Huge project countdown
Motherwell-Coega development may begin in three years
DEVELOPERS of the multibillionrand CoegaRidge housing development, planned for between Motherwell and Coega, hope to break ground in three years’ time.
Set to have the same number of houses as Motherwell, and make a dent in Nelson Mandela Bay’s housing backlog, the project has been in the planning stages for the past seven years.
Nu-Way executive director Jordan Mann said this week that after the approval of the environmental impact assessment in August last year, a town planner had been appointed in November, and approval for town-planning was expected in 2017.
Mann was speaking at the Eastern Cape Construction Summit held at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
Other than the scale of the massive 3 000ha development, the mostly residential development was unique in that its total of 40 000 housing units would be offered to people of all walks of life – from lower- to upper-income groups.
“We want to break ground in 2018. Not only will CoegaRidge help to substantially dent the metro’s housing shortage, but as the Coega Industrial Development Zone attracts more and more top industries, we will build the housing they will need, as our project caters for all tenure groups.
“The phenomenal growth of the Coega IDZ, with projects in the pipeline like the PetroSA refinery, is seeing a massive need for mixed-use housing in the area.”
Mann said while the majority of the CoegaRidge homes would be subsidised housing units, the housing development would also include low-density, up-market homes.
“This would assure that all the income groups are living in one environment together. They can migrate from a subsidised home upwards while never leaving the development.”
The cost of the mammoth project, including commercial development and the building of the homes, would be R20-billion, and financing would be sourced from both the private sector and the government.
The first phase of the housing development would cost R5.3-billion and involve building infrastructure for 5 300 homes.
Mann said a total of 5 000 job opportunities would be created per month during the peak of construction at the housing development.
The project would unfold over six to 10 years.
Other than the residential portion, the development would include a retail centre, railway station, hospital, university and a light industrial park.
A waste water treatment plant that was planned for the Coega Industrial Development Zone would be a huge boost for the housing project.
“The sewer pipeline which will run from Coega to Motherwell will help unlock the greater CoegaRidge project,” he said.
Project civil engineers are confident that enough services are in place to begin the first phase of the development. However, a bulk waste water treatment works in the Coega Industrial Development Zone would unlock the greater development.
Nu-Way Housing and sister company KrispProperties are part of the Nu-Hold Group, which has completed several developments around South Africa and has several under way.
-Cindy Preller
