, but also managers, coaches and medics. Also proposed is an agricultural academy, aimed at teaching both practical and theoretical aspects of farming.
The developer is also currently in the process of negotiating with the municipality to form a private-public partnership which will see R66 million invested into the Belmont Waste Water Treatment Works. This investment will be used primarily to upgrade a system that is not meeting the current needs of Grahamstown.
The upgrade will also see the introduction of a methane gas and fertiliser plant, both producing products that can be sold locally, with members of the community trained to manage these projects.
If these proposal prove successful, then further developments of the city are inevitable with Izenzo Consulting standing by to invest an additional R1.5 billion in future projects. “We believe in this project. This will help grow the appeal of Grahamstown,” said Davies.
Future developments rest on the success of the Belmont Valley proposal, opening the way for future projects. “We believe in this project. This will help grow the appeal of Grahamstown,” said Davies, Izenso Consulting is prepared to invest an additional R1.5 billion in future Grahamstown projects.
View Grahamstown golf course to move in a larger map
