Illovo Central By FWJK and Life Landscapes

Size: 40,000m² Completed: February 2021 Location: Illovo, Johannesburg

The site was developed by FWJK and is centrally located to both Sandton and Rosebank’s CBD’s, with views that span the Sandton CBD to the north wast, as well as more tranquil views to the west across Hyde Park to Northcliff and the Magaliesburg mountains in the distance. FWJK took on most elements of this mammoth build from development management, to architecture, with elements of the landscape being implemented by renowned landscaping firm, Life Green Group.

Illovo Central is a 15 storey mixed-use building and comprises 1,000m² retail, 4,700m² A-Grade office space and 125 high-end residential units.

Carrying through from the aesthetic of its neighbouring building, Illovo Point, this new building needed to embody the look and feel of its neighbour.

The brief called for Illovo Central to be a modern, sophisticated, mixed-use building with efficient design and planning principles, and the exterior was to blend seamlessly with the uses within the building, but also mirror Illovo Point, as it was imperative that the two buildings would read and function as part of a precinct.

Ground floor retail spills out toward a landscaped sidewalk setting on Rivonia Road, the perfect spot for cafes and restaurants to service the many residents and visitors. Office space occupies level 6, 7 and part of level 8, whilst the residential units are located on levels 9 to 14 to really drink in the views.

On the ground floor is a lavish reception area with a drop-off zone all centred around a cascading water feature to really create a sense that you have arrived somewhere grand.

Level 8 is home to a fully fitted and operated gym, a communal lounge with a fitted bar, as well as a show-stopping glass walled infinity swimming pool with views toward the Sandton skyline.

Both communal spaces on the ground level and level 8 have been designed with the end user in mind and are set to enhance the appeal of the building with contemporary, mixed-use touches to enhance the lives of those inhabiting the space.

Interestingly, this site was previously a large house with street frontage on both Rivonia and Melville Roads. During the rezoning process, the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) wanted vehicular access to be only from Melville Road, but to have pedestrian access and activity on Rivonia Road.

One of the primary design issues was separating uses without an obvious divide within the building whilst maintaining security for each use. To assist in achieving this, the vehicular access was split at Melville Road into residents and office users. Residents park on the three basement levels, whilst office and retail users park on the five structured parking levels. The core of the building is centrally located to maximise efficiency, and the office and residential lifts were placed back-to-back. In order to maintain exclusivity and security of each use, the ground floor and level eight are the only floors that both the residential and office lifts stop on due to the communal facilities located on these levels.

Illovo Central’s sleek, modern aesthetic with a flush external finish is all thanks to the use of a floor-to-soffit unitised glazing system.

Large cantilevering balconies and strategic recesses, together with white and dark grey Marmoran, were used to carve the elevations into strong horizontal and vertical lines using light and shade.

The balconies are generous and the corner glazing in both office and residential units assist in breaking up the corners of the building and make the interiors feel spacious and luxurious.

It was decided early on in the project that AAC blocks would be used as it gave the project a significant saving in structural cost due to its lighter weight than clay bricks.

FWJK

Life Landscapes

FWJK Interiors Giant Leap (Office 601)

Concor Buildings

Infrastructure Photos

Marmoran was used both externally for the facade finish and internally for feature walls in the ground floor lobby. Wood-look vinyl planks were used throughout the residential units, and together with the glossy white kitchen and bedroom joinery, it gives the units a rich, warm aesthetic.

Uniquely branded lifts with glass doors, grey stucco paint techniques on communal passages, chevron mirrors in the ground floor and level 8 lobbies with feature LED lighting enhancing the feeling of luxury.

HVAC is a 3-chiller system which supplies chilled water to the offices, residential and communal areas of the building. Hot water is supplied by heat pumps, and there is a backup water tank in the basement to supply the building with fresh water during temporary water cuts. Emergency lighting and lifts are backed up by a generator in the event of load shedding.

Low energy LED lighting, heat pumps and HVAC systems are used throughout the building. Deep balconies and tinted glass assist in limiting solar heat gain, and all residential units are fitted with gas hobs to reduce electricity demand.

The landscape job, completed by Life Landscapes, was challenging for the team as the internal planters started on the 9th floor, going up to the 14th floor, which made moving material like soil difficult. The architects provided Life Landscapes with drawings indicating where the planting beds and planter boxes would be. Life Landscapes contracted the services of an experienced landscape architect in Bernadette Eksteen (from The Landscape Studio), who prepared the BOQ and proposed planting palette for the contractors.

Ida-Marie Strydom (Life Landscapes director and horticulturist) met with the architects at Lifestyle Garden Centre to show them physical examples of the proposed plants, and after some changes by them, confirmed the final selection of plants for installation. The interior plants had to be changed out twice to find the right plants to handle the low light conditions.

Illovo Central rightfully earns its spot in Pro Landscaper’s Commercial and Big Builds issue as it has reshaped the Illovo skyline, and has fast become an iconic building for the city of Johannesburg. The building fits effortlessly into its environment and alongside the neighbouring building with its bold architecture and exquisite facade, whilst adding valuable and luxurious convenience to both its commercial and residential users and the surrounding community who will make use of its facilities for many years to come.

Façade Solutions – 011 614 3510

Reo Group – 083 721 1301

Marmoran – 011 887 0536

Idol Marine – 082 904 3313

Pool Spa and Filtration – 011 793 138

Tshala Plant Brokers – 071 683 1177

Evergreen Turf – 011 948 7913