From the Bar Beach has risen Eko Atlantic, which some 450,000 people are expected to make their home. The city’s ongoing development will boost Lagos State economy, MUYIWA LUCAS reports.
To stakeholders in the construction industry, the Eko Atlantic City (EAC) project remains the most talked about. At its conception in 2003, it seemed to many like a dream. But today, it has become one of the wonders of the world.
This is because the land area on which the city is built was, many years ago, part and parcel of Victoria Island, Lagos washed away by the Atlantic Ocean. Following the coastal erosion that posed a serious threat to Victoria Island and its environs, the need to safeguard the city from being submerged by the boisterous Atlantic Ocean became a priority to the state government and other stakeholders.
Various steps taken to protect the Bar Beach shoreline led to greater ideas that culminated in not only reversing the erosion, but reclaiming almost 10 square kilometres of land for a new, clean and eco-friendly city that ‘ll ease the pressure on Lagos, the biggest city in Africa’s fastest growing economy, and offer employment and opportunity to its 22 million residents.
Three years later, in 2006, dredging of the ocean with approximately 140 million tonnes of sand to be dredged. Industry sources say this volume is by far the largest land reclamation site in the world. Today, much progress has been made on the project which initially seemed like a white elephant.
As a permanent solution to the ocean surge, the developers of the project, South Energy Nigeria Limited (SENL), a subsidiary of the Chagoury Group, designed an eight kilometre (km) long barrier to keep the sea at bay. This has become known as the Great Wall of Lagos, built on the same place, known as the water’s edge about 100 years ago. The wall is piled about 15 metres high and capped with concrete accropodes, huge geometrical objects designed to resist waves on coastal structures. The city has its own factory manufacturing some of the materials required, like concrete.
The Eko Atlantic City is divided into 10 districts, known as Harbour Lights, Business District, Marina, Downtown, Eko Island, Avenues, Four Bridges, Eko Drive, East Side and Ocean Front. It is the single most ambitious and comprehensive mixed use development to come on stream in the West African sub-region to date.
It is expected that the new city will be home to about 450,000 residents, with commuter volume of about 300,000 people expected daily. Self-sufficient and sustainable, it includes state-of-the-art infrastructure, its own 24/7 power supply, portable water, advanced telecommunications, spacious roads and 110,000 trees.
Already, the Lagos skylines are beginning to be dotted by the ongoing construction, with some residential structures springing up in some districts.
Eko Pearl Tower
The Eko Pearl Towers is the first residential building. The development was inaugurated with the Eko Boulevard, Nigeria’s first eight-lane city road in 2015. Eko Pearl Towers is a set of high-rise buildings, privately owned and developed by the Eko Pearl Construction Company. The development consists of five residential towers, each topped with deluxe penthouse types, two and three bedroom apartments with a view of the Lagos coastline. The Black Pearl and the Champagne Pearl scheduled to be completed later this year.
According to a statement from the developers and promoters of the multi-billion dollar project, SENL, the Eko Pearl Towers ranges from 24 to 33 floors of four apartments per floor, two apartments on the royal penthouse floors, a technical floor, terrace floor, a ground floor and a basement.
The Azuri Allure
Located in the Marina District of the city is the Azuri Peninsula, promoted by Eko Development Nigeria Limited – a real estate development company. The project sits on a combined land area of 127×507 square metres; it is to be built and delivered in three phases.
The first phase, with a 36-month completion plan, has 13,000 square metres gross buildable area (GBA) and 130 square metres built up area where 120 luxury apartments, 12 super-luxury simplexes, two superb villas and seven town-house apartments will be nestled.
Chief Responsibility Officer, Eko Development, Ihiene Ogolo, said: “Azuri Peninsula offers a unique and luxury urban lifestyle by the delightful marina-front of the Marina District in the vibrant new Eko Atlantic City.”
According to Ogolo, Azuri combines the African word ‘Zuri’ meaning, beautiful and Azure – a radiant sea. He said the location of the Peninsula in the Marina District, considered the most exclusive in Eko Atlantic City, explains the developer’s choice of a brand name that resonates uncommon luxury and lifestyle.
The Peninsula will be delivered as two and four-bedroom luxury apartments, six-bedroom duplexes and seven-bedroom villas.
“This development is taking into consideration lifestyle and ambience. The lifestyle is created by its location. The location is between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lagos channel; we are also creating a marina and so you have three water bodies that create a lifestyle and ambience,” Ogolo said.
For the ultimate comfort of the prospective residents of this Peninsula, which has already recorded about 80 percent buyer-interest, there will be a five-star marina and yacht club with an attractive promenade, high-end shops, cafes and a wealth of amenities.
Though Eko Peninsula is planned as a mixed-use development that will be 92 per cent residential and eight per cent retail, its closeness to the Business District complements its concept of a live, work and play destination.
In line with the highest standards of contemporary living, all apartments in the Peninsula will be fully-fitted with state-of-the-art kitchens and luxury bathrooms, air conditioning and broadband terraces and balconies. The ‘Orun’ and ‘Oban’ Towers promise to offer the ultimate in luxury living and this includes a private gym and swimming pool as well as a stunning, panoramic views of the environment.
The Peninsula also promises residents access to 24-hour concierge service, a gym, two squash courts, and a café. These come in addition to a relaxing sauna, games, screening rooms and a children’s playroom. Outside, residents will have access to a private outdoor swimming pool, children’s playground, garden-piazzas and valet parking.
In the Marina District, there will be high-end retail outlets, international standard restaurants and an abundant range of amenities, all of which will establish Azuri Peninsula as a premier residential destination.
Eko Atlantic’s high-standard infrastructure, which includes managed and maintained utilities, will guarantee an exceptionally-comfortable lifestyle. A well-planned road system, up-to-date ferry service and helicopter service linking the city to Lagos, will ensure that Eko Atlantic is the best-connected city in West Africa.
14 bridges ready
The multibillion dollar Eko Atlantic City has made significant progress in its infrastructural development with the completion of 14 bridges. The bridges, built to international standard, in phases one and two, extend to over five million square metres, representing half of the planned city.
Work on the bridge started in December 2014, with the first bridge deck cast and the last one completed last December. With the new bridges, all the districts are now accessible by road. The bridges form a major element of the works and they enable all major avenues to overpass the canal system running through the spine of the project. The bridges are between two and eight lanes. For instance, Bridge Seven comprises a six-lane carriageway and is located on Avenue 1, thus, defining the western boundary of the Business District, the commercial heartland of the city.
Spanning 52 metres overall in three sections, Bridge Seven is typical of the design utilised in all the bridges and comprises a reinforced concrete cast with piers and abutments. Also, post-tensioning techniques were employed on the horizontal deck to achieve the span required. The last bridge was constructed to overpass the canal entrance to the Soutwest Marina, defining the marine access to the Atlantic Ocean.
SENL’s Managing Director Mr David Frame said the firm was committed to ensuring that the project is completed on schedule.
“With the successful completion of all the bridges, all the major avenues within Phase 1 and 2 of the City are now fully interconnected, with the comprehensive road network of the City defined and all zones accessible,” he said.
Water System
The construction of an ultra-modern, centralised 24/7 water system designed to simultaneously supply phases one and two of the city, is ongoing. The water system construction satisfies “stringent international standards for construction of water treatment centers”, supplied by Degrémont, Suez-environment, a company known for its worldwide supply of water treatment equipment.
The water system will extract raw water from deep groundwater aquifers via a borehole providing an estimated initial daily supply of 10,000m3. The daily supply of water will continue to increase as the city grows. To add further protect the aquifers, the borehole will be lined with stainless steel and cement grouted along its entire length to prevent contamination. The raw water will undergo filtration to remove the impurities and iron from it. The Water System will also disinfect the extracted water before storing it in water reservoirs ready for consumption in conformity with WHO guidelines. The water will then be pumped to a 47m high water tower that will supply the water network of Phases One and Two. This will insure a residual pressure in the network of 1.5 bar.
In addition to this distribution network, there will be ground water storage for a minimum of two days. This storage capacity will be independent from the required firewater reserve. The systemic treatment technology offers the most ecological and cost effective way to produce public water supply since groundwater is often more convenient and less vulnerable to pollution than surface water.
SENL Vice Chairman Mr. Ronald Chagoury Jr. noted that the water system is provided according to WHO standards by ensuring reliable quality of sustainable water system.
“The city will not only boast of adequate power supply and a good road network, but also a water purification and distribution network that produces potable water for its residential and office use,” Chagoury Jr added.
