Construction World April 2019

PROPERTY

NEWMALUTI CRESCENT OPENS Maluti Crescent Shopping Centre opened on 21 March 2019 and officially became the largest shopping centre in Phuthaditjhaba in the Free State.

F ormerly called Setsing Crescent, Maluti Crescent’s major redevelopment and expansion was undertaken by JSE-listed retail REIT Vukile Property Fund. At the beginning of March the development team was busy adding the final touches to the project and excitement in Phuthaditjhaba and its surrounding community was building as the launch day approached. Maluti Crescent was developed and leased by Flanagan & Gerard Property Development & Investment forVukile Property Fund, with MDS Architecture and contractor Concor Buildings. The R400-million redevelopment transformed Maluti Crescent from a strip mall to a state-of-the-art modern, enclosed shopping centre. It added 13 000 m 2 of gross lettable area to the mall and boosted its size to 35 000 m 2 . It also includes new undercover parking as well as the first and only structured taxi facility of its kind in the area, which opened in November 2018. “We usually find that construction at a centre drives away customers who dislike the disruption. Maluti Crescent is different; rather than staying away, residents of Phuthaditjhaba have been coming to the mall eager to see the construction progress for themselves and doing a bit of shopping at the same time,” reports Paul Gerard, Managing Director of Flanagan & Gerard. The development team has gone to great lengths to minimise disruption to the existing centre so its original tenants can trade happily throughout the construction. While this is a massive accomplishment, it still isn’t regarded as the project’s most significant success. “Skills transfer through local employment has been the biggest achievement of the project by far. Few projects can achieve a local labour contingent as high as Maluti Crescent’s contracting team,” notes Gerard. Some 3 160 people have been employed on site since the development started. At the time of writing, there were 420 people working on site with locals making up in excess of 65%. Through contractor Concor Buildings, Maluti Crescent has also undertaken community initiatives. It has donated soccer jersey kits to a local football club, made improvements to an old age home, helped to fix a road serving schools, roofed a church and hosted a school site visit. The redeveloped mall will also accommodate the aspirations of a growing number of business people from its community.

New local operators Khadim Fashion Boutique, Lesedi Stationers, Alpha Pharm, Dynasty Beauty Boutique, Tom’s Biltong and IT equipment and services provider Afri-tech will join existing local businesses at Maluti Crescent The local businesses trades side-by- side with South Africa’s biggest names in retail at Maluti Crescent, including Pick n Pay, SuperSpar, Game and Woolworths. Before the official opening, Itumeleng Mothibeli, Director of Asset Management at Vukile said: “We can’t wait to open the new Maluti Crescent on 21 March 2019. The response from its community has already been phenomenal, and we are confident that the upgraded centre will delight its diverse range of customers. It will be a truly modern shopping experience with a higher quality of retail that reflects both retailer and shopper demand.” Maluti Crescent brings several retail firsts to Phuthaditjhaba, such as Bogart Man, The Cross Trainer, Jam Clothing, Queenspark, Street Fever, Legit, Shoe City, McDonald’s and Nandos. The centre’s new tenant mix speaks directly to the needs of its community with two major supermarkets, two pharmacies, major fashion chains, trendy athleisure, quality sit-down restaurants and fast food outlets, speciality retail, all major banks, health and beauty, quality electronics and all major cellular providers. Plus, customers can expect to enjoy all the latest store design concepts, including new generation stores from the Mr Price Group, TFG, Truworths’ brands, Pick n Pay and Woolworths. 

Itumeleng Mothibeli, Director of Asset Management at Vukile.

Paul Gerard, MD Flanagan & Gerard.

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CONSTRUCTION WORLD APRIL 2019