KINGSLEY CENTRE RETAIL REFURB

ASSORTED PROJECTS

Project Description

The existing Kingsley Centre in the heart of Pretoria’s CBD, constructed in the 1960s, had fallen into disuse as time and urban decay progressed. With large expansion of the city eastwards into the suburbs, urban retail zones were being abandoned and left vacant. The revised spatial development framework for the city saw government aiming to reverse this trend and consolidate all governmental departments back into the city centre in an effort to revitalise certain areas. One such core project was the Kingsley Centre, aimed to house the South African Social Security Agency within the existing 10 storey office tower. Through the Public Investment Corporation, TC Design was tasked with the upgrade and improvements to the centre to take advantage of the city developments to come.

The centre comprised two basement parking levels, two retail floor levels and the 10 storey office tower. However the project was spread across 3

Development Data Project Role

Site Area: 10207m²

Gross Floor Area: 23228m²

Total Floor Area: 51820m²

Site Dims: 138.5m x 73.7m

Height: 12 Storeys

Coverage: 8363m²

Project Value: R580 million £28 000 000 notorially tied land parcels, limiting the total bulk and development potential. Due to differing rights on each parcel, there was no basement parking and only a single retail level on two of the existing land parcels. Once the consolidation of the erfs had been achieved, the design saw a large increase of lettable floor area and with that, massive potential on how to improve the urban interface with the rest of the city.

Design architect from inception to tender stages, advising on construction detailing. Existing building analysis, internal circulation and retail layout proposals, external facade design and material selection, client meetings, project costing and tender documentation.

It was well established that in order for the centre to thrive and not fall into disuse again, the retail zones needed to open to the urban realm and allow permeability through the centre as a route through the city. This would create the highest opportunity for trade and usage.

Extending the double retail level along the full city block site length provided the opportunity to create pedestrian friendly and protective zones along street edges. Varying the vertical height along the street edge allowed for designated high movement and slow pause spaces to develop, housed below a shaded canopy. At each end, large sculptural aluminium clad masses rise out the ground to celebrate and signpost the renewed urban context.

The existing U-shaped tower floor plate was stripped of its facade and every second floor expanded between the tower arms to provide additional office floor space. Each two floor module can thus serve a multi tenanted need or provide single tenants with larger double volume spaces. The new facade was designed utilising two panels types to generate a relief pattern across the full building height whilst shifting the original facade position outwards, improving the usable floor plate areas. Final inspections are currently underway for the opening of the new centre due in February 2023.