City of Cape Town announces winning bid for foreshore redevelopment

The City of Cape Town on Monday announced that Mitchell Du Plessis Associates (MDA) have been chosen as the winning bid for the redevelopment of the Foreshore Freeway Precinct, which includes completing the unfinished flyover that has marked the city’s skyline for over 40 years.The City said MDA had been selected from seven initial proposals. MDA’s proposal entails completing unfinished sections of the freeways, including the connections to and from Helen Suzman Boulevard, and the connections to and from the N1 and N2 freeways.

The proposed development includes 3 200 market-related residential units and 450 affordable residential units.The costs of the core development are R8.3-billion, which includes the new highway infrastructure. The development is to be largely self-funding, the City added.“The core development area is six hectares of City-owned land located under and between the existing foreshore freeway viaducts between the northern edge of the CBD and Cape TownHarbour.

“Other sites that the qualifying bidder has identified as part of their proposal are the Ebenezer roadmaintenance depot, the MyCiTi Prestwich bus depot, the Gallows Hill traffic centre, and the Cape Town International Convention Centre parking garage. All these properties are owned by the City,” the City said.

MDA also proposes completing the unfinished highways and financing or cross-subsidising the new roads and affordable residential units by developing upmarket and mid-market residential units. The proposal locates the market-related residential units in 11 new tower blocks with heights ranging between 63, 123, and 143 metres with views of the mountain, sea, and harbour.

“Part of the proposal is also to build another 10 residential buildings on the northern edge closest to the harbour under or between the existing eastbound freeways between DF Malan and Christiaan Barnard Streets. These buildings will host affordable residential units.

“Importantly, the qualifying bidder’s proposal is ecologically sensitive and addresses the impact of the development on the environment with water, energy, and lighting design solutions.”Building work could commence in 2020, subject to the successful completion of the Stage 2 process, and all mandatory property disposal, development and other statutory processes, and approvals. The City suggested that given scale of the development, it would take at least a decade to come to fruition.