New heights for Durban
Durban is known for several things that leave other cities green with envy: our warm weather, bunny chows and rickshaw rides on our award-winning promenade, just to name a few. But there might be something even bigger coming to town, or should we say taller…
Durban has been chosen to be home to the tallest skyscraper in Africa and the southern hemisphere. Earlier this year a bold project was presented to the city’s economic development and planning committee. According to Businesstech, the project is in the early planning stages and the architects already received the thumbs up from the councillors. The R6 billion project should be operational in 2021, depending if they can start construction next year. The building will purposed for various sectors including retail, commercial, parking, hotels and residential facilities.
The proposed spot for this bold construction is on the Durban Country Club and NMR sites. The building is expected to be 370 metres high with approximately 88 storeys, which will make it the tallest building in Africa and the southern hemisphere. Currently the Carlton Centre in Johannesburg is the tallest building in Africa, standing at 223 metres tall and has been the tallest building since 1973. The tallest building in KwaZulu-Natal, and the fourth tallest building in South Africa, is Pearl Dawn in Umhlanga that stands at 152 metres.
Discussions are still underway with stakeholders. Durban Country Club’s chairman, Richard Pemberton, said the club’s board supports the development but the go-ahead also depends on the approval of both the members and the board. The development would be to the south of the main buildings and will take up some of the club parking and tennis court area.
Durban will reach new heights with this incredible development (no pun intended) and we can’t wait to see if the sky is really the limit for this city that never ceases to amaze us.
Picture credit: Business Tech
Source: News24