Central Park –

With Intaka Island on its doorstep, Central Park is a Century City institution with events big and small taking place here. From the finish of our annual Sports Festival, the Natural Goods Market, Galileo Open Air Cinema to Christmas Carols and much more.

It’s also, until recently, been the largest lawn area in the precinct that is available to the public for recreational purposes like off-leash dog walking within certain hours to booking out the lawn for private functions.

The Clubhouse

The Clubhouse was built adjacent to Central Park as a community-focused gathering place that could complement the park. Several sports clubs meet here, such as the Century City Athletics Club, and the space is also used for large meetings and rented out as a private venue. 

The Clubhouse was recently extensively renovated, which not only included a paint and internal redecoration, but the patio area now has glass stacking doors to extend the area and make it useable in all weather conditions.

The inclusion of the braai and pizza oven in the Club House upgrade building plan was delayed but has now received Council approval and the construction thereof will commence soon.

Diva Cuisine manages The Clubhouse and if you are interested in booking the venue for a private function, get in touch with Chanti:

Telephone or WhatsApp: 083 784 5791

E-mail: dc@divacuisine.net

Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/divacuisine

Ratanga Park

Ratanga Park is Century City’s new green open space that is open to the public free of charge.  Ratanga Park was created by moving a total of 75 000m³ earth, with a water body that covers approximately 1.64ha. Water features, winding walking paths, points of interest and a children’s play area have been created amongst lush landscaping. The large water body, that is home to several waterbirds, is connected to the canals that flow through the precinct, making it possible to canoe from the one end of the precinct to the other.

For 20 years, until 2018, this section of the precinct was taken up by Ratanga Junction, a popular entertainment theme park.  Due to its age, it became time for major capital refurbishments to be done to the rides.  As the theme park experienced dwindling numbers over a long period, it was no longer profitable, and the decision was made to close its doors.

The strategy was to, in its place, create a green public space that would bring the following benefits to Century City and its stakeholders:

• Supplement the free recreational areas in the precinct for everyone to enjoy.
• Add another large events area in addition to Central Park.
• The water body would connect to the rest of the canals, extending the distance and area for water sports and the Intaka Island boats. For instance, we could add canoe polo to our annual Sports Festival as a sporting code, which took place in Ratanga Park.
• Small islands in the water body attracts birdlife, adding a secondary habitat to Intaka Island for some bird species.
• Form the soft landscaping for developments that would be constructed on the perimeter of Ratanga Park. This would enhance the living experience for everyone living in, working in, and visiting the area.

For any enquiries about events and photoshoots in Ratanga Park, please contact us via events@centurycity.co.za or visit the Events page on our website and complete the necessary application form.  https://centurycity.co.za/

This article was first published  in our City Edits magazine. Read our 42nd edition here .