Growthpoint's Ridgeview building achieves five-star Green Star rating

Construction on the 6,680m² building began in June last year, and is set to be complete by next month. Originally targeting a four-star Green Star SA office building rating, Growthpoint has been notified by the Green Building Council of South Africa that the development had in fact secured a five-star Green Star SA - Office v1 Design Rating.

"This is a great achievement and will serve as a green building beacon in greater Durban and KwaZulu-Natal," says Greg de Klerk, KZN regional head of Growthpoint Properties."The five storey development was conceived as two corporate office buildings on a single four-level basement and arranged around a landscaped forecourt. Growthpoint's building, dubbed Ridgeview, will be a multi-tenanted building," he adds.

Pioneering developments

"Our Lincoln on the Lake and Mayfair on the Lake office buildings in the Parkside precinct of Umhlanga New Town Centre were pioneering green building developments in the Growthpoint portfolio. We have come a long way and now have 23 Green Star SA rated buildings in our portfolio countrywide and several more under development, which have been submitted or will be submitted for Green Star certification," says Rudolf Pienaar, Growthpoint Properties office division director.

"When it comes to thriving office nodes in Durban, there's a continued move by business north into Umhlanga Ridgeside, Umhlanga New Town Centre and La Lucia Ridge. These nodes are experiencing the highest levels of office development in Durban," De Klerk comments.

"Around 50,000m² of office space will come to market over the next year in these nodes, of which about a third is being developed by Growthpoint. We are looking forward to the completion of our Ridgeview development, which will be a great new addition to our office portfolio."

Umhlanga Ridge has become one of the country's leading nodes for green buildings. In addition to its ground-breaking Lincoln on the Lake and Mayfair on the Lake office buildings, Growthpoint is investing R117.3m in another 5,500m² new green office development, The Boulevard, in the Parkside precinct of Umhlanga which will be completed in April 2016. Upon completion, The Boulevard will make up a city block of green buildings in Umhlanga New Town Centre, providing A-Grade office space of 20,000m².