[kictanet] Konza Technology City - Devils Advocate

[bitange at jambo.co.ke]

Robert,
I thank you for your candid evaluation of the Konza Project.  I shall
compile the views and ask the Master Builder to incorporate them.

Regards


Ndemo.
\

> Hi,
>
> I have looked at the concept for the Konza Technology City and it looks
> brilliant, but I have a few issues to propose on the design.
>
> Now that we have a big picture we need to go into the devilish details to
> make
> sure that we can make this a truly world class project from ground
> breaking to
> operation.
>
> 1.  There is too much road which will result in traffic, one regret that
> the
> developers of Silicon Valley have kept airing is that they should have
> thought
> more of reducing motorised movement and creating more green areas, foot
> paths
> and cycling paths.  The concept for Konza has over 61 kilometers of major
> roads
> that is equivalent to the road from Nairobi to Konza.
>
> We need to incorporate tramcars, under ground train & bus stations and
> perimeter
> parking silos that will allow for the reduction of vehicular traffic on
> the
> streets and make the environment more pedestrian friendly.
>
> For those who have seen the master plan each segment measures about 62
> acres
> which is roughly the area bound by Uhuru Highway, City Hall Way, Kenyatta
> Avenue
> and Moi Avenue, not a very big area, so what is the difference in layout
> between
> Konza City and Nairobi?  We need to look at the issues affecting Nairobi
> due to
> its design flaws and then correct them in Konza.
>
> 2.  The density of the City makes it no different from Nairobi CBD merged
> with
> Githurai/Zimaman, the green area is at 5.6% which should be sufficient
> grounds
> for Prof. Wangari Mathai to get concerned.  In my calculations I included
> the
> river basin that a crosses through the City and also the stadium.  Let
> avoid the
> creation of another concrete jungle, which bring back to mind a statement
> by
> President Moi that the building of a 60 story building at Uhuru Park would
> be of
> scenic value.
>
> 4.  Unlike Nairobi, Konza is a much hotter area therefore we need to look
> at
> having as many water masses as possible scattered around the city to
> humidify
> the area and also help in maintaining any green areas.  This water could
> be
> reclaimed from the buildings and also by incorporating rain water
> harvesting.
>
> 5.  Charity begins at home, I strongly believe the launch plus the initial
> invitations for the master builder should have been floated locally before
> we
> removed our hand pans to go overseas, "utamusindikisha namna gani yule
> ambae
> hajatoa chochote chake".
>
> 6. Where is the Virtual City Building, Seven Seas Knowledge Hub, Equity
> Finance
> Campus and Mutuku's Supermarket in the proposal or is the entire
> development
> targeted to foreign entities.
>
> 7.  The area allocated for a University campus is only 62 acres, this is
> too
> small as it can only accommodate a single university campus if it is to
> have
> recreation facilities and open grounds which is the ideal situation as it
> would
> be counter productive to replicate what is happening with the campuses in
> Nairobi CBD.
>
>
>
> I reiterate that the effort is commendable but lets use it more as a
> starting
> point than an end in itself otherwise we shall just be developing another
> concrete jungle.  Lets look at best practices and the lessons learnt from
> others
> as they carried our such projects.
>
> A final word or more a request, how do I book the space allocated for
> a Cathedral so I can begin to mobilise my Catholic brethren to begin
> raising
> funds.
>  Robert Yawe
> KAY System Technologies Ltd
> Phoenix House, 6th Floor
> P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200
> Kenya
>
>
> Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696
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