Pretoria - The construction of four government buildings as part of the multimillion-rand Salvokop Precinct Development Project in Tshwane has officially been launched.
This comes two years after the mixed-use precinct project in Salvokop was heralded by Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille.
The development was also gazetted as a strategic integrated project, as part of the infrastructure investment plan approved by the Cabinet in May 2020.
De Lille expressed her happiness that the first phase of the project would create at least 3 152 jobs.
“When we complete phase three, we would have created 80 000 jobs,” she said.
The project previously faced some opposition from local residents, who claimed they were not properly consulted and feared they would be left displaced when construction work started.
De Lille said she was aware of concerns raised by some community members.
“We have asked the steering committee to give us a full report regarding your concerns, and that we will come and have a public meeting before the end of July here in Salvokop,” she said.
She said the meeting would afford residents an opportunity to ask questions and be kept abreast of the project’s progress.
The first phase was under way, and it included installing bulk and internal infrastructure works at the precinct.
The development is a collaborative project between the three spheres of government, to build four government headquarters, commercial buildings and a shelter for the vulnerable.
The government acquired land for the development from Transnet at a cost of R79 million.
A total development opportunity of 524 000m² was estimated to cost R18bn for development to accommodate four additional government head offices such as the departments of Correctional Services and Constitutional Development, Higher Education and Training, Social Development and Home Affairs.
The development also included the Statistics SA head office, which was completed in 2016.
The buildings are expected to be completed and occupied by 2025.
The project was hailed for presenting a special opportunity to regenerate the inner city.
The site was selected as it is located close to a transport station that has different modes of transport to link Salvokop with the Pretoria CBD.
The precinct will be developed in three phases.
Phase one includes the installation of the bulk and internal infrastructure services and the development of the four public-private partnership head office buildings.
Phase two and three will encompass the development of the business erven by the private sector and the development of the mixed-income residential component, respectively.
The development is aimed at achieving spatial integration by bringing government departments to a central location in proximity to economic development and mixed typology residential developments for households and various income streams.
Among the project’s other key benefits are economic transformation and job creation.
In terms of spatial integration, there will be institutional and private open space creating equal access to schooling, housing, work opportunities, transport and recreational facilities.
Pretoria News