Centum putting up a Sh17bn satellite town in Ruaka
The site where Two Rivers is being constructed in Ruaka, Kiambu. PHOTO | ERIC WAINAINA |
What you need to know:
- Mr Bernard Masika, the residential engineer, said the project dubbed “Two Rivers” sits on 100 acres and will be carried out in two phases.
- He said the project is expected to be complete by September 2015 ahead of the grand opening the following month.
Ruaka, a fast-growing suburb in Kiambu County, is receiving a major upgrade with the construction of a multi-billion-shilling satellite town.
Centum Investment Group, the largest listed private equity company in Eastern Africa, is putting up what it calls “a retail, entertainment and lifestyle centre” at an estimated cost of Sh17 billion.
The project, the first of its kind in the country, is expected to be the largest in East Africa with a mega shopping mall, office park, luxury residential apartments, hotels and public amenities.
Mr Bernard Masika, the residential engineer, said the project dubbed “Two Rivers” sits on 100 acres and will be carried out in two phases.
Mr Masika said the project, managed by Athena Properties Ltd, is expected to be complete by September 2015 ahead of the grand opening the following month.
“The project has a completion time line because part of the facilities have already been bought, and so we have to meet the set time,” the engineer said, adding work is going on day and night.
Mr Masika said the retail centre is designed as an open mall offering a sense of high street shopping but protected from adverse weather.
INTERNATIONAL CLIENTS
He said Two Rivers Mall will have over 160 shops with a rich mix of fashion, apparel, furniture and homewares, restaurants, cinemas, banking hall, accessories and services when complete.
Of the 62,000 square metres of mall, slightly under 50 per cent has already been booked by international clients.
Among them is the French Carrefour hypermarket, the fourth-largest retail group in the world, which has booked up to 10,000 square metres, making them the anchor tenant. It will be the second Carrefour outlet in Africa.
Kiambu County will get its first three-star hotel with over 150 rooms as well as a five-star star hotel with 200 rooms and conference facilities.
The office park will be compliant with international green standards, featuring low-rise office blocks and luxurious residential apartments being built by a Chinese firm and local sub-contractors.
The project will have 1689 parking bays in the mall on three levels and 2,000 parking bays in the parking silo.
The project bordered the Northern bypass, Limuru road and the North-South link road which is under construction.
