Falomo Towers: Turning fallow land to premium sky-high real estate 

After 10 years the land had been lying fallowed due to disagreement and arbitration that led to the termination of the contract, the Lagos State Government and Afriland Properties Limited have finally turned the sod for the development of the iconic Falomo Towers.

The turning of the sod marks the beginning of a practical step to turn the empty space on Obafemi Awolowo Road, near Falomo Roundabout in Ikoyi, Lagos to sky-high mixed real estate development.

Christened: “Falomo Towers”, many real estate practitioners are of the opinion that the iconic project would define the skyline of Ikoyi neighbourghood and entire Lagos environs when completed.

The state-of-the-art towers is being developed on the old Falomo Shopping Complex in the heart of Ikoyi.

According to the LSDPC’s Chief Executive Officer, Ayodeji Joseph the project site evoked memories of a glorious past for Island residents in the 1970s, noting that the corporation took an informed decision to turn around the site by building residential apartments to provide additional accommodation to the growing middle class, business professionals and the swelling rank of young citizens.

The joint venture project is taken off on 11,950 square metres of land with particular focus on sustainability to ensure a cleaner and greener environment.

Afriland Properties, a subsidiary of Heirs Holding owned by business mogul, Mr, Tony Elumelu, will develop, build, operate and maintain the project on a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis.

Performing the sod-turning ceremony alongside Elumelu, the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said the flag-off ended a decade-long discussion with the developer to revive the project and build iconic towers that would turn around the fallow land for the benefit of the public.

He described the project as another “milestone achievement” of his administration to renew urban amenities.

He stressed that the strategic implementation of the Lagos Masterplan had been dependent on the government’s ability to forge a workable partnership between the public and private sectors.

According to him, the phenomenal project would bring back the lost ambiance of Ikoyi.

“When this partnership was initiated 10 years ago, I was the Managing Director of LSDPC. It is interesting to note that we’ve all gone through arbitration but we didn’t throw a wrong punch. We agreed this project must not be thrown away. Today we are making a transaction that is bigger and better than what was initially proposed 10 years ago.

“This testifies to the uniqueness of public and private sectors in ensuring things can be made a lot better when we sit and agree. This is a clear example of what the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model is out to achieve when partnerships and collaborations are pursued and implemented with seriousness.

“When we put our minds of possibilities to ideas, great things happen. This aptly describes the story of today’s flag-off of the construction of Falomo Towers,” he said.

Elumelu said the partnership was another testimony to the government’s belief in the private sector as a key development driver in the state.

He commended Governor Sanwo-Olu and the state’s political leaders for believing in the private sector, adding, «what we are witnessing today attests to their beliefs in the private sector as the driver of development.»

For the private sector to do well,  Elumelu said the political leadership must create the right environment.

«Lagos has set the pace in this direction. This partnership is a celebration of dialogue and this makes Lagos remain the most hospitable environment for investors,» he said.

The Chief Executive Officer of Afriland Properties, Mrs. Uzo Oshogwe, noted that the redevelopment project was a revival of a landmark, saying that with the project, the company intention was to give Ikoyi back its aesthetic landmark.