The Precinct office development in Grand Baie, Mauritius, developed by real estate development company Gateway Real Estate Africa (GREA) has been awarded a 5-Star Green certified rating by industry association Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA).

The Precinct offers tenants flexibility, sustainability and employee wellness and comprises a lettable area of 10 000 m² with 500 parking bays. London- and Mauritius-listed Grit Real Estate Income Group, law firm Dentons Law and flexible workspace company Workshop 17 are anchor tenants.

The development will form part of a larger complex to be developed in phases. With its prime location strategically next to the M2 motorway at the entrance to Grand Baie, the Precinct will ultimately form part one of three interconnected environments, all set in a lush green landscape, GREA says.

“Our brief from the anchor tenants has always been to incorporate sustainability and employee wellbeing as the main points of departure in the design and development of the Precinct. Corporate culture is rapidly changing, which is morphing the workplace into many functionalities,” says GREA CEO Greg Pearson.

“The Precinct is revolutionary in that it will combine work, wellbeing and a social lifestyle through well-considered and contemporary spaces. Key to this was to ensure a design and location that promote a lower carbon footprint and better sustainability. I am thrilled that these efforts have been recognised by the GBCSA by way of a 5-Star Green certified rating,” he adds.

The central atrium will provide a dynamic, active interior street, and the Precinct includes a ground-floor eatery with an extensive outdoor deck for the benefit of all tenants and business visitors. Security is provided at the entrance, with bicycle parking, shower facilities and change rooms accommodated in the basement parking.

Further, sustainability hallmarks include water-saving sanitary ware, motion sensor and light-emitting diode lighting, photovoltaic panels on the roof, the use of natural light and ventilation incorporated into the design, energy sub-metering, lighting power density, water meters and recycling waste storage.

The Precinct also promotes minimal discharge to the municipal sewer system and is considering rainwater harvesting to minimize storm water run-off to and pollution of natural water courses, GREA says.

The uppermost floor has an expansive entertainment space complete with skybar, barbeque and catering kitchen, and this space opens onto two covered verandas which enjoy panoramic views over Grand Baie and the ocean, providing an entertainment and conferencing facility.

“In line with our corporate philosophy of local empowerment and re-investing back into the communities in which we operate, we have partnered with a number of local professional firms and are making use of local artisans and materials wherever possible.

“We expect approximately 500 jobs to be created during the construction phase and several temporary and permanent positions on completion of the project,” Pearson adds.

Meanwhile, the GBCSA works in collaboration with emerging green building councils throughout Africa and is a natural indication of standards for green building movements and councils in other parts of Africa.

For a project to achieve GBSCA certification, it needs to be registered via the GBSCA Certification Engine. Once registered, the development will go through a host of assessments and receive scores based on the management and design of the building. The final score involves an assessment of the building including waste management, land and use ecology, materials used, transportation, indoor environment quality and emissions.

Construction of the Precinct started in June 2021. It is expected to be completed by the end of this year.