| REAL ESTATE >
Karlín: Riverside rejuvenation
Written by: David Friday
Thanks to the efforts of both the city and a consortium
known as Investors for Prague 8, Karlín emerged from the floods
of 2002 with an infrastructure strong enough to support a rebirth
of office development. Now a boom of residential space is beginning
to follow naturally in that wake.
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Danube house
Photo: Jan
Vágner
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THE TOTAL STOCK of office space in Karlín is over 145,000 m2,
and projects currently in the works should bring that number to
650,000 m2 over the next several years.
The roster of major international companies that have located in
Karlín include firms such as Astra Zeneca, Aliatel, Panasonic,
and Ericsson. These early-comers are spread among now well known
buildings like the Zirkon and Rubin Office Centers, Palác Karlín
and Corso Karlín. Other recent arrivals include Fiat CR, in Danube
House, the first building of the ongoing River City Prague by developer
Europolis Invest, and KPMG, who occupy the majority of Florenc
Office Center.
Unlike before the floods, it's not only offices that are seizing
the development landscape. A significant increase in the proportion
of residential development is already visible. The largest of these
is River Diamond by Serge Borenstein, Tom Samii and Partners, which
is now beginning construction on a large stretch of land across
from Štvanice Island. The 230- flat building, designed by Safer,
Hájek and Associates, skimps on little - even enlisting local design
star Barbora Škorpilová to handle the interiors. According to Milorad
Miskoviè Miško, head marketer for the developer, undertakings of
this scale are just the beginning. "There are approximately
1 million m2 in both commercial and residential sectors in the
pipeline for the next several years," notes Miško.
Residential developer TeMD Group, known for its previous projects
in other districts, is currently building its first in Karlín,
inland on Køižíkova street. Domino House, as it's called, is a
60-flat complex that is virtually all-new except for a 19th-century
wheel factory facade it uses as a cornerpiece. The CZK 250 million
project, aimed at the upper-mid segment, includes a fitness center
and supermarket. "The main reason we were attracted to Karlín
is the rapid development through a very well organized group of
investors and local authorities open to new ideas," says TeMD
managing director Mirko Medenica.
Others have voiced a similar sentiment. Muška, a developer known
for residential development in Vinohrady, has also chosen Karlín
- in fact, the same street - for its next project, a block of smaller "starter" flats.
While Karlín's development in the office, and now residential,
sectors is relatively strong, many in the area would like to see
retail follow suit. "I give an open invitation to retailers
to come to the area," says Medenica. "Karlín is alive,
but a suitable number of small shops and cafés is still missing." Highlights of current planned infrastructure
changes:
- Third phase of reconstruction of Pobøežní street will be extended
beyond Šaldova intersection (cost: over CZK 1 billion) through
to the Libeò docks.
- Complete overhaul and landscaping of Maniny
and lower Libeò riverside: currently industrial land will be
made into green space, continuous
with the present Kaizl Park.
- Construction of a tunnel under central
Libeò through which part of planned extension of Pobøežní will
pass.
- Better electrical power distribution via construction
of a new electrical switching station.
- Connection of sewage
system to a new reservoir to reduce pollution into the Vltava.
Property sales
Karlín has long been a hotbed of development deals. Here are the
major transactions conducted in the area since the first in 1998.
- The Mediatel Building: Buyer: Czech
Real Property Partners (1998)
- Karlín Administration Centre (Unilever HQ): Buyer: Czech Real Property Partners (1999)
- Zirkon Office Centre: Buyer: Bank-Austria Creditanstalt ImmoTrust (2000)
- Rubin Office Centre: Buyer: Bank-Austria Creditanstalt ImmoTrust (2001)
- Palác Karlín: Buyer: Immorent (2001)
- Corso Karlín: Buyer: Bank-Austria Creditanstalt
ImmoTrust (2002)
- Danube House (49%): Buyer: DIFA (2005)
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BUILDING OF THE MONTH
The Forum, offering reconstructed office and retail
space, was recently unveiled at Wenceslas Square 19 by developer
and investor Flow East.
Housing 6,000 m2 of office space on five floors above 1,200
m2 of retail space with frontage looking onto the elongated
square and Jindøišská, the property was purchased for approximately
CZK 350 million, according to Flow East CEO James Woolf. With
construction eating up another CZK 250 million, Woolf said
the majority of the finance came from the developer, the rest
from a "couple of individuals".
45% of the total available space was leased at the time of opening. The retail
units will host Swedish fashion-retailer H&M, who recently opened their
first city-center store in Myslbek, and luxury cosmetics brand Sephora's seventh
outlet in the Czech Republic.
Reuters news agency and toy giant Mattel amongst others have taken offices,
which rent at EUR 15-17.5 per m2. Leasing agents are Cushman & Wakefield,
Healey & Baker and CB Richard Ellis.
The neo-Baroque building, originally commissioned in 1896, took a year to reconstruct
according to the design by SH Architects. Beneath are 22 parking places.
Currently surrounded by construction works courtesy of Mùstek metro station,
the corner-plot should be clear by the summer said Woolf. He adds that Flow
East hopes to see the metro entrance moved further from the main doors of the
building.
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Photo: archive |
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10 questions
Jean-Francois Ott (40),
President & CEO, Orco Property Group
What was your first job?
A trader on future options.
How did you decide to make the move to the real estate sector?
Probably because I wanted to buy my own building.
Did you ever imagine 15 years ago that you would be doing business
in Prague?
Not then, but after my first stay in Prague, yes.
What do you like the most in the real estate business?
You can either create a new building or renovate a historic place.
What do you despise in the real estate business?
Indecision, deals that take time, guys who take too long to decide.
Which is the best real estate deal you ever made in Prague?
All of them, as each deal is a new story.
Which is the worst deal you ever made in Prague?
All the good deals that I've missed!
Which is your next biggest real estate project?
Luxembourg Plaza.
What do you think will be the next place/area/ segment to develop in
Prague?
The Benice area, and the upper-to-middle class residential segment.
What do you think most people don't know about you?
That I'm a musician who performs at least once a month at Rhapsody, and that
I would have liked to have been an artist
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