At artist’s impression of The Village Walk, earmarked for Hazelwood in Pretoria. Picture: Supplied
Pretoria - An exciting new urban retail experience is awaiting city dwellers and visitors, as leading South African property investor and developer Atterbury Property has embarked on a project to link two of its already successful retail precincts in Hazelwood, Pretoria.
The vision is to create a connected urban retail experience with a special character.
The Village Walk will connect The Village – an eclectic food, drink and leisure hub – on 16th Street with The Club precinct, which stretches between Hazelwood and Dely roads.
The heart of the Village Walk development will be the pedestrian walkway linking The Village to The Club Precinct.
This will enable easier and more fluid movement between the two hubs, while providing a distinctive attraction in the form of restaurants and boutique retail stores along the way.
Charles-Louis Herbst, Atterbury’s development manager for Village Walk, explained that the new development will create a conceptual and a physical link between the rustic and organic Village feel and the more structured Club Precinct.
The Village, The Club retail centre, Die Klubhuis and Club One office buildings, The Club Surgical Centre and the Advocate Chambers collectively form part of what is known as the Old East Precinct.
The newest addition to this precinct, Village Walk, will also provide much-needed additional structured parking. The link will make it safer for the public to park in a secure area with easy access to both The Village and The Club, Herbst said.
In total, the R52-million development will introduce new gross lettable area of 1 495m², of which 744m² will be restaurants and 1 030m² retail, and 80 new parking bays.
Village Walk is inspired by the character of the Old East Precinct, which combines the best of urban and suburban life with charm, giving communities a “village” feel.
“The guiding philosophy is one of creating a design and mix of tenants unique to the feel that the Old East precinct provides, setting it apart from conventional offerings,” Herbst said.
The design strives to link the Village and Club precincts, but at the same time to be its own particular offering which blends inspirations from the two.
Herbst said that the resulting aesthetic is a blend of modern, rustic, vintage and industrial designs, expressed through a combination of different materials such as exposed brickwork, metal sheeting, stone walls, wood panelling and open truss roof designs.
At street level, this is integrated with hard and soft landscaping along the route to soften the lines of the buildings.
As Village Walk is essentially about its public space, the public experience of the linking walkway will be enhanced by means of seating areas, courtyards between the buildings, and public art.
Rhino sculptures, by Angus Taylor, will be placed in the main courtyard as one of the key focal points.
Many of the retail offerings will be local trendy brands with special product offerings and business growth potential.
“Several of these tenants are young entrepreneurs with visions to grow and build their businesses,” Herbst said.
The Atterbury team believe that Village Walk will have a massive benefit for the overall precinct.
“Once the precincts are connected, the Village, Village Walk and The Club will reinforce their position as one of the most attractive mixed-use precincts in Pretoria with its unique location, design and offerings.”
Herbst said that the added parking and ease of access will further boost its appeal as a destination.
“Its success rests on the fact that it provides something different – both new and true to itself – in its design and retail offerings.”
Construction on Village Walk began in February this year. Fit-outs are scheduled to start for the restaurants in August, with retail stores following after that.
Completion and the commencement of trade are expected by mid-November, right on time for the summer holiday season.
Pretoria News