Menlyn Park shopping centre welcomes Tshwane mayor

Tshwane Executive Mayor Solly Msimanga recently visited Menlyn Park Shopping Centre to discuss shared interests and issues relevant to Tshwane.

Olive Ndebele, general manager of Menlyn Park Shopping Centre, was on hand to show the mayor the refurbishment that was completed at the end of last year, which included the features that gained the centre a 4-star Green Star Retail Design rating by the Green Building Council of South Africa.

Menlyn Park Shopping Centre is a major hub for commuters who either work or shop in the mall, and centre management has worked closely with the government to ensure that public-transport facilities are in place.

Ndebele noted that the meeting with the mayor was a great opportunity to further cement relations between the local government and the shopping centre.

“We’re always looking for ways to improve the Menlyn area for our shoppers and employees, and we’re in discussions to address parking for taxis,” she says. ”We also want to form a Central Improvement District.” 

Tshwane’s new municipal offices, in the heart of the city, is home to some of the best green features found in a government building. The Mayor, who was one of the first to move into this awarding-winning building completed in June, has said that working towards an environmentally green city is close to his heart.  

For its part, Menlyn Park worked hard to incorporate as many environmentally sustainable initiatives as possible during the redevelopment of the mall. Focus areas included indoor environmental quality, energy, transport, material and land-use ecology and emissions.

“We were very fortunate to host mayoral delegates from the African Capital Cities Sustainability Forum last month, and they were impressed to see the strides that retail in South Africa has made towards eco-friendliness,” says Ndebele.

Menlyn Park Shopping Centre is the largest mall in Africa, with over 400 stores. The redevelopment, which took nearly two years to complete, provided 12 000 jobs during the construction. The expansion included 8 250 parking bays and 16 entrances and 12 exits.