Editor at Large

THE Inanda Club in Illovo, Johannesburg, was formed as an equestrian club in

1934 through an amalgamation of the Rand Hunt and the Johannesburg Polo Club. This division remains 70 years later and could cause the club to split.

The long-standing divide has recently been worsened by an unusual set of circumstances.

The club owns an extremely valuable piece of land in the middle of what has now become the rich northern suburbs. The property value is quite staggering, about R150m.

The land in Illovo was bought about 20 years ago when the area consisted mostly of veld.

The club also owns a large piece of land in Kyalami, called the Kyalami Country Base, which is the domain of eventing, casual riding and hunting.

For the uninitiated, hunting in SA is modelled on fox hunting in Britain, but here it typically takes place with hounds along a specific path. It is comparatively contrived, but aficionados claim riding fast in a group after a pack of hounds is nevertheless fabulously exhilarating. Hunting requires a large amount of land.

Polo players, however, compete in a comparatively confined space, and although the club's Illovo property is not huge, it is more or less sufficient for their purposes.

Although the club is constitutionally established as an equestrian club, its 1200-membership base does not only include the pony set. Given the snobby nature of equestrian sports, membership of the club has some status value.

A range of other activities also take place at the club, including bowls, cricket and squash.

The division between polo players and hunters has existed for years. But the current dispute at Inanda presents the club with a profound dilemma.

On the one hand, the hunters believe the club should expand its land ownership in Kyalami, and do so quickly before suburbia closes in.

They are supported by history, since the farsightedness the club displayed in buying the Illovo property has put it in a potentially strong financial position.

To some, it seems inevitable that the club should eventually base itself in K yalami, the current centre of horse riding in Johannesburg.

But to the in-town members, this smacks of a small number of the club's members, about 5%, arguing their own book. The Illovo property is one of the few remaining open areas in Johannesburg, and this trust should be protected, they say.

Compounding the problem is that although the club is rich in assets, its cash flows are modest, and it more or less breaks even at the moment. This is despite already having sold off a chunk of its Illovo property for millions.

According to Inanda's chairman, Frank Nightingale, the club has already taken a decision to buy a piece of land in Kyalami. It owns a very valuable option on 69ha adjoining its country base.

The option lapses in August, and hence it must be sold or exercised in order for the club to reap the benefits. But the financing arrangements are complex, and the in-town members are worried that they might end up with the Illovo property being somehow encumbered.

The situation is complicated by the fact that several offers are currently on the table for the sale or lease of the Illovo property, including by Sol Kerzner's One and Only group.

This deal has been in the offing for some time, so it must be presumed that the club's management is not inclined to accept, but some club members see opportunities for modernisation should it accept .

Like many other clubs in Johannesburg, problems run deep. Its membership is ageing, the food is boarding-house in style and its management roundly criticised for presenting members with a plan to take the club forward. As the restaurant culture has grown, the old days of extensive family Sunday lunches at the club are over.

But yet, as Johannesburg becomes more built up, its land becomes more valuable and ever more delectable for property developers.

Feb 17 2004 07:31:38:000AM Tim Cohen Business Day 1st Edition