The township was founded initially as a sugarcane estate. After the passing of the Group Areas Act, a law which designated specific regions for occupation by specific races, Phoenix became an Indian township. Sections were initially labelled as precincts or units, and then later renamed with proper street addresses.
Places in Phoenix
Until the early 1990s, Phoenix was divided into 'units' by the local government. These units have since been given street and area names, such as:
However, many local people still refer to areas by their unit numbers. There are many religious establishments such as musjids, temples and churches present in Phoenix.
Media and communication
Local news is distributed via regional newspapers such as the Rising Sun, the Post and Phoenix Tabloid. In terms of telecommunications and Internet access, 99% of Phoenix is covered by either wireless Internet connections such as LTE, UMTS, EDGE, and HSDPA, or have access to a landline/ADSL. The majority of ADSL users in Phoenix use Telkomsa as their Internet service provider. There are also many local Facebook pages that are used to relay news and crime related incidents.
Health and education
Public education in the Phoenix area is provided by various primary and secondary schools, one technikon and various FET colleges. There is one major government hospital, and one private hospital. Various clinics are also to be found, e. g. Grove End Clinic. List of schools in Phoenix:
Phoenix Plaza, Gem City, Starwood Mall and The Acropolis are some of the few shopping centres that can be found in Phoenix's CBD. These centres cater for various needs from top brand shops to local products.
Phoenix Plaza
Phoenix Plaza owned by Vukile Property Fund is a shopping centre situated north of Durban. The centre is home to more than 105 independent and national retailers with Shoprite as its anchor tenant. The shopping centre totalling a gross lettable area of 24,341 m² was built in 1993.
Transport
Three main means of public transport are available: private owned buses, taxis and the rail system including Uber & Taxify, Phoenix has its own railway station which connects to many towns in Durban. The King Shaka International Airport is a few minutes drive which provides various outlets. Totaling at 175 at its peak in the mid-90s, Phoenix had one of the largest number of private owned buses in South Africa. The two bus services that contributed to the transport landscape of the area were Mayville Coach Lines and Springfield Safari Tours.
Industrial sector
Phoenix also hosts a huge industrial area with big companies such as SAB Africa Miller, which produces beverages in the Coca-Cola family.
