Page 12 - Intra Muros November Issue 2025

ESTATE NEWS

FROM LONG DROPS TO LUXURY LIVING:

WE’VE COME A LONG WAY!

t’s hard to believe that just over three decades ago, Silver Lakes was Silver Lakes back then:
little more than an ambitious idea drawn across rolling farmland
Ion Pretoria’s eastern edge. A golf course? A wildlife estate? Back
then, some thought it was far-fetched – but look at us now!

Today, Silver Lakes stands as a shining example of what vision,
community and a remarkable Operations department can achieve
when innovation meets determination.
Silver Lak
es in the early days
In the early 1990s, the landscape was a patchwork of dirt roads, Silver Lakes in the early days
farm fences and wide-open veld. Communication meant a crackly
landline, and the closest thing to infrastructure was a gravel track
and a few boreholes. Water pipes were basic, electricity supply was
unpredictable, and the idea of a “smart home” was a decent ceiling
fan that worked in summer.

Some of the early settlers even remember septic tanks and old-
school long-drop lavatories before proper sewage lines reached
every corner of the estate. It was pioneering living – charming, rustic
The beginning of the gol f c ourse in 1992
The beginning of the golf course in 1992
and full of mosquito coils.
Fast forward to today, and the transformation is astounding. Those
early septic systems have evolved into a sophisticated network of
sewage lines spanning more than 30 kilometres, quietly managing
the unseen backbone of modern life. It’s the kind of infrastructure
you rarely notice – precisely because it works so well and is well
managed, maintained and improved by the Silver Lakes Operations
Team. L Lynnwood gate entrance in 1992
ynn
e in 1992
tranc
wood gat
e en
Our roads, once rutted and dusty, now gleam under the estate’s
road rejuvenation programme, a project largely handled in-house by
the Operations department. It’s a feat of efficiency and care: where
once we had potholes, now we have smooth, beautifully maintained
avenues lined with manicured gardens and LED lights that turn on
automatically as dusk falls. Again, maintained in the shadows by our
own Ops electricians while you sleep soundly.

Where farm dams once relied on rainfall and a good deal of luck,
Silver Lakes now uses digitally monitored pumping systems and an
Pebble Beach Drive in 1993
amphibious aquatic machine to manage dam health and remove P ebble Beach Drive i n 1993
invasive hornwort. It’s the agricultural equivalent of trading in an ox-
drawn plough for an expertly guided harvester.

And let’s not forget water security – a challenge that once meant
waiting for rain. Nowadays, municipal trucks are met by a network
of boreholes, storage systems, digital monitoring and efficient
management, all ensuring that our taps run even when the city’s
Pebble Beach Drive and the fountain in 1993
taps don’t. P ebble Beach Drive and the f oun t ain in 1993

10 | INTRAMUROS NOVEMBER 2025