http://www.pamgolding.co.za/lifestyles/images/dolphinwhispers/Artist-Imp5.jpg

http://www.pamgolding.co.za/lifestyles/images/dolphinwhispers/Artist-Imp1.jpg

http://www.pamgolding.co.za/lifestyles/images/dolphinwhispers/Artist-Imp4.jpg


NAME: Dolphin Whispers
LOCATION: Point Waterfront
STATUS: Under construction
FLOORS: 12
HEIGHT: ??? <email requesting height has been issued>
USE: Residential

Dolphin Whispers is one of the first few luxury apartments to be located at the Durban Point Waterfront, which will define a new lifestyle for people with the interest of the city at heart. The development will provide a unique opportunity for the introduction of up market residential apartments, which will transform the area into a place for working and living. All the main bedrooms have terraces and all apartments are air-conditioned.
Access into the complex and parking bays is controlled with high security. Entrance to the building is through exclusive entrance lobbies that ensure a contemporary up market lifestyle.

Priced from R1,8 million and R5 million

Piling is complete and the building is starting to rise!

look foward to the pics

look foward to the pics

Update:

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c128/dysan1/IMGP1281.jpg

This stefan antoni development must rate as one of the most forgotten developments of the point! It is at 5F now

Na I recon Skyhomes is even more forgotten. At least this is U/C

True, i tried calling the SKYhomes developer and all u get is a voice message stating that they are changing offices at present. To me SKYhomes was so unique...dunno what has happened there.

did anyone try to get the height of this from the architects?
Also this must be up and out the ground by now cos the last update was in Feb?

"stefan antoni" what other projects did these guys do?

The are CT based and do some insane houses. check out their website
www.stefanantoni.co.za

i worked at there place for a bit last year was funny they really have a nice vibe some of there houses there working on are amazing one and a 20 car parkade ..they've done some amazing high-rise none is sa though but there was a proposed one for the foreshore ct which was class i don't know if its been scrapped

hasrk, if you worked there , couldent you find out the height of this building?????
pretty please with a cherry on top

ye C'mon Hsark, do some brown nosing on ur old boss there

Stefan Antoni has just opened an umhlanga office...i'll try go there and find out

Reminicent of the new cape style condo developments.

this one is looking rather imposing on the canals now. Come July 2007 This precinct will be complete

Some other renders from Stefan Antoni. Completion is in September/October 2007

http://www.saota.co.za/images/Point_intro.jpg

http://www.saota.co.za/images/Point_001_LARGE.jpg

http://www.saota.co.za/images/Point_002_LARGE.jpg

she looks higher than 35m . Anyone have a height?
great addition to the waterfrontr and adds desnsity

looks like the same hieght as the Quays or just taller

yeah its maginally taller than the Quaywest development. will get the details

Jerome our point resident...any updaye on this one? are the workers back on site finishing up?

They are working on it but with a fraction of the staff required (I literally see only a few people). Thus going very slow.

Ok so we know this one has been dogged with dodgy builders all along, but the developer is now seen to be dodgy too. not a good thing at all. seems like the development will have to be continued by someone else, but its a very messed up situation

Durban's Point project sinks
Bongani Mthembu
March 14 2008 at 03:29PM

One of the Point Waterfront's plush developments is set to lose millions of rands after serious defects in construction caused the structure to "skew".

Some of the city's well-known business personalities have suffered huge financial losses.

Among those who have suffered losses with the liquidation of the property development company, Dolphin Whispers, is former president Nelson Mandela's granddaughter, Nandi Mandela and five Durban businessmen, Henry Masinga, Vaughn Charles, Marcel Henry, Rajen Naidoo and Craig Simmer.

Simmer is also involved in the running of the embattled Remant Alton, the company which runs the crumbling former Durban Transport bus service.

'People who have paid deposits will not lose their money'
The city is planning to take back the bus service from Remant Alton after several attempts to bail it out have failed.

Dolphin Whispers has been liquidated after its directors allegedly failed to complete one of the Point Waterfront's multi-million rand up-market residential buildings.

The building is part of the Durban Waterfront Precinct, which is the city's residential and commercial development flagship project aimed at rejuvenating the Point Waterfront area.

Pietermaritzburg liquidator, Kurt Knoop, said Dolphin Whispers has been liquidated, because its directors "failed to furnish" the bond holder (Ithala Bank) with guarantees.

The bank, which lent the property development company R54-million for the construction of the building, requested more guarantees after the company ran into what they termed "serious financial shortfalls" which at present sit at R14-million.

The construction of the building began in 2005 and the contractor was Prainder Civils and Earthworks.

The liquidator said that in 2007 the architect and an engineer refused to sign a certificate for the project after serious structural defects were found.

Late in 2007, litigation between Dolphin Whispers and Prainder Civils and Earthworks CC began and eventually the contract was terminated.

Knoop said that in November last year, another contractor, Dezzo Projects was appointed to correct all serious structural defects in the 10-storey building.

"Dezzo Projects has also stopped working because there is no money to pay staff and to finance the remaining construction needed to complete the project," he said.

"Ithala Bank stopped payments because Dolphin Whispers failed to provide the bank with guarantees."

He said the estimated shortfall stood at R14-million as a result of additional costs caused by delays.

People who have paid deposits for apartments will have to wait another 16 months before they can occupy their properties, he said.

Knoop has assured buyers who had already paid for their apartments they would not lose.

"People who have paid deposits will not lose their money, it is with the attorney," he said.

Knoop said they were considering two options to ensure the building was completed.

"Liquidators can sell the building as it stands or continue building it and pay the creditors," he said.

Dolphin Whispers' attorney, Neeraj Ramnarain said it was unfortunate that the company was liquidated.

"My clients do not oppose the liquidation. We seek to finalise the order. An advertisement will be placed in newspapers this week," said Ramnarain.

He said his clients could suffer a "huge" potential financial loss as a result of the liquidation.

Ithala Bank spokesperson Zama Mosery declined to comment.





This article was originally published on page 1 of Daily News on March 14, 2008

That's if there will be someone else. Given the sharp slowdown in the residential market and cost escalations resulting from double digit inflation of 10%, I do not know if anyone would bail them out this year at least. Looks like the liquidator will hold on to this one but not likely that taxpayers money would be used to bail out shoddy work on a high end development. Would not go down well with the politicians. Given the loss of business confidence right now in SA, it is likely also that the individual investors in the scheme will withdraw and cut whatever losses they have incurred by the 16-month delay.

Sad news indeed, lets hope someone saves it pretty fast. Anyone knows if the structural problems are sorted?

:( This is very sad news. Thanks for the update mate!
You guys think this will have implications for other developments at the point, present and future?

:( man this sucks.

is the 'sinking' due to insufficient piling or unexpected subsidence?

jeez I hope its not that bad. I phoned them up today but they 'cannot comment at this time' only after everything is finalised. Also been looking for info on the net but nothing new. Just a waiting game i suppose.

We may be waiting for at least the next two years as the residential real estate market market is in a slump and will take a while for there to be renewed demand as well as confidence. If the liquidator did try and sell the building right now they would only get a fraction for what it's worth and probably we would not like who the new building's owners are, maybe slum landlords who have taken advantage of the depressed situation in Durban's CBD area as the flight of people to Umhlanga has taken place in the last five years due to the massive development that is taking place in Umhlanga and will likely accelerate and worsen the situation in the CBD as more people flee to Umhlanga and the suburbs. I think that investors have take fright given the fact also that the San Raphael and The Mast developments were canned due to the lack of demand while the Quaywest development which originally was to be a four star Three Cities hotel was also cancelled.

greedy devlopers are to blame for all the worlds problems, pity im one of them

greedy devlopers are to blame for all the worlds problems, pity im one of them
surely i developer going bang and 1 building having a minor structural problem is not enough to set the development of the precint back by that much?

although i dont support the sch it is is no ones interests for the development to come to a standstill ......what gives?

Hey ratty ^^ I agree. I dont understand whats going on. There is no further infomation regarding it. The durban point website is so bad and so out dated, one visiting it would think that the whole project has come to a standstill.

this project failing due to useless developers has no baring on the other developments. its a pity, but developers do go bust

Hey ratty ^^ I agree. I dont understand whats going on. There is no further infomation regarding it. The durban point website is so bad and so out dated, one visiting it would think that the whole project has come to a standstill.

Given the economic slump in SA (some economists are even talking about recession) whereby GDP growth will grow only 2% this year, it is not surprising that unfinished buildings are being put on hold. The rate of financial default in the private sector right now is worse than it was in 1998 when we had 25% interest rate and residential property prices are now declining in real terms in SA as a whole.

It also happened in the mid-1980's when a financial crash caused by the former Nat government's intransigence about political change put many projects on hold for years some of which are still unfinished to this day.

So I would expect that Dolphin Whispers and the Zimbali Cradle Hotel, both of which are BEE-funded projects with alot of debt service levels, will only be the first as there are likely be lots of projects crashing all over SA due to the grim economic climate and lack of investor confidence.

By the way should the Dolphin Whispers get a new buyer and a new contractor, they will have to wait six months longer now due to the Eskom delay on approving new connections to the faltering electricity grid where we have sporadic blackouts. So it will be a while for these folks. Do not envy what they would be going through right now.

this project failing due to useless developers has no baring on the other developments. its a pity, but developers do go bust

And many more are going bust because of the worldwide financial meltdown of the housing markets in the US, UK and other developed countries has caused the collapse in business confidence in SA that in addition has to contend with Zuma and Eskom. Also who would be willing to buy such investments when few foreigners are investing in SA right now and many South Africans are packing up and leaving the country and Africa to escape the uncontrollable violent crime and frequent power cuts and moving overseas to the United States, Australia, New Zealand and other Western countries which unlike SA do have skilled people and a functioning infrastructure.

And many more are going bust because of the worldwide financial meltdown of the housing markets in the US, UK and other developed countries has caused the collapse in business confidence in SA that in addition has to contend with Zuma and Eskom. Also who would be willing to buy such investments when few foreigners are investing in SA right now and many South Africans are packing up and leaving the country and Africa to escape the uncontrollable violent crime and frequent power cuts and moving overseas to the United States, Australia, New Zealand and other Western countries which unlike SA do have skilled people and a functioning infrastructure.

Its always hard to swallow a bitter pill like the one Mosi-oa-Tunya is offering. But i think he is right.

Its always hard to swallow a bitter pill like the one Mosi-oa-Tunya is offering. But i think he is right.

We'll who's going to do business with us when Eskom plans a 60% rate hike without consulting anyone. Everyone is unhappy about this sad state of affairs and the total lack of transparency we see at Eskom and the ANC government as a whole.

So sad.. So true.

I was at the point a few days ago and it seems as things have slowed down so much there. Nothing new happening, buildings are taking for ever to finish and the canal water quality seems to be very poor (look and smell). This notion of the slow down is also evident in their outdated website.

I hope they pull through all this shit. This project is going to be great once completed. I cant wait.

So sad.. So true.

I was at the point a few days ago and it seems as things have slowed down so much there. Nothing new happening, buildings are taking for ever to finish and the canal water quality seems to be very poor (look and smell). This notion of the slow down is also evident in their outdated website.

I hope they pull through all this shit. This project is going to be great once completed. I cant wait.

It seems that the City of Durban does not have enough qualified people to monitor the development and it's environmental impact. No surprise as every municipality in SA has been losing engineers and town planners to both the private sector and to Western countries.

I doubt they will update their website as that costs them too much money and they probably do not want to reveal that the development may be failing. No one wants to see pictures of the putrid canal with whatever eColi and fecal matter may be in it. What a disgrace. Would have thought that something like this would have happened in Nigeria.

So sad.. So true.

I was at the point a few days ago and it seems as things have slowed down so much there. Nothing new happening, buildings are taking for ever to finish and the canal water quality seems to be very poor (look and smell). This notion of the slow down is also evident in their outdated website.

I hope they pull through all this shit. This project is going to be great once completed. I cant wait.

Not surprising that it's taking longer to finish projects. This is a problem that is happening all over South Africa in all the major cities as both the infrastructural constraints and worsening shortage of skilled people such as engineers and architects has caused delays in projects being built. This is a problem that has gotten progressively worse in the last two years. I have watched developments that were supposed to take 18 months to build get dragged out to 30 months.

Sure the rapid economic growth of the last four years in SA has created a situation where the skills and infrastructure as well as local government authorities cannot keep up and this is causing delays in the project supply chain from planning, approval and construction processes. I would expect with the Eskom crisis and the political uncertainty of SA becoming a populist state under Zuma will only make these problems worse as more people emigrate and take their skills out of SA.

Certainly the Durban Point and other commercial property developments in SA are suffering as a result of the most highly paid and skilled people being deployed to work on the 2010 stadiums given the prestige that is attached to such structures that may in the end become white elephants that the SA taxpayer will ultimately have to shell out money to finance over the long term despite the fact that the taxpayers are not getting a return for their money like they would if the money were better spent on basic infrastructure like electricity, roads, water and hospitals.

But maybe after the stadiums are built for 2010, whatever skills are still in the country by then can be better utilized to finish commercial buildings and developments on time. But I hope by then SA would have seen the foolishness of Zuma and would have already gotten rid of him and moved on.

Looks like this project will finally be completed....

-------------

Nandi Mandela to pay
Bongani Mthembu
October 02 2008 at 11:36AM

Former president Nelson Mandela's granddaughter, Nandi Mandela, and five businessmen will soon be forced to repay Ithala Bank millions of rands they borrowed to finance one of Durban's Point Waterfront development projects.

Dolphin Whispers directors - Mandela, Henry Masinga, Vaughn Charles, Marcel Henry, Rajen Naidoo and Craig Simmer - took a R48-million loan in 2005 to build the plush apartment block.

In March, the Daily News reported that the directors of the development were set to lose millions after serious defects in construction had caused the structure to skew. Construction of the 10-storey building had already stopped when Dolphin Whispers was liquidated last year. The company directors failed to furnish the bond holder (Ithala Bank) with additional guarantees.

Although Ithala Bank plans to complete construction of the building and then sell it, the cost of construction has increased because of delays and structural defects.

Mandela and her co-directors would have to repay millions of rands even after Ithala sold the development, the bank said.

Ithala Bank CEO Ike Nxedlana said they would soon instruct their legal team to recover the money that Nandi Mandela and her co-directors owed to the bank.

In a marathon meeting on Tuesday, the Ithala Board ordered Nxedlana to come up with a final plan to deal with the issue of Dolphin Whispers.

Nxedlana said the decision on what would be done with the building would be taken early next week.

"The board will meet again tomorrow to finalise the whole thing. We have to move with lightning speed to resolve this issue," he said.

He said the board was likely to complete construction of the building and then sell it.

"Selling the building as it is now will be riskier, because property markets are depressed at the moment. We want to pay out all smaller creditors so that the building will belong to the bank. They are willing to be paid out," he said.

Nxedlana said they would soon start looking for strategic partners who would work with the bank to finish the building.

Dolphin Whispers directors were not available for comment on Wednesday.

The construction of the building began in 2005 and the contractor was Prainder Civils and Earthworks CC.

Refused

In March this year, Pietermaritzburg liquidator Kurt Knoop said that in 2007 the architect and an engineer had refused to sign a certificate for the project, after serious structural defects were found.

Late in 2007, litigation between Dolphin Whispers and Prainder Civils and Earthworks CC began and eventually the contract was terminated. Knoop said in November last year another contractor, Dezzo Projects, was appointed to correct all serious structural defects of the building.

"Dezzo Projects has also stopped working because there is no money to pay staff and to finance the remaining construction needed to complete the project," he said.

Knoop assured buyers who had paid deposits that they would not lose out on the deal.

The building is expected to be completed by July next year.

This article was originally published on page 1 of Daily News on October 02, 2008

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20081002105750196C711773

I am glad this one is heading towards completion... It was starting to feel more like Dolphin Whimpers (pardon the horrible pun).

They got some major work to do there.

They got some major work to do there.

Do you have any progress pics of this building and where it stands now?

Is this project still "On Hold"?

it is being finalised by Ithala at present with completion planned for 2009

That's good to know. Is Ithala a development agency of the provincial government that has bailed out the developers including Madiba's grand-daughter who was a partner in it.

they were funding it from the beginning. They will complete the development as it is worthless to them as is

Ah, now those are good news. So how many projects are going ahead at the point in the current pointing time?

Bits relevant to Dolphin Whispers in bold. Methinks it may be more viable to turn this into an office / commercial development.

-----------

R80m Ithala loans unlikely to be recovered
Sipho Khumalo
October 14 2009 at 08:18AM


Submit your comment
Nearly R80 million in loans and advances from the publicly funded Ithala Development Bank seem irrecoverable, in respect of results prepared for its 2008/09 financial year.

Moreover, several projects funded by Ithala's subsidiary, the KZN Growth Fund, have been spectacular failures, having guzzled well over R88m.

These were among disclosures to the provincial standing committee on public accounts made in Pietermaritzburg yesterday by Ithala CEO Sipho Shabalala.

The latest figures bring Ithala's total of loans at risk, some dating back to 1988, to about R700m. However, Shabalala said these figures did not mean the loans were irrecoverable, or that the bank was no longer trying to recover the debts.

The bank, which has been under fire in the past for making loans to those with political connections, says it is reviewing and tightening its lending policy.

Shabalala said the client-bank confidentiality clause meant the bank could not to reveal debtors' names.

Referring to the KZN Growth Fund, he said: "Projects we funded have been performing very, very badly. Only one project has redeemed itself and has started performing well, but three are performing badly."

Committee members were angry that the fund's directors had been paid huge performance bonuses, despite the bad performance of the projects.

The DA's John Steenhuisen was concerned about the revelations concerning the fund.

"The failure of all but one project indicates that there is something seriously wrong with the criteria being used to provide loan finance and to monitor and control the progress of these projects. Despite the fact that the fund cites job-creation as one of its key objectives, the DA seriously doubts whether any real work opportunities have been created outside a small circle of company executives. The DA has also questioned the future viability of the fund."

Meanwhile, investigations are under way to determine why staff exceeded a loan benchmark of R15m in respect of the R85m loan to developers of the Dolphin Whispers building, at Durban's Point, which has proved a flop.

Ithala was now stuck with a property that was structurally defective and would cost a further R75m to put into a desirable state.

Shabalala said Ithala was exploring several options to get rid of the property and recover its investment, including putting it on the market. Alternatively, the building would be turned into an office block, but this would cost a further R25m.

"Walking away from the project does not seem to help," he said, adding that it might be turned into an office block to accommodate Ithala subsidiaries now renting space elsewhere.

Committee chairman Mike Tarr dubbed Ithala the government's "sorry saga".

Ithala was investigating whether it could prosecute staff responsible for approving the Dolphin Whispers loan.

The bank was also investigating 103 fraud cases, with 41 being completed.

"A total of 23 disputed withdrawals and deposit cases were investigated. There were cases of bank accounts being opened fraudulently, that were reported to internal audit. There was one case of money laundering reported to internal audit," the bank said to the committee.

The Ithala Development Finance Corporation Limited was formed by promulgation of the KwaZulu-Natal Ithala Development Finance Corporation Act on March 2, 1999, the successor to the KwaZulu Finance Corporation.

Its objectives were to mobilise finances and provide financial and support services to the people of KwaZulu-Natal; finance and monitor implementation of development projects; assist in development of the province's human resources and its social, economic, financial and physical infrastructure; promote private sector investment and the participation of private sector and community organisations in development projects; and to act as the government's agent in performing development-related tasks.

This article was originally published on page 1 of The Mercury on October 14, 2009

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=13&art_id=vn20091014080210681C965937&set_id=

Juzzy does your dads contacts at Ithala know anything about this?

Juzzy does your dads contacts at Ithala know anything about this?

my dad is the property manager at Ithala... no need for contacts...:)will ask him when i get home

wicked, lol

Turning into offices for Ithala Development Corp's business units would be the most viable potion as the residential market has crashed with little prospect of it improving over the next 12 months. No one would want the property if offered on auction especially one that would require R75 million to complete the unfinished building. The only other option would be to tear it down as it is an eyesore and a haven for crime.

Haven for crime? Not quite. Have you been to the area? I live within 100 m of it and it certainly not a "haven for crime" (security is excellent in the area). Eyesore? Yes, 10,000% agree. I also concur that an office component will be preferable.

100% office block? I doubt there will be 1 in the area, so could be a prime building if converted.

so here's the 411 from my dad... ithala have now said that they plan to move their head office to the biulding

so here's the 411 from my dad... ithala have now said that they plan to move their head office to the biulding

FANTASTIQUE news!! Will help bring more restaurants etc to the area to service the offices there. Will finally mean the end of this.

http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc160/ja65sin/IMG_5765.jpg



Any idea on timeline, Juzzy?

Thats actually really awesome....

Also how cool will it be having those as offices if they're kitted out properly.. :)

Any idea on timeline, Juzzy?

ill get him to find out...its not definite...but i know the proposed move means there umlazi offices would close down... but i think they have even huger problems then dolphin whispers if you guys have looked at the newspapers lately...

^^lol, my mates works for that other company , its shocking to see how much money that guy has, rocks up to work everyday in either a Maserati GT, Ferrari F430, Ferrari 599 or Lamborghini LP560

Looks like we finally have a timeline on the conversion of this eyesore from residential to commercial. But for the offices to be ready to be moved in by early next year, construction will have to recommence sometime later this year.

-------------

Ithala's white elephant woes
March 22 2010 at 07:49AM
By Sipho Khumalo
Political Staff

The publicly funded Ithala Development Bank is back in the dog box, with KwaZulu-Natal MPLs demanding answers about two failed projects which have guzzled well over R150 million and could cost millions more to rescue.

One of the projects, the Dolphin Whispers building in Durban's Point precinct, was funded by the bank to the tune of R85m, but is a sorry sight among the other plush, newly constructed buildings in the area.

Ithala was now stuck with a property that would take a further R75m to be put into a desirable state, the legislature's economic development committee heard last week.

Structurally defective, the building presents a challenge for the embattled Ithala, which wants to recover its investment.

The committee was also told that the second project, a residential development by Zee Net Trading cc, which was extended a R66m loan by Ithala, had also bombed.

The project, at Salt Rock, on the North Coast, was abandoned by the developers before it was finished.

According to the Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office, Zee Net's directors are Mandlakayise Solomon Mkhabela, of Umlazi, and Mahipal Ramlal, of La Mercy.

Ithala was granted judgment against Zee Net in July last year and the sale in execution was scheduled for January 10, 2010. An offer of R22m was received, a third of what Ithala had originally loaned.

Unlike Zee Net, the developers of Dolphin Whispers had a higher profile and apparent political connections.

They included former president Nelson Mandela's granddaughter, Nandi Mandela, and five Durban businessmen - Henry Masinga, Vaughn Charles, Marcel Henry, Rajen Naidoo and Craig Simmers.

The company was liquidated after it ran into financial difficulty.

But now MPLs on the committee are demanding answers about what went wrong and whether Ithala will ever be able to recover the money invested. Investigations are also under way to determine why staff exceeded a loan benchmark of R15m in granting the R85m loan to the Dolphin Whispers' developers.

Briefing the committee, Ithala CEO Sipho Shabalala said several options to get rid of the property and recover the investment, including putting it on the market, had been explored.

However, Ithala had decided to turn the building into an office block, which would include its offices.

Shabalala said the relocation from Umlazi to the building was only expected to take place early next year.

To ensure that there were usable offices for Ithala in Dolphin Whispers would cost at least R25m.

"Walking away from the project does not seem to help," Shabalala said.

On the Zee Net development, Shabalala said the property went on auction, but an offer of only R22m was received.

However, having invested R66m, Ithala believed it was improper to sell it at that price, Shabalala said.

"We have decided to take it over as stock and wait for the right moment to sell it off."


This article was originally published on page 1 of The Mercury on March 22, 2010



http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=6&art_id=vn20100322044934255C772357

The positive is that there will be substantial office component to the canals now

The big problem is how wrecklessly these guys have been dishing out loans

Those are good news Roman. Some how I wish that the point could be turnout into an exclusive street level 'mall' wich consist of the likes of Gucci, Louis Vitton, BVLGARI, Versace, Paul Smith, Hermes, Calvin Klein, David Tlale, House of Ole' etc...

^^ i do not see that calibre of brands taking any strip anywhere in SA any time soon. Look how much of a flop the "international store strip" at the V&A in Cape Town has been.

^^ sad but I guess CT bcame a problem as a result of recession.

Finally some answers on this eye sore, I still think they need to get a team of structural engineers to conduct tests on the structure.

Tuesday May 18, 2010
KZN to rescue development projects that need millions

The embattled Ithala Bank has launched moves to rescue two failed projects that have guzzled more than R130 million and need several millions more to save them.

The two are the Dolphin Whispers residential development in Durban's Point area - funded to the tune of R83.4 million and which came to a halt owing to poor workmanship and project management - and a residential project developed by Zee Net Trading, which was funded for R55.2m.

Economic Development MEC Mike Mabuyakhulu said moves were afoot to rescue the projects, which had been taken over by the KwaZulu-Natal government-owned finance agency. This paved the way for the resumption of construction work on the projects. He said Ithala would put the Dolphin Whispers work out to tender next week and its reconstruction would take about a year.

The building, which was initially intended for residential use, would be turned into an office block with Tourism KwaZulu-Natal, Ithala and Trade and Investment KwaZulu-Natal set to move in once it was completed.

It was initially reported that the structurally defective project would need a further R75m to be rehabilitated. However, it would cost R25m to turn it into an office block instead of residential flats. Among those behind Dolphin Whispers were former president Nelson Mandela's granddaughter, Nandi Mandela, and five Durban businessmen - Henry Masinga, Vaughn Charles, Marcel Henry, Rajen Naidoo and Craig Simmers.

Mabuyakhulu said that the Zee Net project, a residential project at Salt Rock on the North Coast, had been taken over by Ithala after being abandoned by its developers before its completion.

"The main reason the development was bought back was to attend to its completion and recover money from the sales," he said. "This assumption is based on the fact that the property market is on the incline and would have improved significantly by the time the development is completed."

According to the Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office, Zee Net's directors are Mandlakayise Solomon Mkhabela, of Umlazi, and Mahipal Ramlal, of La Mercy.

The Mercury


Posted at 08:46AM May 18, 2010 by Editor in Commercial


http://www.iolproperty.co.za/roller/news/entry/kzn_to_rescue_development_projects

^^ good to see some movement...

Yip, so who is the Architects on this Project?

^^ read the begining of the thread... Stefan Antoni...it was already up to roof level anyway

O, Sorry...

So if they have already started construction, who are the contractors?

^^ read the begining of the thread... Stefan Antoni...it was already up to roof level anyway

Stefan Antoni not the Architects anymore... They were the Architects back when the first developers wanted to do this development...

^^ well i would really doubt that they would not continue with the original architects since the building basically stopped at top out level

On another topic, I am actually very happy that there is going to be a major office component in the Waterfront soon, as a result of this development. Will likely spur supporting infrastructure (more restaurants etc), and will also stimulate the Point residential development market too (the hundreds of middle and upper income execs and office workers will have to live somewhere; what better than to stay at the Point itself, within walking distance of home? The lower-middle income workers will have options in the central CBD). I also suspect that this new development will make the People Mover stop at Timeball Tower more sustainable too.

^^ also dont forget the East Point 3000m2 commercial development about to be underway and then the "superblock" with prob in the region 10000m2 of commercial space

I hope East Point have already secured tenants or are confident of doing so.

The superblock will hopefully go ahead but its future is more murky with the threat of possible legal challenge re: SCH looming. The developers may not want to proceed until they have certainty the challenge is dead / matter has been settled.

^^ the superblock is in no way connected to the sch as it fronts the beach area which will remain and not the sch portion

No idea on East point tenants

^^ well i would really doubt that they would not continue with the original architects since the building basically stopped at top out level

Okay. I will double check...

Stefan Antoni not the Architects anymore... They were the Architects back when the first developers wanted to do this development...

Spoke to one of the Architects. Told me that they are not involved in this project anymore. Have not been for a while. (that is what he said....)

More confirmation that this is going ahead...

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Troubled Durban Building To Be Rescued
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
By Siyabonga Ntshingila

An unfinished Point Waterfront property development will now be converted into an office block after the intervention of the KZN provincial government.

The Daily News reports that the Dolphin Whispers development, backed by several local luminaries, which had stalled after problems with workmanship and legal disputes, will be converted into an office development, with a residential component next door with several government units the likely tenants.

The building which was stalled with just seven of the proposed ten storeys built, ran into trouble after allegation of shoddy workmanship surfaced, along with an engineer and an architect on the project refused to sign off key legal documents relating to the soundness of the structure.

Mike Mabuyakhulu, KZN MEC for Economic Development and Tourism said earlier this year, that the revamp would cost around R100 million with R75 million going into fixing the defects on the structure. The balance would be for the conversion to an office block. The company, since liquidated, that developed the building loaned its funds from Ithala Bank who are believed to be keen on using the office space to be developed.
Eurocape Holdings have been appointed to handle the project. The project is now awaiting capital expenditure approvals from the board and the approval of plans by the eThekwini Municipality.

http://www.newstime.co.za/Propertynews/Troubled_Durban_Building_To_Be_Rescued/11974/

Hope they change the name!

^^ great to see its the name that you worry about.

Interesting to see Eurocape getting involved...

well i can confirm that Ithala will not be using the building for its offices anymore...

because??

When i spoke to my father a month back he mentioned the fact that no money was available for the project to finish and so they canceled the move, but after chatting to my father again since the new news he has now said that in light of the new developments, the move may still be on

whats happening with iThala and that dodgy Uruguayan oke from CT? I heard his liquidating his company there.

whats happening with iThala and that dodgy Uruguayan oke from CT? I heard his liquidating his company there.

i will find Out DB...i dont think he is the only dodgy guy involved with Ithala:ohno:

lol, sad but true. We done with our stuff in iSithebe so doubt we'll be working with them again.