In clearing the site a trigonometrical beacon of
historical significance was found. After investi-
gation, it was discovered that this beacon was
originally the marker at the intersection that divided
thee historical farms: Braamfontein, Klipfontein and
Syferfontein. What would have originally been a
cairn of stones with an ox wagon spoke mounted
through the center, located in the middle of what is
now Oxford Road, had been moved and replaced
with a concrete bollard due to the construction of
Oxford road. The developer, Barrow Properties,
endeavoured to reinstate and celebrate this small
piece of Johannesburg’s history on the doorstep
of this development.
The Building
Oxford and Glenhove is a 22,000m 2 office
development. There are two buildings, one
consisting of 6 stories of office space and the
Oxford & Glenhove
second 5 stories. A classic courtyard typology
often used by the developer consists of two
racetrack type circulatory plans edging generous,
external light flooded and permeable human scale
environments. These engaging areas ground the
building from within.
Each sectional title space is planned off of
the circulatory space with its own front door and
all amenities needed to function alone. They do
however all benefit from the building’s spaces and
amenities as a collective - such as the ground floor
coffee shop.
The obstacle of the Gautrain servitude on the
site meant that the planning could not encroach on
the servitude at ground level but could indeed do
so at higher levels. In order to maximise the bulk,
the design cantilevers the floorplates at growing
increments over the servitude, forming one of the
dominant features of the architecture.
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