Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa July/August 2019 | Page 45

can we take advantage of what already exists and make it
better, more sustainable, more prosperous, for the benefit of
everyone? With this base capacity and existing infrastructure,
Bellville offers significant development opportunities that are
immediately available.
“If we can bookend Bellville and do here what the City has
done to build up the Cape Town CBD, we’d be able to achieve
huge traction along the entire Voortrekker Road Corridor.”
WHEN THE ECONOMY IS LOW,
OPPORTUNITY IS HIGH
“Bellville is an opportunistic city that is ripe for development,”
says Hewitt. “I genuinely believe that there is value to be
realised on the streets of the city, not only for property
owners already in Bellville, but also developers seeking early
opportunities that will deliver value in return.”
The GTP is working with the City to extend the Urban
Development Zone along the Voortrekker Road Corridor and
devising proposals that would enable the private sector to
take advantage of aggressive financial incentives to develop
commercial, affordable and student accommodation on,
among others, City-owned properties. It’s also creating various
other key projects, including the installation of a primary health
and eye clinic in the Bellville CBD, in partnership with the Cipla
Foundation. This also includes the creation of a business,
innovation, skills and entrepreneurial development centre, to
entrench Bellville as a melting pot of creativity, innovation and
a living lab for testing ideas.
Highlighting development opportunities, Hewitt explains:
“The biggest area for value to be had is in the older part of
the Bellville CBD, which includes Parow. We’re seeing positive
trends in the property market here, with more properties
changing hands on a more consistent basis. We’re seeing
developers converting existing buildings into student
accommodation, and also formulating plans to develop
affordable accommodation in concentric centres around
transport interchanges.”
The GTP’s research shows that in excess of 400 000
commuters move through the Bellville public transport
interchange, which is the biggest in Cape Town, every day. In
terms of its infrastructure, medical, educational and transport
facilities, Bellville and the wider Greater Tygerberg area can be
compared with other leading cities such as Manchester and
Kigali, among others. It is highly connected, with significant
road and rail infrastructure and easy access to Cape Town’s
international airport. It is home to nine major educational
institutions, seven major hospitals and five out of six of South
Africa’s leading financial services houses. It is also a centre of
engineering excellence supported by an active knowledge
ecosystem, where thousands of small and medium businesses
deliver innovative products and services every day.
The key to this upliftment, explains Hewitt, is partnership.
The GTP is building a network of partnerships between
the private, public and academic sectors will contribute to
building Bellville into an inclusive, progressive and innovative
environment that lies at the centre of, and serves, the Cape
Town metropole. “The GTP is not a developer,” he says. “Our role
is to facilitate development opportunities between the public,
private and academic sectors. We’re always looking for people
to partner with us to mobilise attitudes and, more importantly,
to galvanise action in the area.”
For more information about development opportunities
in Bellville, contact Warren Hewitt at warren.hewitt@gtp.
org.za.
WARREN HEWITT, Warren Hewitt is the CEO of Greater
Tyberberg Partnership. A qualified Chartered Accountant,
Hewitt spent several years in different industries such as
hospitality, retail and nine years in senior leadership positions
in the logistics industry.
SA Real Estate Investor Magazine JULY/AUGUST 2019
43