Major Facelift for Warner Beach, Durban

Warner Beach is about to receive a facelift as part of Durban’s coastal regeneration programme.

eThekwini Municipality has earmarked the 6km strip of land, with its breathtaking ocean views and eco-tourism potential, as a prime strip of land to be upgraded and maintained to take advantage of its diverse attributes.

Derek White, the urban development manager with the eThekwini Municipality, describes the Warner Beach area as “a gem” and “a hidden treasure” highlighting the projects aim to “create a marine sporting and leisure lover’s paradise”.

“There is a real potential for the hospitality industry, but it is not particularly well developed at the moment,” He said.

The city’s economic development unit has commissioned the architects department to develop and package the project, whose urban design framework plan will encompass Doonside, Warner Beach and Winklespruit as well as the N2 freeway and Ilova Estuary.

“We know the potential of Umhlanga, but we don’t yet know the full potential of Warner Beach, and that is what we want to find out,” said Nardus van Heerden, project leader and strategic development manager with the city architects department.

The programme, although still in concept phase, will include landscaping, signage improvement, dune rehabilitation and new traffic lights, circles and parking areas to improve access to the area. Possible advantages the railway line affords are also being investigated.

The project, with its many developments, is expected to be rolled out over the course of the next three to five years.

Source: www.iol.co.za