KAMPALA | The New Kingdom Kampala

[u.g boy]

New Shimoni land owner revealed
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The construction site of the five-star hotel at Shimoni. PHOTO BY YUSUF MUZIRANSA.

By Walter Wafula (email the author)
Posted Saturday, December 11 2010 at 00:00
Kampala

Mr Ashish Thakker, the real estate entrepreneur behind Kensington Luxury Homes in Uganda and the Kensington Krystal Tower in Dubai, is the new owner of the Shimoni land in Kampala.

The land was originally owned by the government and housed Shimoni Demonstration Primary School. But in 2006, the school was demolished and relocated to Kololo, to give way for the construction of a five- star hotel for Chogm in 2007. Mr Thakker, 29, is among the initial group of 100 space tourists booked on the Virgin Galactic space ship.

Mr Thakker, also the chief executive officer Kensington Real Estate, paid $200,000 (about Shs456 million) to sign up for the luxury flight. He owns the Mara Group with subsidiaries including, Raps and Railey Media and Packaging in Uganda.
His company Azure Holdings, a subsidiary of the Kensington Group in Uganda, has started the construction of a five-star hotel on the Shimoni land.

In an interview on Thursday, Dr Maggie Kigozi, the executive director Uganda Investment Authority, said Azure acquired the Shimon piece of land from Kingdom Holdings in Dubai which failed to put up a hotel at the prime city location. “Kingdom Holdings paid $2 million for the land and I think they paid slightly over that,” Dr Kigozi said, estimating the cost at about $2.6 million (about Shs6 billion). Dr Kigozi said the project was authorised by the Minister of Finance last year and will attract investment of up to $80 million (Shs182 billion).

Kensington plans to add an urban commercial centre that will rival the Oasis and Garden City shopping malls, at the venue. According to details on the artistic impression erected on Nile Avenue, Azure plans to construct a hotel with 34 floors and 250 luxury rooms.

The building will be the second tallest building in East Africa after Kenya’s Times Tower. The ground will also be home to Kampala’s largest conventional centre and will have parking space for 1,500 vehicles. When Daily Monitor visited the site yesterday, excavation work for the construction of the underground parking had been halted.

“Some external problems with KCC and the ministry have to be sorted out first,” a source at the site who is not authorised to speak on behalf of project said. But Dr Maggie said Azure has been in talks with the National Water and Sewerage Corporation to find a way of shifting water pipes at the location.

In Dubai, Kensington is setting up the Kensington Krystal, a corporate office building with 60,000 square meters of space. The 36-storey tower, which is valued at Shs433 billion, is scheduled for completion in 2012.

the project has changed and been talked over for years but construction has properly staretd and the plan is to have a 34 storey hotel with a conventional centre and shopping will public park etc.

[kihihi]

After Kingdom kampala is built followed by redevelopment of Naguru estates plus the recent plans by police to sell off the Nsambya barracks, Kampala's skyline will begin looking proper and more advanced.

[Geza Ulole]

can you get more pics pls

[u.g boy]

Originally Posted by Geza Ulole

can you get more pics pls

not really cos kingdom Kampala website is still u/c . all the other renders are of the old design too sorry. i will try though

[u.g boy]

Originally Posted by kihihi

After Kingdom kampala is built followed by redevelopment of Naguru estates plus the recent plans by police to sell off the Nsambya barracks, Kampala's skyline will begin looking proper and more advanced.

don't forget kakungulu satellite city just outside Kampala,mapera house,pension tower, Kampala Hilton and the many structure under construction in nakasero and kololo.

[woodzor]

the hotel tower of the project

Our website will be updated before the end of this year. www.fbwgroup.com

[tanzan]

wow! beautiful...I like the design...it goes well with Kampala environs

[Kenguy]

Finally. I've been waiting for this project to start.

[Baganda]

Originally Posted by tanzan

wow! beautiful...I like the design...it goes well with Kampala environs

Kenguy me too, they say its going to be the second largest tower East africa after Kenyaz TIMES TOWER

[Geza Ulole]

to be fair enough that building looks like a box to me! nothing of a creativeness...

[Ras Siyan]

Nice, it suits Kampala's environment...

[Baganda]

Originally Posted by Geza Ulole

to be fair enough that building looks like a box to me! nothing of a creativeness...

to u only...

[Geza Ulole]

Originally Posted by Baganda

to u only...

Imagine UN Headquarters were built 65 years back and today a building still resembles the design. I advice the owners to change the look and have more magnificient styleslike the Serena Hotel in kampala

[Geza Ulole]

Originally Posted by Baganda

to u only...

Imagine UN Headquarters were built 65 years back and today a building still resembles the design. I advice the owners to change the look and have more magnificient style like the Serena Hotel in kampala. Nowasays we have glass and steal towers of different shapes

[u.g boy]

new renders for the site
the site will host a 34 storey hotel and many offer facilities.
KINGDOM KAMPALA
URBAN MASTERPLAN

Location:Kampala, Uganda
Client:Kingdom Kampala Ltd.
Other consultants:Landmark Studios (Landscape)Arup (Transport & Security)
Gross area: 245,000m2
Project status:Construction

master plan renders




retail and office park renders










kingdom Kampala Hotel details
Location: Kampala, Uganda
Design/Completion: 2010/2013
Site Area: 25,376 sq.m
Gross Floor Area: 41,864 sq.m

Sited on the crest of a hill in the heart of Kampala the new 30 storey, 320 room Intercontinental Hotel will be one of a number of proposed high rise structures set to transform the image of the capital city of Uganda.

The hotel will include extensive convention facilities and will be part of a mixed use development which also includes commercial offices and upscale retail.

The hotel will be linked to the commercial office and retail elements by landscaped pedestrian pathways and cascading water features.

The hotel tower will contain a mix of accommodation as well as 30 serviced apartments for long stay guests. An executive lounge, fine dining restaurant and a sky terrace on the uppermost level of the hotel offer guests unparalleled and breathtaking views toward Lake Victoria to the south and the city to the north.

The Architectural language, whilst broadly International, echoes local architecture, reinforced by the use of local African colours and textures on exterior surfaces.

The open spaces around the hotel, in particular between the hotel and convention centre, will be extensively landscaped. An innovative use of green wall technology will be applied to the hotel tower to soften the appearance of the structure and define the grand arrival terrace for the hotel and convention centre.

hotel and convection centre renders

[Kam Anu]

Originally Posted by Geza Ulole

to be fair enough that building looks like a box to me! nothing of a creativeness...

Why are u always negative? can u stop ths type of thinking..........from the way u talk, am sure uv done very little or no travelling in East Africa amd even ya own country, the whole of East Africa is progressing and Kampala is such a beautiful city....TAKE A WALK AND UL C WONDERS

[Geza Ulole]

Originally Posted by Kam Anu

Why are u always negative? can u stop ths type of thinking..........from the way u talk, am sure uv done very little or no travelling in East Africa amd even ya own country, the whole of East Africa is progressing and Kampala is such a beautiful city....TAKE A WALK AND UL C WONDERS

distinguish being negative and the truth my statement represents!

[Mintali]

Originally Posted by Geza Ulole

distinguish being negative and the truth my statement represents!

Maybe the statement could be right if it were coming from the mouth of someone from Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai or Doha coz to them........well its true the Kampala structures are down - to them, BUT for someone from Dar, Dodoma or any other such city! Oh ma God! what better structures have u seen there good enough to make u view Kampala as trash? Looser, remember if I asked u to post a photo of a modern structure from Tz right here, I could post you two better ones from Nairobi or even Kampala!

[Simfan34]

That looks really nice.

[Geza Ulole]

Originally Posted by Mintali

Maybe the statement could be right if it were coming from the mouth of someone from Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai or Doha coz to them........well its true the Kampala structures are down - to them, BUT for someone from Dar, Dodoma or any other such city! Oh ma God! what better structures have u seen there good enough to make u view Kampala as trash? Looser, remember if I asked u to post a photo of a modern structure from Tz right here, I could post you two better ones from Nairobi or even Kampala!

you sound childish, it seems what you do is going around all my comments to score a point! just grow up! My comment was all by good faith i even gave an example of serena hotel in Kampala to be a more appealing work to me and likely minded than that box structure and ended up suggesting of more creativity on designing towers as an architecture myself! by the way how is Kibera?