Aareal Bank finances the most extensive project of urban development at present in Belgium. The International Property Bank provided the loan for all construction stages of the project "L'Esplanade" which will have a total cost of €265 mln.
"L'Esplanade" is located in the centre of Louvain-La-Neuve, a Belgian university town close to Brussels. It consists of the a recently opened shopping centre, the largest in the region (34,000 m² of lettable area), a newly-created pedestrian zone (7,000 m² of lettable area) and 221 modern apartments. 6,000 parking spaces and the first public transport station in Walloon Brabant enable transport for a catchment area of more than 500,000 inhabitants. The project was planned, developed and built by Wilhelm & Co, a leading Belgian project developer which enjoys an international reputation.
Christine Schulze Forsthövel, Managing Director Real Estate Structured Finance of Aareal Bank explains: "L'Esplanade has transformed the university town into one of the greatest attractions the region has to offer. It is expected that the development will attract between seven and eight million visitors per year."
The overall retail area amounting to approximately 41,000 m² offers various shopping and leisure activities. L'Esplanade houses 130 boutiques (including established brands such as Zara, Massimo Dutti, H&M, Esprit, C&A, Yves Rocher, Promod and Mexx), a multiplex cinema with 13 screens, numerous restaurants and several service providers (a bank, dry cleaner's, pharmacy, travel agency, hair salons, lockers and a baby corner).
Source: Aareal Bank
