Iconic Ritz hotel in Cape Town sold for reported R240m
The well-known Ritz hotel in Sea Point stands prominently on the popular Atlantic Seaboard in Cape Town, but the once glamorous building had lost its 'glitz' in recent years.
After a period of extensive renovations in 2018, the Ritz hotel was set to re-open amid much fanfare, but this all came to nothing after the Cape Town High Court ruled that the management company occupying the building had not paid the necessary fees to Ritz Plaza‚ which owned the property.
During the hotel's heyday, it was believed to boast around an 80% occupancy, with the Ritz hotel well known for its innovative design and it's eye-catching revolving restaurant, giving patrons a 360 degree view of the city.
Unfortunately, the historic hotel has remained closed since July 2018, but according to property broker Ash Müller, a 'new chapter' could be dawning after it has been snapped up for a reported sale price of around R240 million.
Interestingly, the post drew a response from Cape Town mayor Georgin Hill-Lewis, who commented: 'My wife and I ate dinner at the revolving restaurant on the night we got engaged. I really hope to see this old gem revived.'
'This was an award-winning and innovative hotel for its time due to the way it was built in a modular form,' Müller previously shared. 'The bathrooms and bedrooms were all prebuilt off-site and dropped in one by one from the top of the hotel. It won many awards in the early 70's for the way in which it was constructed.'
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 0211.
Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
Ritz Hotel Cape Town poised for sale: A new chapter for Sea Point's iconic landmark
The Revolving Restaurant may still get its turn again. Located on the popular Atlantic Seaboard, the Ritz Hotel Cape Town is on the brink of being sold for R240-300 million to either a Dutch or French company. Bruce Hendricks, MD of Hendricks Harmse Attorneys, one of the representatives of the owners and whose company is managing the Ritz Hotel building, confirmed they were deep in negotiations for the sale, with some i's to be dotted and some t's to be crossed. "Depending on the final stages of these negotiations, the sale could go through by next Friday," he said. Hendricks could neither confirm or deny the amount the owner had accepted for the sale nor with whom they are negotiating. There were still some final issues being negotiated and that would be the deciding factor on whether the building will put up a "sold" sign next Friday. It is believed the deal is being brokered by a local estate agency via a private person with international connection and that the buyer (a consortium) is said to be going to continue with the renovations of the building. This was not the first offer taken to the owners, with the hotel in a prime position and ripe for renovation and upliftment. South African developers were themselves vying for ownership. "It's a prime piece of property - 23 storeys which you won't be able to get approval for again in Sea Point - with some bulk available for extra development," said one agent.
The South African
2 days ago
- The South African
Iconic Ritz hotel in Cape Town sold for reported R240m
The well-known Ritz hotel in Sea Point stands prominently on the popular Atlantic Seaboard in Cape Town, but the once glamorous building had lost its 'glitz' in recent years. After a period of extensive renovations in 2018, the Ritz hotel was set to re-open amid much fanfare, but this all came to nothing after the Cape Town High Court ruled that the management company occupying the building had not paid the necessary fees to Ritz Plaza‚ which owned the property. During the hotel's heyday, it was believed to boast around an 80% occupancy, with the Ritz hotel well known for its innovative design and it's eye-catching revolving restaurant, giving patrons a 360 degree view of the city. Unfortunately, the historic hotel has remained closed since July 2018, but according to property broker Ash Müller, a 'new chapter' could be dawning after it has been snapped up for a reported sale price of around R240 million. Interestingly, the post drew a response from Cape Town mayor Georgin Hill-Lewis, who commented: 'My wife and I ate dinner at the revolving restaurant on the night we got engaged. I really hope to see this old gem revived.' 'This was an award-winning and innovative hotel for its time due to the way it was built in a modular form,' Müller previously shared. 'The bathrooms and bedrooms were all prebuilt off-site and dropped in one by one from the top of the hotel. It won many awards in the early 70's for the way in which it was constructed.' Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 0211. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Star
12-06-2025
- The Star
AG still concerned about use of consultants in KZN municipalities
The Auditor General South Africa (AGSA) has seen an improvement in some KwaZulu-Natal municipalities including their reliance on consultants which decreased from R240 million to R220 million spent annually. Image: File The office of the Auditor General South Africa (AGSA) has seen an improvement in some KwaZulu-Natal municipalities, and while consultants are widely used, there has been a reduction in consultancy fees from R240 million to R220 million in the last financial year. Irregular expenditure also decreased from R6.2 billion to R5.7 billion. Nomalungelo Mkhize, AGSA Business Unit Leader in KZN, presented the local government audit outcomes of the Municipal Financial Management Act (MFMA) to the KZN Legislature-Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) and the Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs(Cogta), on Tuesday. Mkhize said they made a call to action at the end of the financial cycle in 2022 and 2023, requesting leadership to ensure that the key service delivery indicators are being prioritised with adequate funding to fast track infrastructure projects and to ensure that there is adequate budget for repairs and maintenance. Mkhize said that the AGSA has seen an increase or a gradual improvement compared to 2022 and 2023 in terms of the audit outcomes. Mkhize said that this demonstrates that the municipalities and the officials are able to present a credible set of financial statements indicating how the monies have been spent. 'Although we have seen a decrease in the use of consultants there are a number of municipalities that do use consultants for financial reporting. We still find misstatements in the work that the consultants are doing and at times the consultants are taking on work where they can see that they may not be able to conclude the work with quality. "We are also finding that consultants are not being monitored to see whether there is delivery according to what was contracted for." The AGSA said that municipalities are still struggling with action plans not being implemented and that there was a lack of enforcement being taken against officials that are found to have transgressed previously. Mkhize said that this is the root cause for the continued transgressions and the non-performance in some municipalities. "It then creates the culture that non-compliance can go on without the necessary consequence management. Officials are not being held accountable," she said. Mkhize said that poor payment practices are resulting in interest charges and penalties. Mkhize said poor management of electricity and water distribution losses are above the acceptable norms in a number of municipalities. "There is a concern regarding the credibility of share grants received from national and provincial government. If it was any other business they would actually be at a point where they need to be closed. There is also insufficient funds that are available to complete projects," she said. The AGSA said that in municipalities that ended the year in deficit, where expenditure was more than revenue, many of them already started eating into the next year's budget. [email protected]
