Construction World July 2015

CONSTRUCTION WORLD

JULY

2015

PROJECTS AND CONTRACTS

The landmark mall, being developed in Springs in the

Ekurhuleni Metro in the east of Gauteng, is a joint venture

between Blue Crane Eco Mall, Flanagan & Gerard Property

Development and Investment, and Murinda Investments,

which is part of the Giuricich Brothers Group.

“We are delighted that construction on Springs Mall at Blue Crane

Eco Park is finally underway now that all outstanding town planning

hurdles have been overcome,” says Patrick Flanagan, executive director

of Flanagan & Gerard Property Development and Investment.

“At just shy of a billion rand, this exciting regional shopping centre

development is a major investment in Springs. It is great that the local

council has given all the relevant approvals,” he adds.

The mall project is the brainchild of the Springs based D’Arrigo

family. For three generations the D’Arrigo family has lived in Springs and

is passionately invested in its future.

The development also benefits from the leading know-how of a

respected and experienced team of business and retail property devel-

opers and investors at Flanagan & Gerard and the Giuricich Brothers

construction company. Noted as one of South Africa’s leading private

construction companies, Giuricich Brothers is family controlled and has

been in existence for 75 years.

Flanagan & Gerard is one of South Africa’s leading shopping

centre developers with an excellent track record in dominant regional

shopping centres, including Vaal Mall, Highveld Mall, Mall of the North

and Middelburg Mall, as well as the new Ballito Junction regional mall

which is under construction, amongst others.

“With our different expertise, as joint developers and owners of

Springs Mall at Blue Crane Eco Park, we plan to build a regional shop-

ping centre that the Springs’ community can be proud of,” says

Franco D’Arrigo.

An asset

“The mall is set to become a landmark retail asset that serves the

region’s consumers with a top quality shopping experience. Besides

providing an exceptional shopping destination, Springs Mall will also

introduce many economic benefits such as local jobs during construc-

tion and permanent positions once the mall is completed. It will also

keep valuable retail spend within Springs,” he adds.

Says Gerard Giuricich of Murinda Investments: “It’s great to be part of

this exciting development; not only as investors and joint owners, but

our construction company, Giuricich Bros Construction is playing a key

role as the main contractors on Springs Mall. Earthworks contractors

are on site with the main construction set to start soon.”

Destined to become a dominant mall in the region, the new Springs

Mall will benefit from an excellent location in the suburb of Casseldale.

It is easily accessible at the intersection of the N17 highway and R51/Wit

Road and also has excellent accessibility off the N17 and Wit and Jan

Smuts Roads.

Giuricich comments: “As part of the earthworks contract, there will

be a realignment of Jan Smuts Road (along the Northern side of the

site). When Springs Mall opens in March 2017, it will have eye-catching

frontage on the N17 highway. Its striking visibility means people trav-

elling on the N17 highway will be able to see the two-level mall from

some distance away. The mall will also act as an interceptor on the N17

for people travelling to Mpumalanga and Swaziland.

Meanwhile, to help mitigate the impact of load shedding and as

part of several green features of the mall, the joint venture developers

are investigating the installation of solar generated power, with the

intention of using this, if viable, as a supplement to the municipal

electricity supply.

“We are trying to employ as many environmentally sustainable

measures as possible in the mall’s development. The use of natural

light is a key part of the mall’s design, as are other green building inter-

ventions,” explains Patrick Flanagan.

Springs Mall is also part of the broader Blue Crane Eco Park devel-

opment. It will form the anchor of the development, which will see

further commercial development on 10 hectares of land surrounding

the mall.

Leasing process

The leasing progress on Springs Mall has been excellent, reports

Flanagan. “We have already attracted several of South Africa’s leading

retailers and brands. In fact, the mall is already 80% let almost two

years before it opens. Now we are selecting the balance to offer a great

tenant mix and shopping offering of around 120 stores and outlets.”

Anchor tenants signed up include Pick n Pay, Checkers, Woolworths

and Edgars. Other major national retailers that are also set to be part

of the tenant mix at the new Springs Mall include the Foschini Group,

Truworths, Mr Price, HiFi Corporation, Clicks, Dis-Chem and Incredible

Connection and more. The mall will also boast family entertainment

and restaurants.

Leasing is progressing apace with a wide variety of restaurants,

electronics, gifting, décor, banking, services, health and beauty and

fashion retailers set to be part of the mall’s top-notch tenant mix.

Springs Mall will also offer the convenience of free open-air parking

on both its shopping levels with easy shopper access from both parking

areas, through four entrances.

The mall will act as a stimulus for the economy of Springs, see

local retail rands being spent in Springs and provide an icon for the

town. The inhabitants of Springs will further benefit by being able to

patronise a number of stores and brands that are currently not trading

in the town.

“Clearly much needed permanent jobs will be created once the

centre opens for trade – sales assistants, merchandisers, packers, and

cleaning and security personnel will largely be drawn from the local

communities. Members of the local community should also note that

during the construction phase, limited job opportunities of a non-per-

manent nature will be available,” says Flanagan.

Major

MALL

for Springs

Construction is now underway on the

R950-million Springs Mall at Blue Crane

Eco Park development, with the

52 000 m

regional shopping centre

scheduled to open before easter in 2017.