Monday 25 July marked a milestone for Atterbury when Citadel moved into their brand-new R225 million head office opposite Cavendish Square in Claremont…The six-storey, four-star green building is Atterbury’s first commercial property development in the Western Cape to be completed in recent years. Gerrit van den Berg, Atterbury’s development manager for its Western Cape developments, shares some background.

Tell us more about the new building’s address?
It was the old Boardman’s site, on the corner of Warwick Road and Cavendish Street, which belonged to Catalyst. When we started there was an old single-storey building, which was demolished to make way for the modern development and includes four basement parking floors. Its position, across the road from Cavendish Square, is extremely well placed in an established, well-heeled suburb.

Who was the architect and what was the brief?
Robert Silke of Robert Silke & Partners was the design architect in charge of the aesthetics of the project, and they also did the interior design of the entire building, including all the tenants’ spaces. Louis Karol Architects was the principle agent and project architect. In keeping with the surrounding area they created a building that looks stately yet with a futuristic form. It feels like old New York, a deliberate mix of solid, traditional materials with a modern twist – towards the street, the facades are clad in pale granite and a vast amount of stone and glass was used in combination with marble and brass finishes. Stabilid Cape did the construction.

What is Atterbury’s further involvement now that the new owners have moved in?
The project is a joint venture between Citadel, Catalyst and Atterbury. Now that the development phase is over, Adelene van der Westhuizen from Atterbury Asset Managers, takes care of the asset management for the building, while Broll will be in charge of the property management. Citadel occupies the ground to fourth floors, and Perpetua moved into the bulk of the fifth floor space  on 1 August.

Were there any particular challenges in transforming the old one-storey building that used to be on the site into The Citadel as it looks today?
It was a major challenge to work on such a small site with very little maneuverability. Effectively, we had to deliver a 10-storey building (counting the four basement floors) on a busy corner with one small access and no stacking space for material. Most of the façade is covered in granite and these blocks are extremely difficult to handle due to their weight. The two sets of concrete spiral staircases also posted a serious design challenge for the engineer. This was also my first project where we have had delay claims from the contractor, due to excessive wind… yes, I am new to Cape Town! It also appeared to never stopped raining in the southern suburbs!

Are all the tenants in now? What has been the best feedback?
Citadel and Perpetua are trading as well as the sub tenants and associates of Citadel. These are Peregrine, Stenham, 36ONE and AEON. A number of compliments have been received on the aesthetics of the building, both internally and externally.