An artist’s impression of the Olympia Plza, which will be in Upper Hill.
The season for Kenya to shine on the world stage is around the corner and athletes hoping to represent the country at the London Olympics in August are hard at training.
Kenyan athletes have dominated the world stage for years now and to commemorate them, as well as showcase their achievements, the National Olympic Committee of Kenya, (Nock) is putting up a museum and hall of fame in a newly-proposed Olympic Plaza.
The proposed building which will cost Sh1.1 billion to put up is expected to earn Nock an income and to carry out its mission of promoting the Olympic spirit and movement in the country by sponsoring more athletes to take part in the games.
Hall of fame
People will get to know the achievements and celebrate Olympic heroes, both local and international, in a rotating museum and hall of fame to be put up on the top floor of the proposed plaza in the Upper Hill area of Nairobi.
Its location will allow visitors to the public space to view different angles of Nairobi as the room rotates giving spectacular views of the city.
“You will be able to see the entire Nairobi, a 360 view, from that floor. Located on a hill the building will offer a very salient view where people can relax,” said Godfrey Mutuma, a director at Dominion Valuers Ltd who did the feasibility study and are selling space at the property.
“Our aim is to create some form of movement here, keeping it within the Olympic spirit.”
To complement the museum, the top floor will also have a roof garden with a viewing deck, where guests can sit back and enjoy the sights and sounds of Nairobi from a vantage point.
The building’s concept is a twin tower and only one side of the rooftop will rotate.
Vincent Ochieng, the project architect says the rotating portion of the floor is on a turntable system supported by stainless steel structures embedded in strong concrete while the rotation mechanism is to be synchronised by a motor powered system.
The building is touted to be a green project that will use different conservation measures including rainwater harvesting systems to help water the rooftop garden, which will have flowers and grass planted on the water-proofed concrete floor.
It will also feature solar glass, especially in the museum to allow in natural light and the panoramic view but it will not let in heat.
Regular income
Situated on a hill, the 16-storey Olympic Plaza is expected to be a major attraction in Upper Hill, which has several interesting architectural buildings.
The objective of the commercial building is to help Nock sustain its operations and be able to send more Kenyans to future Olympics.
“We have to sustain ourselves so we can support more of our sports personalities so we decided to build something of high standards to give us a regular income,” Kipchoge Keino, Nock’s chairman and, himself an Olympic gold medallist, said.
Part of the office suites will be sold while the rest will be retained by Nock. Apart from the museum, there will also be a library, gym and restaurants in the premises.
The concept of a rotating rooftop floor is not new in Nairobi. Kenyatta International Conference Centre, built in the 60s, is home to the once famous rotating restaurant on the 28th floor.
Though the rotating floor has remained dormant for years, the KICC’s management says it is working at reviving it to give guests a 360 degree view of the city.
