Can the Nairobi city centre hold? Nairobi’s new sky-high headache 39-floor Hazina Trade Centre

Artist’s impression of the proposed Hazina Trade Centre.[PHOTOS: WILBERFORCE OKWIRI AND COURTESY/STANDARD]

By PETER MUIRURI

After a lull in real estate development within Nairobi’s Central Business District (CBD), activity is set to resume after the recent groundbreaking ceremony for what is slated to be the tallest building in the region.

The National Social Security Fund has commissioned the construction of 39-storey Hazina Trade Centre, a vertical extension of the existing building that houses Nakumatt Lifestyle on Monrovia Street.

Though the move is a positive indicator of the city’s rising status as a global investment destination, it has shifted attention to the city’s ability to provide the requisite infrastructure to support future developments of such magnitude.

The last few years have seen a number of local and international organisations give the city centre a wide berth by relocating to Upper Hill, Westlands, Ngong’ Road, Mombasa Road, Gigiri, Kilimani and Kileleshwa. Many are running away from the persistent traffic congestion, strained water supply, power and adequate parking spaces.

Lack of an elaborate master plan is largely to blame for this quagmire as the last one that came into effect in 1973, expired ten years ago. A new plan, being funded by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) at a cost of Sh300 million, is expected to be rolled out in April next year.

The deficiencies were acknowledged by Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero during the official opening of the first session of Nairobi City County assembly in April.

Capacity

“Our long list of challenges includes our current lack of capacity to manage solid waste, insufficient infrastructure development, and poor public transport and management system.... There is overwhelming demand for services without commensurate capacity to provide them. The challenges ahead of us are many, and in some ways tricky, but they are not insurmountable,” said Dr Kidero. 

Interestingly, the governor was the first to question the massive NSSF project in the city, citing safety concerns of those currently using the building or working in adjacent locations. Building industry experts say Nairobi — more so the city centre — has no choice but to make radical planning changes to retain its attractiveness in a region where other capitals such as Dar es Salaam, Kampala and Kigali are itching to get noticed.

They argue that even if the city was to shift to another location today, there would still be the expensive burden of laying down new infrastructure, hence the need to improve on what we already have.

According to the chairman of the Architectural Association of Kenya Waweru Gathecha, a city’s soul lies in its CBD and hence, must get the best treatment in terms of infrastructure development and service provision.

“No matter what happens, the CBD will always be here with us. We cannot wish it away by moving out and spreading the same problems elsewhere through urban sprawl. Building in a virgin location means we still have to lay down the prerequisite infrastructure at a higher cost than that of improving existing one. That can only mean an increase in your taxes to fund new infrastructure, not to mention further loss of the few open spaces left,” says Gathecha.

He says many cities that are centuries older than Nairobi, including New York, Tokyo and London, have managed to solve many of the infrastructure problems through radical initiatives such as underground and overhead rail and road systems.

Amenities

“As much as we marvel at a 39-storey building, some cities have buildings with more than 100 floors yet the amenities have continued to cope with the ever-increasing vertical growth. People enter and leave such buildings daily using elaborate transport system. Interestingly, new and taller structures keep cropping up in their CBDs. It is much better to copy best practices from the developed world and incorporate what will work in our local setting,” he says.

He adds that even some cities in less developed nations such as Brazil have managed to improve their city centres to the point of hosting international events like the World Cup, an affair preceded by a thorough inspection of a country’s urban infrastructure. Brasilia, the capital is known to host some of the world’s densely populated slums known as favelas.

Gatheca says we cannot afford to lose investment opportunities under the guise of the seemingly endless chaos in the CBD.

Urban planners, too, say Nairobi’s CBD must be re-planned to make maximum use of available space. For example, there are very old pre-colonial shops on Moi Avenue and Biashara Street sitting on prime land that could otherwise hold multiple high-rise buildings.

This, according to Mairura Omwenga, an urban planner, will make the CBD more competitive on a global scale.

“CBD is the heart of any city. Cities around the world are measured by how well planned the city centre is. No country ever runs away from confronting challenges in their respective CBD,” says Omwenga.

According to Omwenga, one of the main challenges facing the CBD is traffic congestion that can be sorted out through proper planning.

“It is true that adding highrise buildings such as the proposed Hazina Trade Centre will bring with them extra traffic to an already congested city centre. However, the city can come up with a transport policy that will make it possible for people to access highrise buildings without necessarily using motorised transport,” says Omwenga.

Outside the box

He says major world cities like Amsterdam have adopted the use of non-motorised transport like bicycles in an effort to unclog the city centre.

New York, London, Tokyo have both an underground and overhead transport systems that move millions in a day.

“Like Nairobi’s city centre, New York is built on a straight line, making it possible for a rail and road system to make use of space parallel to the buildings. Our city authorities must think outside the box if only for the city’s survival,” says Omwenga.

On the other hand, construction plans should clearly indicate how parking issues would be sorted out. Omwenga says that as a rule of thumb, there should be one parking space for every 80-100 square metres of office space. This would eliminate the current scenario where office workers and members of the public compete for the few parking lots.

He adds that our city is a baby compared to others in the world, a number of which have a population that is three times that of Nairobi, but enjoy efficient infrastructure.

Omwenga says that though it is advantageous to lay new infrastructure to open up undeveloped areas, this should not be done “at the expense of expanding existing one to support well established local and international businesses.”

He says that would be tantamount to moving the heart into the feet and expecting the rest of the body to work properly.

While planners agree that moving up is the way to go in the CBD due to space constraints, there are other unforeseen occurrences that should be anticipated and mitigated against.

“As much as Kenya is eager to join the league of tall cities in the world, this comes with other attendant problems, key among them being security. We should not forget that the worst terrorist actions of our time targeted The World Trade Centre in New York, then the tallest buildings in the western hemisphere,” says Omwenga.

And with more investors eyeing a piece of Nairobi’s CBD, the question is: Will the centre continue to hold?