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