The developers of Westown Square, a mall in South Africa’s new R15 billion city in Shongweni, west of eThekwini metro, have finished construction ahead of its public opening this week.
Project factsheet
-
Location: Shongweni, west of eThekwini metro
-
Total development cost: R15 billion
-
Mall cost: R1.3 billion
-
Size of development: 2,000 hectares
-
Construction start: September 2022
-
Infrastructure upgrade: R730 million
-
Retail tenants: Over 120 stores
-
Opening date: 27 March, 9 a.m.
-
Key features: High street design, green spaces, murals, renewable energy, walking and biking trails
-
Future phases: Hospital, school, retirement village, apartments, houses
R1.3 billion Westown Square mall part of larger Westown development
Fundamentum Property Group director Sean Bergsma, speaking at the launch of the R1.3 billion mall, said it fulfilled a vision he shared with his co-director and brother, Donovan, and chief executive Carolos Correira to create an “economically inclusive” town in the area.
Westown Square mall is built around a high street design and sits at the centre of the 2,000-hectare Westown development near Hillcrest. The project will include a hospital, school, retirement village, apartments, and houses, developed in phases over 10 to 15 years.
Mall construction began in September 2022, alongside a R730 million upgrade to water, sanitation, and roads. This included widening Kassier Road, which connects to the N3 and M13. The mall features open spaces with murals by local artists and landscaped shrubs.
The development aims to create a new economic hub, attracting investment, creating jobs, and bringing services closer to residents. As a green project, it includes walking and biking trails and uses renewable energy, such as solar power.
Retail giants and small businesses to open stores
Major retailers at the mall include Checkers Hyper, Checkers Liquor, Petshop Science, Dis-Chem, Edgars, Legit, Milady’s, Mr Price Weekend Home and Sport, Pick n Pay Clothing and supermarket, Clicks, Pep, Pep Home, Refinery, Incredible Connection, and Ackermans.
The Barn is a section of the mall that houses smaller, market-style tenants, offering trading space for local small enterprises that were previously only allowed to operate on weekends and special public holidays at the neighboring Shongweni Market. Robson’s Real Beer Brewery will also open a branch in the square.
Bergsma, a Summerveld resident, explained that the idea for Westown began seven years ago, with the goal of integrating the current community, particularly its sporting and equestrian culture, while also assuring economic inclusion and maintaining the area’s natural beauty.
Local traditional leaders and the provincial government supported the initiative from the start, which began with the purchase of 2,000 hectares from Tongaat Hulett, an area similar in size to the Umhlanga Ridge new town centre. Bergsma said.
It’s been an instrumental partnership showing that the private and public sectors can work together, can deliver stuff that is unbelievable, of the highest quality, and that we can do it without high levels of wastage.
READ ALSO: Construction of $4B The Avenues-Riyadh Mall Takes Shape as Second Phase Commences
Public and private sector collaboration key to Westown Square mall’s success
Bergsma noted that financial institutions, particularly Absa, played a key role in making the project work. In recent weeks, around 1,500 construction workers and 500 shopfitters have been on-site. The developers also established the Westown Foundation to support skills development and small businesses.
Today we have a number of success stories, young women who would never have been in the construction industry, driving large trucks on site, earning a significant income and participating in an economy that they never thought would be possible.
In another case, a former public servant trained as a paver, started a family business with his two sons, and now earns over R1 million a year. Cara Reilly, Westown’s marketing and communications executive, said the mall was set to open this week.
Westown Square mall is ready to open on 27 March at 9am with over 120 tenants in beneficial occupation and preparing their stores. A second phase to follow will be the opening of the Fashion Walk, so new openings will be ongoing over the next few months.
The Bergsma brothers, who grew up in Hillcrest, started their first business from their parents’ home 20 years ago. As young entrepreneurs, they opened their first call centre in Durban CBD before expanding to launch Ignition Group, a major call centre in Umhlanga with 3,500 employees. They later moved into large-scale property development across KwaZulu-Natal and acquired Gumtree South Africa.
Fundamentum has played a key role in major developments, including Midway Crossing in Newlands, north of Durban, as well as 12 on Palm Boulevard and Centenary Office Park in Umhlanga.
