Steyn City opens its gates to the public

STEYN CITY - The highly anticipated launch of the multi-billion rand Steyn City Lifestyle Resort took place on 10 March leaving the estate's gargantuan gates open for business.

March 11, 2015

Varushka Padayachi 1 minute read

CHEERS: David Makhura, Carolyn Steyn, Graca Machel, Giuseppe Plumari and Josina Z Machel toast to the opening of Steyn City and the memory of Nelson Mandela.

The launch played host to Gauteng premier David Makhura and former first lady and wife of the late Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel.

As explained by Machel, Douw Steyn and Mandela had a strong bond. Steyn and Mandela were introduced by members of the ANC after Mandela’s release from prison. Mandela lived in Steyn’s home, which subsequently became the Saxon Boutique Hotel, while he edited his novel A Long Walk to Freedom and drafted South Africa’s interim constitution.

Speaking at the launch Makhura praised public/private partnerships and said Steyn City was an example of this type of partnership in action.

When the previous inhabitants of the property, on which Steyn City is built, were relocated to Cosmo City and Diepsloot more than 10 years ago, provisions were put in place for job creation for those former residents and others. Since construction began on Steyn City, more than 11 500 people from neighbouring communities have been employed for the development.

Phase 2 of the development will inject in excess of R50 billion into the Gauteng economy.

At the launch, Machel commemorated the newly-named Mandela Park inside the development, by planting saplings that originated from the river bushwillow seeds that Madiba planted eight years ago at the official Steyn City groundbreaking ceremony.

Now that the resort has been launched, the public are invited to visit Steyn City by means of scheduled tours that can be booked on their website. The first tours will take place on 14 and 15 March.