What is really slowing down the project is that they have to reclaim all the land from the sea and they spend alot of time and money doing so. To be honest, at the time this project was planned back in 2005-6 there was plenty of Virgin land just east in lekki with beach front property. They could have bought the same size of land in lekki and we would have alot more skyscrapers today. What percentage of the land reclamation is complete? 50%? Because if you look at just how quick they built the infrastructure on the complete parts, just imagine how quick they could have done this project on virgin land.
^^ “A virgin land” doesn’t mean that it isn’t owned by some community. There’s really no clear alternative. If land reclamation wasn’t there, there’s going to be hassles of resettlements and compensations and lawsuits. Just look at Centenary city. It battled just that from 2014 to 2018. Also, Eko Atlantic actually started out as a means to reclaim eroded land.
IMO, Eko Atlantic will never face “lack of development” as it is being alluded here. In the worst case scenario, we are going to end up with another expanse of land filled with flat housing estates. When that happens, then that’s the pointer that Eko Atlantic has failed.
Dont get me wrong, Eko Atlantic will get developments and more projects as time goes on. It is not a white elephant by any means. But in reality, the cost to dredge and sandfill that large amount of open sea is waaaaay more expensive than buying out open land that communities already owned. It gets even more expensive when you account for lost revenues for potential developments, as the dredging is still going on 10 years later and is still around 50% completion. Especially since this project was concepted around 2005 when Lekki property prices were way cheaper.
Without the reclamation, large parts of VI, Oniru and even Lekki would be eroded or eroding. That's the real 'price' (not cost) of the project. Even without developing a 'city' thereto, massive reclamation would still have been necessary.
Then they should of just did that (reclaimed the land) without the bloated fantasy of building some unnecessary waste of a new Manhattan-esk city on it. A much more practical plan would of been as I've stated; developing a large riverfront park on it. That would of been a awesome, worthwhile and most importantly...feasible plan. No need to wait countless years for a bunch of phantom developers to come and spend an eternity to build a bunch of buildings on it, that could just as easily be built in VI, Lekki or hey.. (commonsense idea) the pre-existing commercial district of Lagos and Victoria Islands in which is badly in need of total redevelopment, because the skyline looks like crap.
It would of been just as cost effective for the gov. to start a program to allow investors the means to come in and buy out all of those old dilapidated low rise buildings in Lagos Island, so that the area can be redeveloped to look like what Eko Atlantic is planed to look like (Manhattan, Hong Kong like). If they had done that, along with the reclamation project for a new waterfront park to bolster the process, I think Lagos and Victoria Islands would be sprawling with construction of new commercial towers by now. EA as a new city concept is simply too high of a risk for most serious foreign investors looking to enter the Nigerian market.
The reconstruction of the pre-existing Lagos and Victoria Islands with a new large waterfront park would of been a much, much better sale, and progress would be much further along. Just my thoughts, but I know most of you guys are going to disagree with all of this. :lol:
Building a sea wall to stopping the erosion was necessary but reclaiming a large piece of land is not. They could have stopped the erosion with the same type of sea wall running along the beaches of Victoria island and Lekki. Let us not for mix up the two.
The reclamation was NECESSARY to recover land already lost to erosion and adequately protect Victoria Island.
Bar beach and most of Ahmadu Bello Road had already been eroded (in fact, half of Ahmadu Bello had been lost and driving was only confined to one side of the road), which meant that whenever it rained large swathes of VI was flooded, with water from the ocean advancing well into VI. So while the Wall was necessary to prevent further erosion, the reclamation was necessary to recover lost land. The two are thus INEXTRICABLY “mixed up”.
well the land is connected to one of africa;s biggest cities, so it holds value and reclaiming it makes economic sense. it also buys lagos time otherwise it'd make further loses. apparently this is standard ecological management in places like florida, which also add big $$ to the gdp.
Please stop posting about it on this Eko Atlantic.
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