SPECIAL REPORT LEGACY CORNER
LEGACY CORNER more than a building...
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By Bev Hermanson
Legacy Corner> Joining the style hub of Johannesburg
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Strange, but true, all of the accommodation offerings around the tremendously popular Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton are Legacy products. The latest to join the fold are the Da Vinci Hotel and Suites supported by the Legacy Corner Mall. The Legacy Group was founded by Bart Dorrestein and the late Bruno Corte just over a decade ago. The intention was, just as the group’s name suggests, to leave a legacy of hospitality and residential properties, an African portfolio built and run to the highest international standards, located across Africa and the Indian Ocean islands. It’s not just fine four and five star hotels that feature in the Legacy portfolio. There are a host of bush lodges and lifestyle retreats such as Kwa Maritane, Bakubung and Tshukudu in the Pilanesberg, the Kruger Park Lodge in Mpumalanga and The Windhoek Country Club in Namibia that add spice to the selection on offer. In addition to straightforward hotel accommodation, the group also sells sectional title hotel suites and fractional ownership in the Legacy Private Residences and develops mixed-use lifestyle properties that include gaming and retail facilities as well.
A winning formula If you are fortunate enough to be invited to the triple storey penthouse of the Michelangelo Towers, you will get a bird’s eye view of just how substantial the Legacy foothold is in Nelson Mandela Square. Once the Gautrain’s station has been completed, adjacent to the square, the Legacy stable of the Michelangelo Hotel, Da Vinci Hotel, Michelangelo Towers, Raphael Penthouse Suites and the Da Vinci Suites will come into their own as demand in this vibrant business hub surges.
Legacy corner external view from the street.
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The classic Michelangelo Hotel made waves when it was first built on the new retail square across from Sandton City. Its success prompted further hospitality development and subsequently the Michelangelo Towers broke the mould offering exclusive apartments in a lavish style in the tallest building in Sandton. With the Legacy formula of elegance, charisma and commitment to service firmly entrenched in the area, Sandton’s latest offering has now arrived to complete the picture. Legacy Corner is 17 storeys of mixed-use facilities situated on the corner of 5th Avenue and Maude Streets in Sandton, directly opposite the stalwart Sandton City retail and office complex, the Sandton Sun Hotel, the Sandton Towers Intercontinental Hotel and the Sandton Convention Centre. The retail component of this new development is situated on three levels that are linked with the upper and lower retail levels of the existing Nelson Mandela Square. BAI are renowned for their retail excellence – and the new Legacy corner Mall is testament to this
excellence. Already open, the mall has met with great approval by shoppers and tenants alike. Below the two shopping mall levels, is the glamorous Marco Polo entertainment centre offers 300 state of the art interactive electronic bingo terminals as a diversion. Themed as a Venetian venue, the Marco Polo celebrates the life and times of the famed medieval Italian explorer that traversed the globe on numerous journeys of discovery. Owned and operated by Galaxy International, a UK company with over 15 years’ experience in Bingo development, the Marco Polo has an intimate piano bar with a romantic dance floor as well as a show bar and a dedicated smoking room called The Crystal Room. The Da Vinci Hotel has 166 en suite hotel rooms, 50 single, double and triple bedroomed apartment suites as well as two levels of four luxury duplex penthouses. A fitness gym, infinity pool and wellness spa are amongst the perks.
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P V LATINUM
Anities CC 2009/047131/23
Established in 1993, our products are designed to meet customers' specifications and requirements for high-quality workmanship. We manufacture kitchen and bathroom units, custom-made bars, built-in cupboards and TV units. We also do 'out of town' work.
Address 21 Rosslee Street, Cruywagen Park, Elsburg Email platinum.jaco@hotmail.com
Office 011 827 6750 J.B.R. 076 188 3832 Sandra 084 780 9435
Mens boutique in Legacy Mall.
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The architects who have helped with the success of the Sandton Legacy portfolio are Bentel Associates International (BAI) who designed the iconic Michelangelo Towers and who are now responsible for Sandton’s new addition, Legacy Corner. “We are most excited about the completion of Legacy Corner, which we believe will be a fantastic new addition to the Sandton skyline – the building is a careful balance between embracing classical elements which is in keeping with its neighbours, especially Nelson Mandela Square, and modern architecture” says Franc Brugman, architect responsible for both the Michelangelo Towers and Legacy Corner. “We have also strived to include sustainable technologies in the design of the building as far as the commercial budget of the development would allow. We are proud to have been able to decrease the energy demand of the building by as much as 15% through the inclusion of: solar panels that assist the electrical boilers, heat exchange technology that collects the hot water
produced by the air conditioning chiller units, insulation to hot water pipes, the use of performance glass where required to reduce the AC heat load and simple specifications like low flow shower heads to decrease water consumption. Furthermore, the building will have a building management system (BMS) installed which will assist in monitoring the energy consumption of the building in the future.”
Dining in style Intended to be run as a 24-hour operation, the Da Vinci Lounge & Bar will be a welcome addition to Sandton’s portfolio of hip and happening entertainment venues. The Wine & Cigar Bar promises to be another popular spot, although undoubtedly one of the main draw cards will be the graciously elegant Maximillien Restaurant, with its expansive windows and extended deck giving patrons the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors and views of Sandton.
8> Given a New York French bistro character, Maximillien exudes a sense of grandeur thanks to the rich dark brown bamboo flooring, the pewter pressed ceilings, the antique mirrors framed by rectangular glass light boxes and the Douglas Jones tiles. The interior designers, Varoom Interiors, took on the challenge of converting a long rectangular space into something inviting, classy and sophisticated. “The idea was to mirror the style of the renowned Balthazar restaurant in New York. Balthazar is a converted leather wholesaler’s warehouse and is known for its exceptional design,” says Vanessa Preston of Varoom Interiors. “It has a French bistro/patisserie style, but with a very warm vibe. That’s what our brief was for Maximillien, but we wanted to make it a smarter, sexier version. The silvery pewter moulding around the bar kept to the Balthazar theme and we added in the lions heads to give it the African context.” The rectangular space was subtly divided into ‘stages’, with the welcome area and the bar at the front, a raised section that could be cleared for entertainment, the main eatery area and then the outdoor terrace. The shopping, gaming and dining treats aside, Legacy Corner has another treat up its sleeve. Spanning three levels, the Legacy TV wall, wrapped within the granite clad escalator atrium, offers exceptional exposure to premium brand names wanting to reach a pre-qualified premium Sandton consumer. Through the growth of the Legacy portfolio, the key decision makers have appreciated that it’s the details that count. At Legacy Corner, this is certainly one of the philosophies that has been integral to the design. Mosaics in the reception area and on the pillars in the retail mall, lower lux levels in the lighting to give the shops ‘centre stage’ and hotel décor designed by world-renowned interior designer, Stephen Falcke, all contribute to the heightened sense of grandeur of the final piece of the Legacy collection on Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton. <
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Marco Polo bingo machines.
Maximillien Restaurant with raised stage (the flooring is darkened bamboo) and the bar.
The Crystal Room in Marco Polo.
The bar at the Maximillien Restaurant.