Property

End of the V&A Waterfront as you know it

Shaun Jacobs • 16 February 2026

Public consultation regarding the reclamation of land from the sea to expand the V&A Waterfront has begun, with it set to fundamentally reshape the precinct by adding around 3.81 hectares of land.

The land is predominantly set to be reclaimed around Granger Bay, to the north of the existing precinct, and will create space for mixed-use development, public amenities, and coastal protection infrastructure.

Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Willie Aucamp, opened the public consultation process on Friday, 13 February.

Public consultation is required as part of the process to get environmental authorisation for the land reclamation and development.

This is fundamentally a two-step process, with the Minister pre-approving the development plans following public consultation. Following this, the approval must be ratified by Parliament.

The expansion of the V&A, owned by Growthpoint and the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), is expected to cost R20 billion. This makes the expansion almost equal to the entire value of the existing precinct, which is estimated to be worth R23 billion.

With permission received from the local council to increase the V&A’s development rights to 440,000 m², the expansion project has already begun.

This first phase, called phase zero, includes the marine works necessary to prepare the site for land reclamation. This will see the construction of a 540-metre sea wall and two breakwaters extending into Table Bay.

It is estimated that the construction of the seawall and breakwater will take roughly three years, with it being done in phases.

This will result in just less than four hectares of land being reclaimed from the ocean, alongside the construction of an additional harbour for boating, kayaking, and swimming.

Proposed land-based amenities will include a coastal public walkway, a slipway, a fixed quayside, a landscaped promenade, tidal pools, pedestrian paths and open areas.

A new mixed-use development is proposed on the portion of the site currently located within 100 m of the highwater mark, which will accommodate residential, hotel, leisure and commercial uses.

The V&A has said previously that the development will be supported by various existing transport systems, such as the MyCiTi bus service.

It is expected that no major access roads or external road network upgrades will be required to support the project.

Source: Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment

V&A overhaul

The land reclamation project in Granger Bay is being coupled with several significant investment projects within the existing V&A precinct.

These projects come amid continued growth for the precinct, with CEO Graham Wood revealing that it welcomed 25 million visitors in 2025 and generated R11 billion in retail sales.

Wood explained that the precinct supports over 83,000 direct and indirect jobs, with it contributing more than 1.5% of the Western Cape’s entire GDP.

This strong financial performance is set to continue into the future, with the V&A investing heavily in upgrading and expanding parts of the precinct.

First on this list is the opening of its new luxury wing in 2026, which will house high-end stores and look to rival Sandton City’s Diamond Walk.

Apart from the luxury wing, Growthpoint and the GEPF are also investing in basic infrastructure, with a new desalination plant being operational since early 2025. This plan generates around 3.3 kilolitres of water per day.

The V&A is also set to see the construction of the new Quay 7 luxury hotel and the conclusion of the redevelopment of the Table Bay Hotel, which will now be an InterContinental.

It has been confirmed that the Quay 7 hotel will be the first EDITION hotel in Africa, with it being built at an estimated cost of R1 billion.

The hotel will house 142 rooms and suites, as well as six serviced private residences. It will also feature a rooftop bar, spa, pool, and high-end dining.

The historic Granger Bay precinct lies to the west of the V&A and includes the Oranjezicht City Farm Market, which would move by about 200 meters from its current location to make way for the new developments.

Oranjezicht has already had its last Wednesday night market on 26 November, with it moving across the road to its new premises as part of the development.

The new custom-built site is home to over 100 traders and 3,500 livelihoods. All of the stalls have received serious makeovers, and some sites have extraction fans for food traders.

Another residential development, 5 Dock Road, is expected to be completed in January 2026. Nearly all of the apartments have already been sold.