New R200m Century City hotel ups room total to 600

THE 125 room Century City Hotel, the sixth hotel at Century City, opened in the precinct this week.

Built at a cost of R200 million next to the new Century City Conference Centre, the Century City Hotel will cater for business and leisure markets and brings to 600 the number of rooms now available in Century City.

Greg Deans, a director of Rabie Property Group, says the development was a response to the growing demand for hotel accommodation at Century City which is now home to more than 4 000 residential front doors and 500 businesses. The office component at Century City alone exceeds 300 000m2 – the third largest commercial precinct in Cape Town.

General manager of the new hotel, Walda Meyer, says it has been designed to be out of the ordinary with great empha- sis on room efficiencies for business and leisure travellers.

“The only thing traditional about it is the laundry chute.”

Among its features is a green wall with more than 3 500 living plants that forms a backdrop to the reception area.

Paolo Viotti of Vivid Architects, says every city should have at least one communal square that offers a dynamic, vibrant and safe environment for the public to enjoy.

“Century City Hotel is one of three buildings that now form the new Century City Square, a beautifully proportioned space that will offer users the opportunity to socialise, relax, dine and be entertained.”

He says the urban design and planning of this precinct has ensured and encouraged pedestrian connectivity and hierarchy of that over the motor vehicle, a comfortable and safe human environment and a seamless interface between building and square.

“The hotel architecture has employed the maximum use of glass at the ground floor plane to ensure transparency between inside and out while the developer’s brief has ensured that restaurants, coffee shops and hotel public areas spill out onto the square to ensure there is a constant buzz of activity, life and energy.”

Meyer says the multi-purpose Square Café and Wine Bar on the ground floor of the hotel have been designed to be part of the public square onto which they flow and to welcome hotel residents andnon-residents.

The square will host community and cultural events, and is fronted by the neighbouring Century City Conference Centre, offices, restaurants and apartments with this entire development representing a private equity investment of more than R1 billion.

TEAM WORK: In the reception area with the backdrop of a living wall comprising more than 3 500 plants are restaurant manager Winson Nyoni, hotel general manager Walda Meyer, executive housekeeper Michelle Presting and front office manager Michael...