Rainbow in the Garden City

The immediate impression a visitor gets driving through the Garden City of Port Harcourt is an attempt by the planners and managers of this city to recreate the Garden of Eden—the perfect home—where Almighty God offered accommodation to the first family of Adam and Eve.

The beautiful layouts, artfully done connecting roads infrastructure, the parks and landscaping, all complemented by the rich and alluring architecture of both public and private buildings, amply lend credence to Port Harcourt’s sobriquet as a Garden City.

Rainbow Town, an initiative of the Rivers State government with the financial backing of First Bank of Nigeria, is therefore not an infraction, but a natural flow in the sequence and plan of events aimed to add more colour and splendour to the Garden City which is also home to Nigeria’s economic mainstay.

Conceived in tune with modern city development where people live, work and place, Rainbow Town is a self-sustaining, secure living community where residents will live in peace and harmony, fulfilling their life aspirations. This is because most of the residents’ needs can be met within the precincts of the estate. The amenities and facilities put in place would ensure this and, at the same time, avail the inhabitants of the essential ‘3Cs’ of convenience, comfort and class.

Sitting on 24 hectares of land with a promise of delivering about 1,181 housing units on completion, the well conceived, carefully packaged expansive residential scheme designed to out-class existing real estate offerings in the country, is planned to change the skyline of West Africa’s premier oil city.

Ikem Ume-Ezeoke , the MD/CEO of Messrs Homes & Homes Real Estate Solution Limited —the Town’s marketing agent—describes Rainbow Town as  a new concept in modern housing not only because of its magnitude,  but also because of the modern facilities that will be put in place for the residents.

“It is a once-in-a-life-time opportunity any wise person with the means would grab quickly with both hands because, overtime, the price would be reviewed due to popular demand. It therefore, pays to buy early”, he advises, assuring that by the 4th quarter of 2016, keys will be handed over to buyers.

The Town is a mixed development comprising different house-types which include apartments set in 25 high rise buildings, terrace houses and a few detached houses. A breakdown of the accommodation indicates that there will be 1,108 apartments in two and three bedroom categories; 60 units of terrace houses and 12 units of detached houses.

The apartments are in two distinct types of high rise blocks—the Point Block type which is on 15 floors and the City Block type set on 12 floors. There are 468 units of the Point Block apartments which are in nine towers while there are 640 units of City Block apartments in 16 towers.

Modern and functional infrastructure and facilities befitting the high net-worth residents, which the Town targets, will be put in place including electricity which will be provided all-round-the-clock through the efficiency of an installed 30 mega watts, noiseless gas turbine. Elevator systems are backed up with UPS to provide for the brief interludes of power outage. Security system is enhanced with a CCTV, electrified fencing round the perimeter wall and regular patrol and monitoring by well trained security details. Access to the apartments is also denied to intruders through access control mechanisms.

Potable, treated water is readily available with booster pumps at the base of every building. Refuse disposal is neatly done through chutes   installed in each apartment and efficient waste sewage treatment is in place. Each apartment is connected to gas supply while water hose rail is available on every floor to guard against any fire emergencies. The healthcare of the residents is thoughtfully considered in the provision of a 50-bed medical centre in the Town. The residents can avail themselves of the service of an Intercom system available in each apartment.

A community centre provides for the recreational needs of residents who can also conveniently shop for their needs in the shopping mall and convenience store. Sports facilities to be provided include lawn tennis and swimming pools for both adults and children. The management and maintenance of facilities will be entrusted into the care of a reputable facility manager.

The target markets for Rainbow Town are high net-worth individuals and institutional buyers. The latter group is expected to buy entire blocks of apartments.

Chuka Uroko