Page 25 - Intra Muros September Issue 2024

SILVER LAKES THROUGH THE YEARS

kind developments for South Africa, as well
as for where the stands could be sold at a
higher price.

The development team started devising a
new Master Plan to create this new type of
lifestyle estate. Since the golf component
of the development – and not the game
reserve – was earmarked as the centre
point around which everything happened,
it was important that the estate be planned
Dr Stefanus Lombard in front of a stand 645
in ‘layers’ that fitted on top of, and around,
each other.
Dr Lombard approached the town planning for the rezoning was granted by the then
firm of Van Wyk and Partners in Centurion minister of constitutional development Golf pros Peter Matkovich and Dale Hayes
and asked them to submit an application and planning, Eugene Louw. were appointed to design a golf course
to amend the zoning of the property from that would take full advantage of the
agricultural to residential. His original idea Ownership and design topography of the area and the spectacular
was to develop a game park with affordable In conjunction with Dirk Swart, a well- natural environment. The town planning
residential stands for homeowners to live known estate agent and keen golfer, firm of Van Aarde and Van Wyk (not the
“in a game reserve”. Dr Lombard formulated the idea of same Van Wyk of the original Master Plan)
developing a residential estate with the was appointed by Ampros as part of the
The design that Mr van Wyk and his town game reserve on the property. He set design team who set out the residential
planning team came up with was in the about offering the opportunity to various component and the public areas. These
shape of a hand, with the hand being developers. Anglo American Property had to fit around the course in the most
the game reserve. It was visualised to be Services (Pty) Ltd (Ampros) became advantageous and practical way in order to
situated between the homes that stretch involved and asked for the right of first make allowance for 1 400 families to coexist
along and on the outside of the fingers refusal on the property. On 10 May 1990, peacefully. Both Van Aarde and Eugene van
of the hand. Thus, the stands and homes Amaprop Townships Limited became the Wyk (former coach of the Blue Bulls) and
would be a buffer protecting the game in new owners of the property. their families later stayed in Silver Lakes.
the reserve.
After conducting a financial analysis of If you think about it, there is still the feel of
Dr Lombard faced opposition from many the options, Ampros decided to redesign the original design’s ‘fingers’ in the current
areas, including the Pretoria municipality the original idea of a game reserve and design of the golf course, with the houses
of the time. Another time-consuming part residential estate into a golf estate that spread out around the ‘fingers’ on which
of the process were the excavations that would set a standard for the first-of-its- the golf course is situated.
had to be done as well as archaeological
findings that had to be excavated and
retrieved for future generations.

Not only were there artefacts dating back
to the Iron Age, but the old carriage trail
between Pretoria and Lourenço Marques,
now known as Maputo, traversed the farm
where the big dam wall on the golf course Silver Lakes Drive Pebble Beach Drive from the Clubhouse
is located. It’s the same dam wall that had Pebble Beach Drive and the fountain in 1993
leakage problems, creating a marsh on the
17th fairway, since it was built on solid
rock – the rock of the old carriage trail to
Lourenço Marques.

After many visits to officials, Dr Lombard
ended up meeting the then minister of
internal affairs, Stoffel Botha. With his
help, on 18 September 1989, approval

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