Sunday Times
INDUSTRIAL development in Durban is being hampered because of a lack of suitable land.
Vast tracts of valuable land that have not yet come to the market north of the city need to be brought to the market at affordable prices, says Russell Scorer, MD of KwaZulu-Natal real estate firm MaxProp.
While Scorer is upbeat about prospects for Durban, he believes an inhibiting factor is the critical shortage of new land available for industrial development with vast tracts being withheld.
“It’s outrageous that would-be developers have to look at going out as far as Cato Ridge, more than 40km from the city centre, to find land for industrial development.”
With regard to downtown Durban, Scorer feels the council has done a good job in regenerating the city.
“The exodus of major players has led to the rental space being taken up by small businesses and professional people.
“Rentals are a lot more affordable than in the fashionable areas and there is plenty of on-site parking,” he says.
However, safety and security in the CBD are serious problems that the city will have to work hard at addressing.
Scorer says the announcement of a new sports stadium for Durban with the 2010 soccer World Cup in mind, the planned upgrade of facilities at Durban harbour, and positive news about a start on the long-awaited construction of the La Mercy airport were exciting developments.
“If the new airport does get off the ground, the Dube Tradeport, an industrial node adjoining the area, will also become a reality, providing growth potential.”
Scorer reports that there is still some land available for commercial and industrial development at Waterfall and Cato Ridge in the western corridor, as well as residential land in burgeoning Hillcrest. There are also some opportunities to the north around Umhlanga, but prices are still high.
“But in the established Durban industrial nodes some developers have resorted to buying properties and then demolishing the buildings to rebuild according to their own specifications.
“In the residential market, the only shortage we are faced with is where houses are priced below R600000. In the affluent areas there is plenty of stock with the market having reached an equilibrium,” adds Scorer. — Janice Healing
Publisher: Sunday Times
Source: Sunday Times
