Architect and Builder Magazine South Africa July/August 2014 | Page 4

T EDITORIAL he weather in Cape Town has veered from wonderful, sunny and wind-free days to the driving rain and howling gales that are synonymous with our winters. Rather unpleasant, particularly when one is unprepared – a yearly occurrence for me, despite being a born and bred Capetonian. I did manage to have a brief respite, however, as I went up the Garden Route to visit my parents for a week. Our erstwhile editor and her husband are thoroughly enjoying the slower, gentler life and being there always allows me to rejuvenate and relax. Thank you to Peter, our publisher, for organising this fabulous break. Since taking over from Diana in March, I have found each issue increasingly easier to handle – this is largely due to the quality of people I have the privilege of dealing with on a daily basis. The architects, engineers and other professionals Shelley Woode-Smith are helpful, interested and, well, professional. This is our biggest issue since the OUR TEAM change in dispensation and I am very excited for the future. There is so much EDITOR Shelley Woode-Smith industry - so it is very pleasing to see how much support we have been able to doom and gloom around – particularly, it seems, in relation to the construction [email protected] garner for the projects in this issue. ASSISTANT EDITOR Louise Fenner-Solomon and Louise and I have been in contact with architects and developers in this [email protected] CONSULTING EDITOR Diana Woode [email protected] DESIGN Peter Fenner-Solomon [email protected] ADVERTISING SALES Shelley Woode-Smith Louise Fenner-Solomon ACCOUNTS Bonnie Ah Shene We are always on the lookout for new, suitable projects to feature and both regard. My one concern, however, is that the bulk of our projects are in Gauteng and the Western Cape. I know there are noteworthy developments in the other provinces and would really love to hear about them from you. Our details are on our website. This issue features the 139m tall Portside, a R1.6bn development in Cape Town’s CBD. We also showcase the South African Military Health Base Depot in Pretoria. I was privileged to see this project firsthand when I was in Gauteng earlier this year and it is a testament to what can be created even considering the stringent security requirements of a facility of this nature. Jindal Africa, part of the US$18 billion, diversified O.P. Jindal Group, saw the need for a head office in [email protected] Johannesburg. A key aspect of the design of this building was that it should be PUBLISHER Peter Fenner-Solomon design and construction based on natural law. To finish off the projects for this [email protected] CONTRIBUTORS designed around Vastu Shastra principles. Vastu Shastra is an ancient system of issue is De Waterkant, an apartment in The Mirage development in the heart of Cape Town, designed for the television show, Top Billing. Once again, we are featuring the highly successful SAPOA Awards. The We welcome articles, photographs and news items relating to architecture, buildings, building methods and building mat