Project Category: Landscape Architecture Project of the Year
Project Name: Court Crescent Beach front Project
Location & Context: Quigney, East London
Size: 15 000sqm
Timeline: Completion 2024
Built Cost: Landscape Value: R90mil
Teams Involved:
Client for Consortium: Buffalo City Municipality Development Agency (BCMDA)
Project Manager & Engineers: Nala Consortium Construction
Irrigation Specialist: Controlled Irrigation
Concrete Specialist for Sculpture: Gallo Precast
Water Feature Specialist: PoolSpa & Filtration Supplies
Contractor: TEFLA Group
Material used:
* Bosun paving
* Corobrik paving & bricks
* Gallo Concrete for the Manufacturing of the Sculpture
* BEKA Schréder External Lighting
* Waterwise & Local Soft Landscaping

Project Overview
The project is located on the Main Beach front area of East London in the Eastern Cape. The site originally consisted of a main beach front roadway and an open grassed area and there was a sizable fall across the site towards the Indian Ocean.

Insite designed the entire space based on the client requirements for an outdoor seating area and events space coupled with hawker facilities. We looked at the program requirements of the space as well as sun studies and designed the space accordingly. Challenges included; extreme easterly and south-westerly winds, as well as the possibility of vandalism.

The project was designed at a macro scale to form a comprehensive picture from above and also to include many exciting elements within. The patterning of the retaining structures of the amphitheatre reflect the waves and ‘hold’ the entire precinct together. The stage reflects the sun and the hawker stall zone is almost like a ships bow piercing the ocean.

The design is splashed with smaller vignettes including: an outdoor gym, a children’s play area, a directional compass on the stage, and hawker stalls. There is also a grand Southern Right Whale sculpture which acts as both an educational aspect – as they are seen from time to time from the site – also as a draw card.

Heritage is very evident in the design. The old historic tram tracks were found under the existing tar road and these are now showcased in the final design with the tramlines being accentuated and celebrated.

Landscape challenges included designing for the very harsh Oceanside environment.

The park is currently used very well and is a community asset that features on Social media.