Imara Daima, nestled a stone throw away from Mombasa Road, is among the organised middle class estates where demand for housing has steadily shot up following the improved infrastructure.
The estate started as a gated community but private developers are currently outdoing each other scrambling for space around it to construct high-rise buildings.
Imara is not only strategically next to Kenya’s busiest road but it is also among estates adjacent to modern office parks, manufacturing centres, leisure and entertainment spots.
Interestingly, the hood is regarded as middle income in real estate but the adjacent modern commercial premises are high end. Flats under construction are changing the estate.
Imara was born after the British American Tobacco (BAT) Kenya Ltd constructed 846 units in a medium cost housing development scheme. As a result, this hood is well organised with tarmac roads where children ride bicycles and roller skates after school and on weekends.
The hood is basically organised with the main streets to the houses bearing names such as acacia, cypress, wattle and Zanzibar.
Privacy is an overriding prerequisite at Imara where most main gates have notices of ‘visitors not allowed after 10pm’.
With the sudden interest by private developers, prices are going up at a high rate just like other estates along Mombasa Road, the main highway linking Nairobi to Mombasa, which has Kenya’s main port.
For instance, a plot that cost between Sh4 and Sh8 million two years ago, now sells for between Sh16 and Sh25 million, depending on its distance from the road.
Development of commercial property including headquarters of National and international companies along Mombasa Road has increased demand for housing in Imara Daima.
The City Council of Nairobi is currently erecting streetlights in the estate along the recently tarmacked road through the hood, connecting it to Embakasi.
It is among the few estates that have benefited from the installation of Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) pre-paid electricity metering systems.
Business premises line the entrance of this hood where residents buy domestic supplies and access barbershops and salons, among other services.
Apart from supermarkets within the estate, residents also have easy access to shopping malls such as Southfield and Capital Centre along Mombasa Road.
The International Christian Centre Imara Campus, Cathedral of Praise Ministries International and St John’s Everlasting Gospel Church are among the worship places in the area.
For the young at heart, KFC, Pizza Inn, adjacent to the estate’s junction, are among the nearest entertainment spots.
The hood is accessible to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, SGR and numerous export processing zone facilities ahead of the highway.
The expansion of Mombasa Road from two to four lanes on each carriage way temporarily eased traffic congestion for residents of Imara but then got overwhelmed after sometime. The upcoming Expressway might do the magic. There’s also Imara Daima commuter train to and from the CBD in the morning and evening.
Star rated hotels not far from the hood include Hilton Garden Inn, Lazizi Airport Hotel, Panari, Red Court and Ole Sereni.
Mater in South B and Nairobi West Hospital are some of the easily accessible medical facilities.
Educational institutions within the vicinity are Riara Springs in Imara, Highway Secondary School and Kenya Institute Of Mass Communication in South B.
Kenya Institute of Management and Kenya Water Institute in South C are also in the vicinity. The let down of Imara Daima, however, is their old number 33 matatus boarded at the bus station.
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