The whole essence of providing infrastructure, especially roads, in any given location or neighbourhood is not only to give residents stress-free access to other important locations, but also to enhance the value of real estate assets within the area.
This, according to government authorities, partly explains the decision of the Lagos State government to embark on the construction of the 8.5km Lekki Regional Road amid dislocation of economies and development projects across the globe by the rampaging coronavirus pandemic.
The road, to be constructed on a 45-metre wide Right of Way (RoW) with, at least, three bridges and 15 culverts, experts say, presents both opportunities and risks to property investors who may wish to take advantage of the road that is expected to offer alternative route to the ever-busy Lekki-Epe Expressway.
A major opportunity which the new road project offers investors is quick appreciation in property value. “The interesting thing is that the announcement of the construction of the regional road is already impacting positively on real estate in the Ajah and Elegushi areas.
“More specifically, it is directly impacting on major new city projects happening on the new Lekki Central Zone and the new Lagoon District, both located within the Lagoon water body to the north of Lekki-Epe Expressway,” a developer confirmed to BusinessDay, craving anonymity.
Aramide Adeyoye, Special Adviser to Governor Sanwo-Olu on Works, affirms, pointing out that a major beneficiary of this project is Gracefield Island in Lekki Central. Another gainer is Orange Island and Ostia, also located within the Lagoon District.
Jaco Van Heeyl, an Engineer and Construction Manager of Gracefield Island, had earlier been reported as saying that the development would benefit greatly from both the proposed Lagoon Highway and the Lekki Regional Road but, in his view, the Regional Road was of immediate importance.
A recent independent market survey shows a 25-percent increase in value on Gracefield Island within Lekki Central where, on completion, the Lekki Regional Road brings commuters within 10 minutes from Ikoyi and 5 minutes from Lekki Phase 1, on a road which, the developers say, will be devoid of social distractions.
But concerns remain on the probable and possible risks investors may face in that corridor. Idris Salako, the Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, has already warned developers to keep away from the RoW of the proposed Lagoon Highway.
This means that land buyers and estate developers have to be cautious enough to do their due diligence well before committing money on any property—landed or built-up in that corridor. “The construction of that road, arguably, makes this corridor a very attractive investment destination, but investors have to be wary; anybody who buys within the roads right of way is sure to lose his investment,” the developer warned.
Some developments in that corridor such as the Cowrie Creek Estate are already affected by the road’s right of way and property owners in that estate estimate that about N10 billion could be lost to the road construction.
Other developments may suffer the same fate as Salako observed that the corridor had been encumbered by physical developments, including shanties, which negate the objectives for which the regional road was conceived, regretting that some estates, buildings and structures had encroached on the RoW of the road in Lekki axis.
Citing Section 21(1) (a) of Lagos State Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law, 2015,which bestows on him the power to revoke otherwise approved building layouts, the commissioner announced the revocation, in part, a section of Elegushi Chieftaincy Family Layout that falls within the regional road alignment.
An earlier report by BusinessDay quotes the commissioner as saying that “Lagos State granted title to land measuring about 500 hectares and issued layout approval (1991) wherein four major roads were recognized.”
“These are Coastal Road and Lekki-Epe Expressway, Southern part of Elegushi Land, Regional Road and Lagoon at the Northern part of the Elegushi layout, all running parallel to one another. The roads have been envisioned to engender social-economic and transportation development of the state,” he explained.
