Obslife, Mar 2011

BY FAR the biggest single contributor of levies to the OBSID is the massive Black River Park which lies between the railway line and Fir street.

Without the 80 000 square metre A-grade office park, housing 110 businesses and as many as 5 000 workers, the OBSID’s operation would have been much smaller, had it been able to start at all.

It contributes just less than 20% of the OBSID levies, and is represented on the OBSID board of directors by Lauren le Roux, public relations and tenant liaison officer for the park.

She explains the Black River Park’s support for the OBSID: “It’s in our interest to  be based in a safe, clean area, so we would really like to see it evolve into a thriving suburb.”

So far, the OBSID has “definitely brought about a great improvement”, she says. “There is a lot of energy within the improvement district — energy, vision and dedication to really improve Observatory.”

Lauren says the Black River Park regards access to the services that Observatory businesses offer as important and convenient for the people who work in the complex.

“Whether it’s restaurants or any services that are provided in Observatory, we are certainly happy to market it (to Black River Park workers),”  she says.Likewise, she invites residents of Observatory to make use of services provided in the complex. These include two coffee shops, a beauty and hair salon, a physiotherapist, a car wash, a stationery store, a travel agency and graphic design businesses.

The Black River Park raises Observatory’s profile as a business hub. It is home to Dimension Data, Glenrand MIB, The Jupiter Drawing Room, Adidas, Naartjie, Cadbury and Brandhouse, among others.