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October 2015
Infrastructure & Mixed Use
W
ithin Philippi in the Cape
Flats there is a lack of office
space for local businesses.
‘Philippi Village’ is an entrepreneurial
development, which provides a space
where entrepreneurs and businesses
can grow and where residents can
develop skills and increase their
employability. This development
will invigorate the area with work,
trade and recreational activities.
Entrepreneurs will be encouraged to
cluster and collaborate to strengthen
their businesses, stimulating local
entrepreneurship and create promis-
ing economic futures within Philippi.
Businesses located within Philippi
encourage job opportunities for
residents within the area and negate
them travelling long distances in
search of work.
The Business Place Philippi in
partnership with The Sustainability
Institute at the University of Stellen-
bosch raised funding to conceptual-
ise the project to transform the old
cement factory site in Philippi into a
mixed use integrated development
with light industry, residential, food
gardens and a hospital. The project
was designed as a thesis project for a
Masters in Sustainable Design by one
of Cape Town’s acclaimed architect’s,
Philip Briel. This all started in the
early 2000s when The Business Place
Philippi became the owner of the old
cement factory premises.
The residential component and
gardens have been planned and will
roll out at a later stage. The Business
Place Philippi has already provided
over 4 000 people with business and
development services. The renewal
of the much bigger factory precinct
as a business office space required
development funding. An R80-million
cash injection in the form of a joint
investment from the Bertha Foun-
dation at UCT’s Graduate School of
Business and the Jobs Fund. This
enabled the construction of the new
Business Hub and set the ball roll-
ing for the remainder of the project.
Already the ground floor has been
fully let. Half of the offices on the first
floor, which have been configured to
offer much smaller premises, have
been taken up, whilst the top floor
has been designed to accommodate
large companies such as call centres.
A pre-primary school has opened
its doors, a Leap Maths and Science
Academy has begun operating and
the Department of Coffees is about to
start trading on the mezzanine con-
course. A City Library will be located
on the ground floor.
There are a number of entities
with a similar vision, who aimtomake
a difference to the lives of people
in the area. This includes Abalimi
Bezikhaya, which provide support
to urban micro-farmers, Simphiwe
Shoes, a small start-up company and
the AfriCan Café bakery and coffee
shop offers coffee, cakes and skills
training.
Founding members of The Busi-
ness Place Philippi, Alan Fleming,
has designed a container-based fish
farm. The concept is to develop com-
mercial aquaculture and create job
opportunities in poorer urban areas
has proved successful. ‘The Fish
Farm’ has already received several
innovation awards.
The next phase will be the launch
of the Container Walk. The pilot
project 24 remodelled shipping con-
tainers to form a dedicated precinct
for small businesses. The design will
give business owners the flexibility
to configure their premises to suit
their individual needs. The first 24
containers are fully subscribed with
more containers in the pipeline.
Amor Strauss, the General Man-
ager of Philippi Village added that
the Container Walk will be officially
launched shortly. With the MyCiTi
bus system rolling out in the Philippi
area, this bodeswell for the economic
node.
Thomas Swana, CEOof thePhilippi
Economic Development Initiative
(Pedi), says that Philippi Village is
poised for greater development.
■
Philippi Village – a major catalyst for growth
South Africa is in need of a new definition of communities where
integration is felt on all terrains: working, living, socialising and
recreation, shopping in an area that is safe, accessible, of mixed usage
and allow for the integration of all economic classes and races.