DURBAN — The R4bn Bridge City shopping and residential centre development in KwaMashu, a black residential area in eThekwini, “has taken years” to get off the ground, but the first contract would be awarded next month and the project was ready to go ahead, said Moreland commercial and financial director Mike Deighton.

The eThekwini municipality and Moreland, the property development arm of listed Tongaat-Hulett group, are the joint venture partners on Bridge City. The project is one of five key urban renewal projects in the municipality’s Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu (INK) district initiative. The other projects are the upgrading of the KwaMashu town centre, construction of the P577 road, an Inanda “tourism train” and the Safer Cities project.

Deighton spoke at the launch in KwaMashu yesterday of section 21 company, the Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu Chamber of Business (INKCOB), which will help more than 200 black businesses in the area to take advantage of the economic development opportunities presented by government and the private sector.

Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin said he was happy with the progress of the INK initiative. But his spokeswoman, Gaynor Kast, said yesterday it was important for the project partners to synchronise their budget timeframes with that of the national government, so that projects did not grind to a halt due to delays in the release of funds.

Erwin said big companies participating in projects like Bridge City would be able to find black empowerment partners through initiatives such as INKCOB. It was important that local businesses were able to bring the right skills and expertise to the development. The Bridge City project would help stimulate business and property values in the area.

The INKCOB project will provide local business people with information on training, advice and other services, become a mouthpiece for the chamber’s members and provide a network of local, national and international business contacts. A business directory of 110 companies has been established.

The eThekwini Municipality INK project GM Linda Mbonambi said all five of the INK initiatives were on track. Various government departments were contributing to the success of the project. The justice department was planning to build new courts in the area, the health department was planning a 420 bed hospital and the Public Investment Corporation was investigating the financing of a shopping centre.

Deighton said about 25 000 permanent jobs would be created at Bridge City and some 27 500 short-term jobs would result from the construction phase. The project is budgeted to be completed in 10 years, but he predicts it may be finished earlier.