Why Kilimani, Kileleshwa are Slowly Losing Their Posh Status

An undated image of constructions ongoing in one of the Posh Estates in Nairobi.
An undated image of constructions ongoing in one of the Posh Estates in Nairobi.
Prof. Alfred Omenya Twitter

In the recent past, there has been rapid transformation of posh estates in Nairobi including Kilimani, Kileleshwa, Lavington, Hurlingham and Westlands. 

Tall storey buildings dot theses estates, that were previously characterized by bungalows under controlled development. Kilimani, Kileleshwa, Lavington and their peers were the epitome of serenity, with trees and manicured lawns that gave residents a sense of class.

High-rise apartments are being constructed so as to provide more accommodation for Nairobi Residents close to the Central Business District, with the ballooning population. Some feel, that these posh estates are slowly becoming 'Pipeline Estate.'

The term 'pipeline' results from an estate in Embakasi area of Nairobi called Pipeline, which is known for having crowded apartments. 

An undated image of high-rise constructions ongoing in Nairobi.
An undated image of high-rise constructions ongoing in Nairobi.
Business Daily

The project, which many Kenyans have referred to as ‘The Hong Kong Way’ will see rents in these areas drop significantly.

In an interview with Kenyans.co.ke, on Monday, November 1, Professor Alfred Omenya an architect, stated that these reforms are one of the things that Kenyans need, to make life in Nairobi easier.

"Rapid transformation of Kilimani, Hurligham, Lavington, Kileleshwa, etc into "Pipeline Estate" is highly welcome. As rents come down this will provide much needed accommodation close to the economic epicentre of Nairobi. What is needed is upgrade of infrastructure and services" Professor Alfred Omenya stated.

However, although many Kenyans are happy with this initiative, a number have approached it with a lot of criticism, saying that this is one way to make Kenya retain its third world status. 

“Nairobi's infrastructure should be upgraded to first world status and the private sector will do the rest. Maybe we can even start infrastructure tourism. Next the government needs to laser focus on this,” Ule Mmoja noted on social media. 

In another argument, Kenyans argued that although this is a good initiative, it has sidelined the needs of children, as there will be so little open space. 

“My wish is that we also had more open grounds for children to play on because most of the tenants of these houses are young families. This is not prioritized in these kinds of development. We end up with a generation deprived of inquisitive opportunities to discover nature," Gerry Waimiri stated. 

They have remarked that our country has land which ‘stretches to infinity,’ with less population, and such developments are unnecessary.

"Nairobi land isn't limited. Hong Kong has an ocean and mountains surrounding it. Nairobi has 4 other counties. With visionary planning we'd have had light rail by 2015 to Kibwezi, Naivasha, Murang'a etc and you'd live comfortably in the village and work in CBD," Mwalimu Njoroge pointed out. 

An undated image of an estate in Hong Kong with high-rise apartments
An undated image of an estate in Hong Kong with high-rise apartments
BBC