As first reported in our December 2024 edition, a new comprehensive tertiary education campus developed by JSE-listed higher education provider Stadio (www.stadio.ac.za), is steaming ahead in Durbanville, with Phase 1 set to launch in mid-2025.
“We know that a campus has to be integrated into a community. We have to factor in student life and the wider northern suburbs hub developing in Durbanville…”
The new Stadio Durbanville development is significant, since it supports the growth of the new Cape Winelands growth node anchored by the new Cape Winelands Airport and expected to make significant economic impact.
According to Salmon Smith, Senior Architectural Technologist at BPAS Architects, the firm behind the campus design, Phase 1 of the development is progressing efficiently and remains on track for timely completion. With careful planning and execution, the project continues to meet key milestones. Phase 2, scheduled to commence in 2026, will build on this momentum, ensuring a seamless transition into the next stage of development.
“The appointed contractor, Isipani Construction, has efficiently completed the erection of structural columns and the casting of floor slabs ahead of schedule, representing a significant milestone in the project’s construction timeline,” he says.
Located in Durbanville, in the northern suburbs of Cape Town, Stadio Durbanville plans to offer faculties in education, IT, law, media and design, commerce, architecture and engineering, with a planned capacity of between 4 000 and 5 000 contact learning students. The campus will officially welcome its first students in the 2026 academic year.
“The Higher Education campus is set to become a premier tertiary education hub – different to anything else in the Northern Suburbs,” says Smith. “It is located in the developing Groot Phesantekraal precinct, set to be a hive of activity, with a 30 000m² shopping centre under construction, and the future Cape Winelands Airport nearby.”
BPAS has ensured sustainability is at the core of the project’s design, he adds. “The campus integrates solar power solutions and passive design principles to optimise energy efficiency, and will be a pedestrian-friendly campus that prioritises student wellbeing.”
Smith explains that the evolution of the design came about during the construction phase and involved adopting a different approach to learning spaces. “The Fifth Teacher (being the community) design theory was incorporated to create connected and inclusive spaces,” he says. This builds on one of the people-first design philosophies BPAS adheres to, known as “environment as the third teacher”. This philosophy holds that students learn from teachers, peers and the space they’re in.This has since evolved to include technology as the fourth teacher, with community as the fifth.
Interviewed last year, Landseer Collen, founder and principal architect at BPAS, said his firm researched other universities and education institutions to learn from what had worked for them and what hadn’t. “We know that a campus has to be integrated into a community. We have to factor in student life and the wider northern suburbs hub developing in Durbanville, and ensure that we develop this into a precinct, rather than a group of academic buildings and facilities. BPAS focuses on people-centred design, and this has informed the approach to the Stadio campus, which aims to prioritise its users and ensure good ‘flow’ throughout.
“When it comes to the buildings, we’ve used the ground floor as a public sphere. Essentially, the campus is built vertically, as opposed to horizontally (as is the case with most traditional universities). As you move up the building, there is a sense of increased privacy, so you’ll find lecture halls and classrooms on upper floors. On the ground floor, the campus is completely pedestrianised and open to all students, so shared facilities such as the cafeteria and library are all at ground level.”
Project team:
Client: Stadio
Principal architects: BPAS Architects
Landscape architects: TruForm Landscape Architects
Engineering: KLS Consulting Engineers
Quantity surveyors: Calcoli Projects
Project management and principal agent: BPAS Architects
