Mall to change face and image of Alex

A major development milestone is evolving in Tsutsumani next to the N3 highway which will change the landscape and help profile the legacy of Alexandra.

The Alex Mall will take 18 months to be completed at a cost of half a billion rand. It will overlook Alexandra and have a view of the Sandton and Joburg CBD skyscrapers.

Mpho Motsumi, president of the Greater Alexandra Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which initiated the project, said the idea for a mall was to add meaning to Alex’s rich history which was often overshadowed by negative perceptions of the township as only being crime ridden.

“It will incorporate arts and cultural exhibitions profiling the township’s heritage, in turn making for a tourist attraction,” Motsumi said. This he said would be in addition to more than 100 planned retail shops reserved for Alex entrepreneurs alongside major anchor supermarkets.

“This is in order to promote local ownership of the place and for entrepreneurs to generate and retain the local economy which could be further invested for other local developments.”

Motsumi added that the mall was linked with the city council’s vision to develop townships into self-sustaining areas to influence social and economic autonomy. This would involve the taxi industry, local manufacturing and small-scale vending and trading operators who may develop to be major suppliers and service providers to the shops and its customers.

Motsumi indicated that with Alex located in a prime area near the economic hub of Sandton, it attracted migration which could help the mall grow the local economy and generate employment. This in addition to 800 mostly local workers and subcontractors during the construction phase and a further 2 000 to be employed by the shops when the mall begins operation. The construction phase is expected to also contribute to upscaling skills of local subcontractors who will partner with big mall development and construction companies.

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