Edward West

KwaZulu-Natal Correspondent

DURBAN — An R67m expansion at Gateway Theatre of Shopping in Durban North for a Virgin Active health club formed part of a R600m national pipeline of projects and refurbishments by Old Mutual Property Group, group business development executive Brent Wiltshire, said yesterday.

Group regional manager Mike Rodel said the health club, which would open in the first quarter of next year, followed a series of expansions at Gateway.

Other expansions include a R105m redevelopment of East London’s Vincent Park Shopping Centre, a R104m refurbishment of The Link Shopping Centre in Cape Town, a R88m expansion of parking facilities at Menlyn Park Shopping Centre, Pretoria, a R107m extension of Bayside Centre, Cape Town and a R20,5m expansion of The Zone@Rosebank.

Rodel said the foot count at Gateway had risen 11% year on year with no slowndown in spite of the recent interest rate hikes. “On some weekends and during holidays, we’re almost bursting," he said.

There was about 165000m still available for Gateway to expand, he said. Also, Moreland’s Umhlanga Triangle and Cornubia mixed residential projects were likely to come on stream in the longer term.

Moreland, which is Tongaat-Hulett’s property development arm, aims to start construction of its R8bn Umhlanga Triangle development towards the end of the year.

It also wants to develop its R2,5bn mixed residential and sub-regional hub, Cornubia, between Phoenix and Umhlanga Rocks, from 2008.

Wiltshire said Gateway had been a catalyst for development in the Umhlanga area since the new millennium.