Wescape: A new "mini-town" for the city of Cape Town

The urban landscape is transforming rapidly to meet the demands of everyday people who require an environment that accommodates all their needs, from commercial, industrial and residential to retail and entertainment.

Such a concept encompasses the ideals of “live, work and play” and has been a definitive characteristics of developed nations such as the USA and Japan. In 2016, the concept has taken hold in South Africa and cities such as Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town and Pretoria have invested in billions in these “mini-cities”. 

“Mixed-development”, as it is aptly named, is the name of a precinct that can deliver to a range of needs, under one central location. Examples of this include, Melrose Arch in Johannesburg, The Gateway precinct in Durban, Rainbow Junction in Pretoria and Century City in Cape Town.

Wescape will soon add to the Western Cape’s list of mixed-developments and will be situated in Cape Town’s North-West along the West Coast Growth Corridor.

The precinct will change the property landscape of the province as it will house a total of 200 000 new homes, a number of commercial properties and education and healthcare facilities including, schools, clinics and a university. The entire project will cost R140 billion and accommodate a community of 800 000 people. It will spread over a total of 3 100 hectares and is due for construction by 2019 or 2020. 

The project will be headed up by CommuniTgrow, a Cape Town based private sector urban development company, who envision the precinct as a solution to an urban challenge, namely, expansive population growth that makes it difficult for city centres to keep up with housing, service and infrastructural demands. In addition, the project has been described as a partial solution to the metropolitan’s economic expansion requirements.

This new capital injection is projected to see an increase in area value in and around Wescape. This appreciation will also positively affect property values, making it the ideal time to invest in residential property in Cape Town.