Representing a massive potential boost to the local economy and bringing with it thousands of jobs during its development and after completion, the rights to the required zoning of the development were granted to its consortium of owners notwithstanding the consideration of three objections. The hearing of the single appeal stemming from this is now imminent.
Mall of the North owners and developers comprise JSE-listed property company Resilient Property Income Fund, Flanagan & Gerard Property Development & Investment and Moolman Group.
The 75,000m2 regional shopping mall is intended on the 27ha site at the intersection of the N1 bypass and Modjadjiskloof Road (formerly Magoebaskloof Road). The anchor tenants include two supermarkets, both with stores in excess of 5,000m2 in addition to two full-service fashion anchors, the next tier of national retails as well as line stores, and a foodcourt offering a wide variety of dining options.
Significantly, it will also benefit the local community in which it is located by providing a valuable shopping facility and enhance the local economy through job creation, empowerment and skills development. Mall of the North is expected to create some 1,500 to 2,000 permanent jobs as well as some 300 temporary jobs.
Mall of the North will introduce new retailers, which are not currently represented in the area, to the region. This will create a broader-based retail, restaurant and entertainment offering in Polokwane, ensuring valuable consumer spend is retained in Polokwane and Limpopo.
“There is currently an annual R300 million consumer spend outflow from Polokwane as local consumers travel into places like Pretoria and Ekurhuleni to obtain goods and retail brands which are unavailable locally,” notes Flanagan. “The Mall of the North is positioned to recapture this. It will have a positive impact on the GDP of Polokwane.”
Flanagan explains that the development of Mall of the North will unlock new retail prospects. “Mall of the North will serve Polokwane as well as the entire northern region of the country, with cross-border shopping as an additional factor,” says Flanagan. This means, not only will it retain money within the local economy, but also attract additional spending power to the area.
It is for this reason that the easy to access, central site of Mall of the North was selected Bendor, a rapidly developing component of Polokwane, in the heart of its growth corridor, ideally sited at the intersection of a national and provincial road.
Substantial road upgrades are planned in the immediate area and all roads will fit into a new urban road grid that has been formulated by the Polokwane Council, which latest reports revealing that commencement of these upgrades can be expected before the end of 2008.
The intended opening for Mall of the North is scheduled to open in the final quarter of 2010.
Publisher: eProp
Source: F&G
