The Mombasa beachfront is set to undergo a metamorphosis, thanks to the Englishpoint Marina, which is located on a four acre beach front site, across the creek from the historic Fort Jesus and spectacular skyline of Mombasa old town.
It is a contemporary development offering a mix of apartments that will be managed by Pinewood Village Beach Resort. Other onsite facilities include a hotel, restaurant, spa & gym, serviced marina, water-sport centre, boardwalk with retail outlets and underground car parking.
The hotel will have 23 Air conditioned rooms, 3 suites, 24-hour reception, rooftop breakfast restaurant, rooftop meeting room and conference facility. Apartments can also be part of the hotel inventory, a concept that is to enable investors to sub-lease their apartments to the hotel when they are not present.
The restaurant will have views to the beach and sea with indoor and outdoor seating. The gym will be located on the waterfront, with full unobstructed view of the marina and beyond.
The marina will be fully serviced with on-berth supply of fresh water, electricity, internet, satellite TV, fuel, pump out facilities and slipway. 88 berths from 6m to 30m with access to full hotel services will also be provided.
A unique ferry shuttle service for residents and guests across the creek to Mombasa old town will be provided. This is proposed to bypass the Nyali Bridge for direct access to Mombasa Island and the airport.
Comprehensive facilities for water-sports including deep-sea fishing, scuba diving, snorkeling, sailing, windsurfing, kite-surfing, sea safaris and creek excursions will also be part of the development.
Space has also been allocated in the hotel block and on the boardwalk for a potential small supermarket, bank, travel shop, coffee shops and gift shop.
Underground parking facility has been provided for with one secure entrance and exit. Ratio of parking space to apartments is 1:1. Additional spaces have been provided and will be sold. Lifts and stairs will service the apartments above.
The team implementing the project includes:-
- Broadway Malyan, England who are the Lead architects
- Planning Sysytems Services LTD., Kenya who are the local architects for the project
- Beckett Rankine, England who are marine consulting engineers
- Walcon Marine, England who are marina consultants, manufacturers & contractors
- XCO2 Energy, England who are energy & sustainability consultants
- Harold R. Fenwick & Associates, Kenya who are the project’s quantity surveyors
- Manor Consultants, Kenya Consulting Engineers. Structural.
- Zpojawo Consulting Engineers, Kenya Consulting Engineers M&E.
- Two Designs Ltd., Kenya Interior Design Consultants
- A.B. Patel & Patel, Kenya advocates & notaries
- Laxmanbhai Construction Ltd., Kenya Building & General Contractors
- Alpha Group, Marine division, Kenya Ship buliding, Dry Docking & Engineering
Absolutely Fabulous… Congratulations Alnoor and your team. Goes to show the power of having faith in your dreams. FANTASTIC!!!!
can you please give me your email
Wow!
Its long overdue! but a good to be a tourist hub of a lifetime
will the locals be allowed to access the sea thru the development
It looks like any other place in the Western hemisphere…I don’t see anything Kenyan that would appeal to me…..Is this progress for Kenya?
Deny Gee i agree with you 100%
when will we (Africans) take charge of our future and destiny? the development will probably be lucrative and that is okay. but please can we have some standards as to what we allow in crafting our future and preserving our heritage. kenya and almost every other African country are whores for western culture, design. we are willing to take anything they dish out to us as long we can make a buck on the deal. where is our pride? “ENGLISHPOINT”I thought 1963 was the turning point. havent put much thought to it but here are some suggestions just on the name KISWAHILIPOINT, DIGOPOINT, MIJIKENDAPOINT. The design looks good but in no way fits in its context with a city with such a rich history parharps the shores of river Thames. its about time our government and citizens take charge. will some one remind me what is the purpose of the architectural association of Kenya. please speak up be advocates of our identity don’t let this exploitation continue…..this sickens me where is the authentic african architecture maybe if local Architects/Firms were the lead Architects maybe it would be diffrent SO AAK what will you do you represent the kenyan architecs
is the hotel in the in this project a bad copy of the Chesapeake boat house in Oklahoma designed by Rand Elliot here is a link http://www.chi-athenaeum.org/archawards/2007/chesapeakeboathouse.html
Rather Long comment.
By the way Alex, do you drive or use a computer. Do you go to church or do you worship a certain Rain god. Is this year 2011 AD.. Or are all these western cultures.
Do you draw your water from a tap or do you go to the river? What African attire’s do you use to the office.
Kenya needs every investment- we must learn to look at the larger good.
Good observation, I think developing something with an indigenous look and feel would attract more tourists and compete with other places that offer the usual architecture.
Wow, Thats will be a very nice work,
Alex Kathilu,
Most Kenyan Architects are well known to duplicate drawings of previous projects when they are approached to design a building. Very few Architectural firms in Kenya are well known for their creativity. That is why the few who are creative and trusted are bestowed the opportunity to take part in such a prestigious project. You go on criticizing a name and suggest further more racist tribal names in the name of being Kenyan,are you trying to say an Englishman who has lived all his life in Kenya is not Kenyan. Do not criticize something that is good for the mere fact that it is not local because as you well know Our Home Made Stuff are more or less monotonous to the point of being substandard.
Please elaborate on what you mean by “racist tribal names” what is so racist about acknowledging the local tribes that have historically inhabited the coastal region? as Kenyans we are not all the same, the harsh reality is that we are comprised of different tribes.and the soon we accept this fact the better. there is no one tribe that is better than the other, but the collective is the fabric of Kenya. any opportunity to pay homage to any Kenyan tribe should be embraced, this creates self confidence and pride within that tribe….MOTOMOTO i have to respectfully disagree with you on your sentiment regarding The creativity of the Kenyan Architects and designers. given the opportunity they would dazzle us, unfortunately they are forced to compete with foreign architects that we perceive as superior, but yet we have very qualified creative and competent architects some of which are educated in the west and have experience with western architecture. so before we right them off as uncreative lets give them a chance African design can be very mordan lets be innovative and support local architects, designers, artist, musicians, writers Etc lets stop using the west as the measure of excellence but rather a blueprint for better ideas lets take the good ideas that work and interpret them in an African context. as for the englishman born in Kenya and lived all their live in Kenya i don’t think he/she would have a problem with my suggestions because he/she is Kenyan and not an English
The name English Point is derived from the location of the Marina. This refers to the promontory – high point of land extending into a body of water, headland; cliff – , there are / were cement silos there. In the last century became the spot for the first ‘colony’ of liberated slaves established by the ‘English’ thus the name English Point.
The issue of calling it a different name just to africanize something leaves bad taste in my mouth. Why do we deny our history? The Kenyan for example has been host to: Phoenicians, Greeks, Egyptians, Turks, Omani and Yemeni Arabs, Persians, Chinese, Indians, Portuguese, English, African Slaves etc… These are a lot of influences for a small area. Trying to wipe out history in the name of the new is a kin to the Chinese Cultural Revolution where one slogan was “Destroy the old world; Forge the new world.” We have to acknowledge the influences and not wipe them out of our collective memories!
I believe one can build anything in Mombasa to whatever cultural taste one desires as long as the building fits the regional climate. @ Alex – by the way, Mombasa Island has more Arabs than Digo or Mijikenda inhabitants.
While I think most of the arguements are valid…lets not be too overzealous with our criticism of the project. I think it is in line with the globalization that we are experiencing the whole world over, as witnessed in the shopping mall boom that we are experiencing, but at the same time I do agree that such defining projects should be africanized in one way or another. If we achieve this, then there will be a unique experience that tourists or locals look forward to whenever they visit the area. Maybe thats why cities such as Paris and Rio de Janeiro maintain such high numbers of tourists, there is a transcendent quality of attractions and architecture. KICC has thus stood the test of time, in comparison to lets say the Times Tower. On the whole it seems modern architecture is sacrificing the strides made in creative thinking or conceptualizing. If we merge the modern, post modern and creative thinking…then blend in what we may deem as Kenyan (though I’m not quite sure what that is just yet, pertaining to architecture), then I believe ‘Englishpoints’ will become ‘Kenyanpoints’ 🙂
While I think most of the arguements are valid…lets not be too overzealous with our criticism of the project. I think it is in line with the globalization that we are experiencing the whole world over, as witnessed in the shopping mall boom that we are experiencing, but at the same time I do agree that such defining projects should be africanized in one way or another. If we achieve this, then there will be a unique experience that tourists or locals look forward to whenever they visit the area. Maybe thats why cities such as Paris and Rio de Janeiro maintain such high numbers of tourists, there is a transcendent quality of attractions and architecture. KICC has thus stood the test of time, in comparison to lets say the Times Tower. On the whole it seems modern architecture is sacrificing the strides made in creative thinking or conceptualizing. If we merge the modern, post modern and creative thinking…then blend in what we may deem as Kenyan (though I’m not quite sure what that is just yet, pertaining to architecture), then I believe ‘Englishpoints’ will become ‘Kenyanpoints’ 🙂
As an architect ,I think the criticism shld arise from issues rather than egoes…architecturally speaking,the configuration of the apartments blocks is superb,alleys to allow naturally ventilating breeze from the ocean,funnel effect applied on the balconies to allow views into the beach…parking off the ocean shore to leave beach area,very welcoming entry into the apartments…expansive plaza at the hotel entrance,wth the water feature on the same axis with the restaurant….etc
Materials appear more of plaster finish on walls,glazing on fenestrations and a lot of wood decking….coastal materials like coral stone totally ignored…facades character,very little borrowed from old town architecture.
Architecture is like fashion n it changes with time , it reflects the behaviour of certain people in a certain time,that is why we have different architectural styles…this project whether functional or not is a statement of how the world has become a small village n pple in the village borrow from each others xcter.
I wish to see more practicable debate on how this design can be made better to fit the local climate if we think it is not,to be african if we think it is not .like now I think a bit of coastal architecture xcter on balconies,fenestrations(arches) etc,wl localise the scheme more…a bit of local materials like coral stone shld appear either on the walls or the landscape,bt all these shld not outdo the fact that we are in another era and material n technology have changed.
If this blog takes such a practicable course,it may inform Kenyan architecture more rather than appear like a political blog….
Be well
Whilst I am an architect from the UK- i must say i do not like this at all! Where are the Kenyan/African influences? Are you forgetting your history and culture? It’s so easy to get a big name Architect from abroad to come over and totally wash out what history is left. They have no idea about the site, the culture?!?!?!? I only feel so strongly about this because I have lived in Mombasa and it would be upsetting to see it lose those qualities that make it special.
I wonder why everything that is done in Mombasa must have Kenyan or African influences. @Z Are you advocating for an Africanised / Kenyan Disney celebration architecture ( http://www.celebration.fl.us/) just because of a particular way that you think Mombasa architecture should be? Is Mombasa a museum like Lamu or Venice for that matter so that the architecture has to fit a certain look?
I have written earlier before, that in my opinion, there is nothing wrong with anyone building the most modern building there is in the world in Kenya as long as the Kenyan influences are subtle or in the interiors. The concious African architecture that I have seen so far in this region is cliché and mimics West African architecture more than anything else.
[…] so in two years’ time, the English Point Marina — for that is what the two brothers decided to name their project — will change the sea-front […]
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i agree that the project may lack african or kenyan inspiration interms of aesthetics but it is about time that you alex learn to accept the evolution of architecture as an art and a science. Concepts of architectural modernity have been evolved from many conrners of the globe not just from the west. Some of them from africa and these have been clearly displayed in the architectural work at hand. Am sure when you say africanize the project you mean mainly in terms of aesthetics. Let me ask you. What is african aesthetics… Look at some of the historically proclaimed strutures in mombasa. Do you also hate fort jesus because it has portugese and arabic influence? I think you should appreciate the project as a strong example of what modern architecture has come to be and its placement in africa and a symbol that kenyan architects are also contributing to a globaly acclaimed architectural style and advocate for the intergration of african architecture to this form of architecture by students like me and other african architects. Not all architecture is cultural. The west evolved. Shouldnt we also do the same?