La Lucia

La Lucia is a wealthy suburb located in uMhlanga in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa and is situated approximately 14 kilometres (9 mi) north of the Durban CBD. It was named after Lucia Michel. She and her husband Albert Michel founded the sugar cane farm La Lucia.

Commerce
Although La Lucia is mostly a residential area, to the east is La Lucia Mall, the only shopping centre in the suburb anchored by PicknPay, Woolworths, Edgars and Virgin Active and further north is La Lucia Ridge, a major office estate.

La Lucia Ridge
La Lucia Ridge Office Estate is an office estate bordering the M41 freeway to the north of La Lucia. The office estate owned and developed by Tongaat Hulett comprises 10 smaller office parks which include small and major corporations such as the headquarters for Unilever South Africa, Aspen Pharmacare, SA Home Loans and Consumer Relief as well as the regional offices for Multichoice, Sappi, Sanlam, Liquid Telecom and Deloitte. It also contains the German Honorary Consulate for Durban.

Geography
La Lucia is situated on a slope overlooking the Indian Ocean, forming part of the Northern Region of eThekwini, also known as the FunShine Coast or the uMhlanga Coast. Its neighbouring suburbs include uMhlanga Ridge to the north, uMhlanga Rocks to the east, Durban North to the south and Somerset Park and Sunningdale to the west.

La Lucia Ridge
La Lucia Ridge is a new office node situated on a ridge overlooking the Indian Ocean and is home to some of the lower density office parks in the greater uMhlanga area. Many of the office parks in this area are set in well-maintained, sculptured indigenous gardens, located just adjacent uMhlanga Ridge on the M41. The area is home to businesses such as Aspen, Tugela Steel and Unilever. The area is easily accessed by a network of major roads, including the M41, N2 and M4.

Transport
La Lucia is bordered by three routes, namely the M41 (north), M4 (east) and the M12 (west). The M41 is a major highway connecting uMhlanga with Mount Edgecombe and Phoenix to the west and provides access to the N2 (to Durban and KwaDukuza). The M4 (Leo Boyd Highway) connects Durban to the south with Ballito to the north. The M12 (uMhlanga Rocks Drive) connects uMhlanga Ridge to the north with Durban North to the south.

Education
Crawford College, La Lucia, established in 1999, is a large private school located in the suburb. La Lucia Junior Primary and Victory Christian Academy are also located in La Lucia.

Demographics
Many houses have been developed recently in La Lucia with the population growing substantially between 2001 and 2011. The population rose 121% from 2,899 to 6,414. Black Africans, Indians and Asians, saw an especially large increase in numbers.