COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENTS: COMMENDATION
Alice Lane 3 and Piazza, Sandton
Alice Lane Phase 3 is a mixed-used, 35,000m 2 develop-
ment located on Alice Lane & Fifth Street in the heart
of Sandton’s CBD. The building, developed by Pivotal
Property Investment Fund and Abland, is the final building
completed in the Alice Lane Precinct and was designed
by Paragon Architects.
Each of the three buildings complements the
development as a whole by contributing an individualistic
yet unified aesthetic. Inspired by the concept of a piazza,
the precinct offers a much needed publicly accessible
square in the heart of fast-paced Sandton. With the
completion of Phase 3 the piazza edges are now clearly
defined and Alice Lane 3 acts as a gateway leading into
the piazza.
Phase 3 comprises offices, designed around anchor
tenant Bowmans, showrooms, retail elements and
concept stores.
Unique Opportunity
Working on the three phases offered Paragon an
opportunity to explore the interstitial quality of the
three buildings and challenge the notion that Sandton’s
pavements are alienating.
The rare opportunity to work on an entire city block
allowed them the scope to extend their contribution
from architecture through to urban planning and design.
Important in the creation of this urban jigsaw puzzle was
to constantly bear in mind how these buildings would work
together and how those working in the precinct would
experience the environment.
There are common threads that run throughout
the precinct, but each building has a subtle change of
evolutionary design. The design language used throughout
the three phases ties the buildings together whilst the
individuality of the buildings is expressed through the use
of different materials. The glazing showcases the latest
glass technology and expression in terms of light and dark
and also day and night experiences.
Phase 3 Design
In this final phase of the Alice Lane development, the
butterfly-shaped plan allows for the generation of two
wings. Working with generated site line analyses and sun
studies, the conceptual design was specifically created
to allow sunlight into the public space, essentially using
sunlight to chisel form.
The operational needs of the tenant, Bowmans, were
carefully considered. Typically law firms require a higher
cellular office to floor plate ratio. Further requirements
included external views and windows in each cellular
office. An optimised H-shaped floor plate serviced by a
single, centralised core allows for easy subdivision of the
floor plate and offers panoramic views of Johannesburg.
There are 1,500 parking bays provided which contribute
to the Alice Lane Precinct super-basement of 3,500 cars
in total.
The completion of Alice Lane Phase 3 marked the
end of a 10 year journey towards redefining an entire city
block in the heart of Sandton. It sets the benchmark for
development in South Africa’s premier commercial real
estate node.
Client: Pivotal Property Investment Fund;
Alice Lane Trust
Developer & Project Managers: Abland
Architects: Paragon Architects
Quantity Surveyors: Quanticost
Commissioning Agents:
Cardinal Commissioning Services
Structural Engineers: L & S Consulting
Electrical Engineers: Taemane Consulting
Mechanical Engineers:
C3 Climate Control Consulting Engineers
Fire Engineers: IFESA
Wet Services:
MGBS - Mike Gough Building Services
Green Building Consultants:
Solid Green Consulting
Landscape Architects: The Ochre Office
Interior Architects:
Design Effects International
Main Contractor: WBHO Construction
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SAPOA Awards