The Rosebank is poised to become a dazzling landmark on the Johannesburg cityscape, with a R254 million refurbishment currently underway.

The R254 million refurbishment of The Rosebank, began in August last year, and is due for completion in August this year. It hasn’t been without its challenges, but everyone involved believes that the spectacular end result will be worth the effort.

Johannesburg is known for its wealth – mineral and otherwise – and South Africa is seen a land of colours. The interior designers responsible for the ambience of The Rosebank took this as their inspiration. "We merged the two concepts and went to town,” says Nicholas Human, MD of llp design.

To town is exactly where they went, and the hotel now features a retro sunken lounge where a swimming pool used to be. "We thought back to the 60s 70s when where you had a sunken lounge you were cool and happening," says Human.

The Throne Room will give visitors the feeling that they rule the world. "We wanted people to be able to say, ‘hey, look at me!’ without saying a word, so we came up with the Throne Room. It’s a raised up area which will have over-the-top furniture and chandeliers to make a statement!"

Interactivity is a big part of the design concept in the public areas of The Rosebank. The main entrance is from the street, and people who enter will discover an area filled with pods around which they can socialise, rather than being segregated from the hotel by a long reception desk.

"We wanted people to come to The Rosebank and find that it’s different from other hotels," says Human.

It certainly is different – the styling of the interior has created a stylish and refreshing space, but the refurbishment of The Rosebank has been unique in that it wasn’t just a plaster and paint job.

"Everything has been stripped down to raw structures," says Graeme Jones, contracts director at Grinaker, the company carrying out the construction side of the refurbishment. "All the services, including electrics, plumbing and air conditioning have been upgraded."

With Johannesburg being a hive of activity in preparation for the 2010 Football World Cup, The Rosebank isn’t the only piece of real estate going through some radical changes.

"The one thing that has been quite a challenge is the traffic, with The Rosebank being close to a lot of other work," says Jones. "There is the Gautrain and other jobs a couple of blocks away, so there are lots of one ways and traffic jams."

And in a dynamic industry like building, there are always a couple of surprises in the building process. "Initially, we were going to retain the ground floor construction between the North and South Towers," says Jones. "But once building had commenced, we realised that the old structure wasn’t suitable, and we ended up knocking down the whole ground floor. Our team has been absolutely amazing, working around the clock and adapting to changes."

Surprises and traffic jams aside, the refurbishment is a going swimmingly and everything is on schedule for completion by August.

"It’s going to be a contemporary hotel for the business travelling market," says Jones. "It will have sophisticated conference facilities, great entertainment and social areas and upmarket restaurants. No one will walk in there and have any idea of the age of the building. It’s going to look very new and very modern."

Of course, the most important judges of any hotel are the people who visit it. According to Rick Berendsen, the newly appointed manager of The Rosebank, they’re going to be blown away. "Guests and visitors of The Rosebank will have a 21st Century hotel experience," he says.

"It will be slick and stylish – a place where they can entertain and be entertained and they’ll definitely keep coming back for more. The remarkable new spaces created by the hotel’s facelift, combined with an international standard of service that’s both personal and intelligent will make The Rosebank the destination of choice for business people and tourists alike. We’re looking forward to welcoming them."

For more information contact:
The Rosebank
Marije Meerstadt
0861 174 7444
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Headlines
Lindi Tshabangu
011 887 3422
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