Riviera Road and Killarney Avenue
Johannesburg, Transvaal (Gauteng ["how-ting"]) Province, South Africa
Africa's first mall-type shopping complex was built in the northern environs of Johannesburg. Development of the site was initiated by Isadore W. Schlesinger, an American insurance-real estate tycoon and media mogul.
Schlesinger acquired 103 acres, located 2 miles north of the central city, and created Killarney, an upper-class, residential suburb. 13.4 acres were utilized for the offices and works of African Film Productions, Limited. The Killarney Film Studios opened for business in 1916 and were soon established as the nation's preeminent motion picture production facility.
Schlesinger passed away in 1949, with his son John taking control of the business enterprise. In the mid-1960s, a section of the studio lot was redeveloped as a small, open-air shopping mall. KILLARNEY CENTRE was built under the auspices of John Schlesinger's Townview Estates realty company. Designed by modernist architect Monty Sack, the complex encompassed 3 levels. The middle floor contained retail stores and sidewalk cafes, all fronting on a large, open court. An upper floor housed leased office spaces.
The mall conveyed an informal, village-like ambience. It was anchored by a dual-level Woolworths variety store and included a bakery, butcher shop, coffee shop, public library and post office. A 5-storey-high Clock Tower stood in the open court.
The first of many expansions enlarged the retail hub over the entirety of the 13-acre site. The Killarney Film Studios were relocated 2 miles northeast, with the original facility being demolished. A South Wing, and Checkers supermarket, were added to the mall along with an East Wing. This housed a 4-storey Office Tower. The entirety of the complex was enclosed and climate-controlled, which required demolition of the Clock Tower.
When the 12 million rand renovation was completed in 1972, KILLARNEY MALL encompassed approximately 150,700 leasable square feet. Its newly-enlarged car park could accommodate nearly 1,000 autos. The De Villiers Graaff (M1) Motorway, under construction since 1962, was extended to the vicinity of KILLARNEY MALL, with an adjacent section opening to traffic in 1972.
Now a so-called "minor regional centre," KILLARNEY MALL would find it difficult to compete with the super-sized shopping hubs that were being built on the outskirts of "Jo'burg." The first of these was SANDTON CITY {3.9 miles north}, which opened -in 1973- with 538,200 leasable square feet. ROSEBANK MALL {1.4 miles northwest} began business in 1976. Next came EASTGATE CENTRE {3.9 miles east}, which was dedicated in 1979, and WESTGATE CENTRE {12 miles west}, whose first stores opened in 1985.
KILLARNEY MALL was acquired by a joint venture of Louis Milner and Mike Garvin, who created an entity known as Killarney Properties to manage the shopping hub. A 50 million rand renovation and expansion got underway in the late 1990s. During this project, a Southeast Wing was added, which included Lower and Upper Levels. These were linked via a set of escalators in a domed Rotunda. A Lower ("Banking Mall") Level housed the 5-screen Nu Metro Theatres megaplex.
Existing store spaces and shopping concourses were reconfigured. Moreover, the south end supermarket, now operating as a Pick 'n Pay, was enlarged into a 1-level (57,700 square foot) operation. KILLARNEY MALL now encompassed approximately 400,200 leasable square feet. The facility housed ninety-seven stores and services, as well as several office, medical and dental tenants.
The renovation continued into the 21st century, with the north end of the complex being reconfigured. A multilevel car park, the Riviera Road Parkade, was built. A mall-connected Toyota dealership, petrol service station and 1-level (22,400 square foot) Clicks Pharmacy were built.
Killarney Properties sold the mall in April 2001. A joint venture of Pretoria-based Octodec Investments and Gold Edge Properties assumed ownership and enlisted Pretoria's City Property as a leasing and managing agent. The new proprietors started a refurbishment and expansion in September 2004. Over 59,000 square feet of new retail area was added as part of the 90 million rand project. Moreover, new signage, lighting, lifts and restrooms were installed, with shopping concourses being totally refurbished.
The existing Clicks pharmacy was relocated into a 1-level (9,063 square foot) store, which opened in April 2005. The original location was expanded with a second floor. It re-opened, as a 2-level (46,300 square foot) Edgars, on October 27, 2005. Burnham's, Mr. Price Home, and Indigo were also relocated. Newly-added stores included High Fidelity, @ Home, Chinese Supermarket and Donna by Marco Adamo.
A second parking structure, the Killarney Avenue Parkade, was built along the west side of the complex. Upon its completion, in November 2005, the mall's parking accommodations had been expanded to 1,400 spaces. The Woolworths was also enlarged into a 1-level (52,500 square foot) store.
KILLARNEY MALL now encompassed around 505,300 leasable square feet. This figure took in the mall's 117,300 square feet of leased office space. There were 100 retail stores, fifty-five office suites and fifteen medical and dental practices.
A 7 million rand face lift was done between November 2010 and July 2011. The exterior of the complex was refurbished, new roofing installed and the existing movie theatre remodeled and renamed. It re-opened, as the Avalon Group CineCentre, in May 2011. The new theatre was a state-of-the-art, 3D and Dolby Sound venue.
Sources:
http://www.sahistory.org.za / "A History of the South African Film Industry timeline 1895-2003"
http://imaginemag.co.za / "Killarney Film Studios, Johannesburg's First Motion Picture Industry Giant" / Deborah Painter
"Urban Continuum" / Tahira Toffa
http://sandtoncity.com/history-of-the-centre.htm
http://www.eastgateshops.com
http://www.westgate.co.za
https://www.leadingarchitecture.co.za
https://www.iol.co.za
https://www.eprop.co.za / "The Refurbished & Refreshed Killarney Mall Is Complete" / October 2005
https://www.eprop.co.za / "Revamping Killarney Mall" / May 2011
http://killarneymall.co.za
https://www.octodec.co.za / Octodec Investments, Limited
https://www.gautrain.co.za / Gautrain Management Agency
