When I don’t know the answers to things, I just ask the big guns! A few weeks ago, I contacted Ian Iversen, councillor of Ward 59 and asked for some more information on the general Claremont area.

So here is what we had to ask, and what Ian Iversen had to say:

Sean: Ian, a while back I heard that the Claremont Main Road was going to be closed off and it was going to be moved further down towards the railway line in order to help with the traffic congestion, is this true?

Ian: The statement regarding closing off Main Road is totally incorrect. That won’t be happening. What is happening at the moment is a ‘relief road’ is being built which will run from the road in front of the Southern Sun hotel through a few council owned properties/land and join up with Fir Road which runs next to the railway line and then exit at Stegman Road/ Bridge.

I have no doubt that with the construction of this road, plus the new taxi and bus terminus there will be a turn around and upgrade of the properties in the area. For too long, properties on the railway side of the Main Road have been the stepchildren in respect of economic development.

Sean: Taking a drive down Main Road is always a hazardous affair, with taxi’s stopping wherever they like and jaywalking dominating the road. What is going to be done to curb this? I also believe that this is one of the reasons for the traffic congestion, the constant disregard for the rules of the road.

Ian: Wherever taxi’s are involved it is a hazardous affair as they as a matter of course show little respect for the rules of the road. The bottom line is that Main Road Claremont is little different from any other CBD in the city.

Sean: Obviously the taxi terminus is now on the Cavendish side(Update: By this I mean on the Cavendish side of the railway line. Thanks Andre). I would like to ask where the new taxi/bus terminus is to be situated?

Ian: You are incorrect when you state that ‘obviously the taxi rank is now on the Cavendish side’ I suggest you walk down Ralph Road to the railway station to check on the development of the taxi and bus terminus. It is a massive undertaking which will provide vastly improved facilities for both operators and passengers.

Sean: Ian, maybe this is not quite your territory! However, Claremont Main Road has always been dominated by the clubbing scene and of late with all the construction, we have seen a couple of clubs being taken over by other developments. What do you foresee for the future of the nightclubs in the area, do you think they will be bought out by developers?

Ian: Personally I think that the owners of nightclubs will come under pressure from property owners as they don’t want negative publicity plus the owners would like a better financial return from more main stay business operators.

So that is what Ian Iversen had to say! I regularly go down the main road and the taxi’s have no regard for the rules of the road. So here is what SLXS would do to keep them in their places. If a taxi is caught breaking any rule of the road whatsoever, don’t fine them. Pull them over, with all their passengers, to a designated spot in Claremont where they will be held for an hour, and they will not be able to operate. This way they lose money because they cannot operate, and customers will obviously not be willing to use them again if they are wasting their time and money.

Taxi’s need to be treated like this, you need to take a hard line on them and let them know that they don’t own the road.At the moment the road is dominated by taxi’s who think they own the road. Hopefully with the new relief road, plus the construction of the new taxi/bus terminus, this will all be fixed. And the Claremont Main Road will be the big thing!

I just added two photos below of the construction and will no doubt add more as it progresses and I will also look for a higher vantage point.

Sean Lloyd

Editor

I really don’t know what to say about this development, other than that I want an apartment at Paramount Towers. It’s rare for me to be this excited about something, but this is the epitome of city living, SLXS style.

I had wanted to show you these photos, but Pam Golding, the agents for Paramount Towers, have a copyright rule on their website. No problem for SLXS though! I swiftly got in contact with Beverley Bloch, who then put me in contact with Jessica, who spoke to Anna Davis, the Western Cape Marketing Manager for Pam Golding, and I was then granted permission to use the photos. And suddenly SLXS were back in business!

I could think of nothing better than waking up in the morning, in my two bedroom apartment at Paramount Towers. I might have even slept in the lounge, in front of my flat screen TV, with the Playstation set up, my PVR decoder and a sound system to blow the roof off. Perhaps even a small faux-fur throw over, some vodka…who knows? The possibilities are endless. Gisele Bundchen?

I would wake up, have a shower and then admire the view of the mountain, then quickly shoot down to the the Virgin Active for a quick set of gun curls. After that, I might like to go to Pick ‘n Pay and get some food to fuel my ripped muscles. And then after that…who knows? Maybe go to the beach for a spot of sun and a drink after that. And then do it all again the next day. This is how to live! This is how to live excessively…

Just down the road from the Paramount Towers you have Newlands cricket ground, Newlands Rugby Stadium and Kelvin Grove, where I have a membership. Kelvin is like a second home to me and I normally live around the pool in summer, and also the pool bar where I quench my raging thirst. Paramount Towers is so central to the action of  Cape Town life it’s not even funny. You will literally have so much to do you will retire early just to play in Cape Town.

For more information on living the SLXS dream in a city environment, see the Paramount Towers website.

Enjoy the photos, and do have a stroll around the website to check out the full package. Then do the right thing and move in next year. It’s like paying your TV license…it’s the right thing to do.

I know you want to. You want to eat Paramount Towers. I know I’m keen.

You can also contact Bev Bloch for more information, and her details are on the link I have given above.

Paramount Towers currently still under construction.

Paramount Towers by day upon completion in 2008

Paramount Towers by night upon completion in 2008

Sean Lloyd

Editor

Having lived in Claremont for the better part of my much younger years, I have always had a good feel about it. I grew up there, I partied there and I eventually finished school while living in Claremont. I remember the days of partying at clubs and bars such as Billy the Bums (Now Sobhar), Conti’s (Continental Drift, but it has now been closed), Fubar (Closed now, but it was previously Blink) and The Green Man(Now Tin Roof). Then there was Late Edition, which changed to “Town” and which now presents itself as Wadda.

It was always confusing having a club named “Town” in Claremont because people would say they were going to town, which normally means the centre of Cape Town. When in actual fact they were just going to Claremont.

Having grown up in Claremont, I became used to it and even though the Main Road started to look messy, I still liked the place because it had treated me quite well over the years! I am a true son of Claremont.

Then suddenly developers started coming into Claremont to try and clean up it’s image by adding top quality car showrooms, apartments and they are now connecting the Cavendish shopping centre to “The Link”, which is now going to become “Cavendish Connect” The Link always seemed to be the neglected piece of Cavendish shopping centre, as it was not as upmarket and was physically seperate from Cavendish, albeit by only a couple of metres. It just never seemed to have the same feel as Cavendish and I never found myself visiting The Link all that often.

Claremont Main Road finds itself in a position of power these days. It is now the place to be, with only the best apartments and shops being built. I decided to go and have a look what is going on in my old neighbourhood. For the first part of this small series on Claremont and it’s developments, I will just show you what is happening.

The Claremont Main Road is dominated by excess at first sight. There is nothing but the very best, and it is all just trendy apartments and car showrooms.

Just off the main road, you walk past the Apple store where you can drop a few thousand South African rand on a Macbook Pro. You can then go look for a car at Mercedes, or adjacent from Mercedes Benz, you can have a look for a new set of wheels at the Honda Chrysler dealership. In this same stretch of road, we find Intaba, another set of apartments/ penthouses. These are seriously superstyling, and range in price from R2.06 million - R5 million. The name does not make it sound quite as awesome as it is, but let’s just forget about that for the moment. It just seems strange to me though. It’s not a word that is generally understood, and I don’t understand it. It is a bit bizarre. But the place is great nonetheless.

Intaba

Going further down the road, you can also stop in at the BMW/ Mini dealership. There is nothing like a Mini Cooper S to match your brand new city apartment.Wait, let’s take it a step at a time:

The most notable development at the moment would have to be the new Engen petrol station which incorporates a 24 hour Woolworths, a Steers and a video store. It is THE place to be after a night out. Last night I distinctly remember a couple of friends hitting the Steers hard, after a night out at Wadda. I was driving so I did not have a raging hunger from countless drinks but I was impressed by the establishment as it is top quality, from the finishes in the shop to the food available.

Opposite from Engen is Sobhar, which has seen a notable decline in people from my circle of friends of late, due to the emergence of Tiger Tiger. I used to party hard when it was Billy the Bums, but I have drifted away from it now. Billy the Bums was legendary, as anyone who ever partied there will agree. Opposite from Sobhar, in the same “Newlands on Main” building, is Cubana. Click that link for the must know on Cubana.

Newlands on Main, incorporating Sobhar, Cubana, Honda and Chrysler/ Jeep/ Dodge

We then take a stroll further down the road where there is a development that SLXS definitely endorses. It is the Paramount Towers which, when finished, will incorporate a new 6000 square metre Pick ‘n Pay, a Virgin Active gym plus 61 apartments. These will be made up of 11 penthouses and 50 apartments with choices of 1, 2 or 3 bedrooms. Can somebody spell excess?! To be honest, that is the dream right there and prices start at R 975,000 with occupation starting in 2008.

Paramount Towers: You will want to live here when it’s complete

Further down we reach another set of apartments aptly named “The Claremont” Not very imaginative but a cool set of apartments anyway! They are very young and trendy, being right at the heart of the Claremont clubbing scene. So you can go out, have a party, and literally cross the street to your apartment which might seem like a bit of a dream, but is in actual fact real. There are also some ridiculously good looking people who live in The Claremont because SLXS know these things. Trust me.

The Claremont, where some good looking people live.

Astonishingly, The Claremont is comprised of 272 apartments, and there are only 2 apartments per passage which makes it nice and private. Just what you need when coming home late at night making a noise. Another nice addittion is Coimbra below the apartments, where there is a bakery and you can also enjoy coffee and light meals.

Then you walk further, past the night clubs and you go to the other end of the road, to the Virgin Active gym. Here we find yet another set of apartments, with a very cool name, Seven Miles South. Definitely more trendy than “The Claremont” Opposite from this we have the BMW/ Mini showroom and that is where most of the developments on the Main Road end.

Seven Miles South. Not sure what that is in kilometres.

I personally believe that when Claremont Main Road is completely revamped, it is going to be the next big thing. I can’t think of a nicer city area to live in, and would have no problem in having a shelter at Paramount Towers. With a gym to buff up in, a Pick ‘n Pay to feed yourself at, internet access for business and all the night clubs on your doorstep, you have everything you need for a life of excess right at your fingertips.

Walking through Claremont these days, there is a different feel about it. I know the old Claremont, and now I feel like I’m getting to know the new one and it blows my mind. Developers don’t just spend R300 million, like they did on The Claremont, if they don’t think it has potential to be a huge success. That type of money is no pocket change.

I predict big things for Claremont, and in the next part of this article I will let you know what Ian Iversen had to say to SLXS about the developments and the general upliftment of the area. Then after that I bring you a Loerie Award winner from a local design student to help you live a true city lifestyle. I also have a little extra on Paramount Towers. Wicked.

“Awesome” I hear you say.

Awesome indeed.

Sean Lloyd

Editor