Astarta business centre scheduled to open in Q1 2017 (UA)

Building photo

Astarta, the grade A business centre, became the first office building in Ukraine, which was certified under BREEAM International 2013 standard (Interim certificate). The business centre’s developer is TEK Energoinvest, global real estate adviser JLL managed the BREEAM assessment process.

 

Astarta business center is located at Podol area at the intersection of Yaroslavskaya, Naberezhno-Kreshatitskaya and Nizhniy Val streets. The project consists of three phases with a total area of 62,700m² and includes high-quality office spaces, meeting rooms and a variety of amenities, including cafes, restaurants, shops, bank, consumer services center. One of the competitive advantages of Astarta BC is large space renting opportunities – up to 4,100m² could be leased on the 1st floor. The parking area is provided for 420 cars and 114 bicycles.

 

Certification process was completed for the design of the first phase of the project. This phase gross floor area is 22,700m², net lettable area is 16,200m². Opening of the first phase of Astarta business centre is scheduled for Q1 2017.

 

The main sustainability features of the Astarta BC are as follows:

 

  • Energy efficiency is 15% higher than the requirements of ASHRAE US standard. This achievement is attributable due to high quality of project’s architecture (orientation of the building, daylighting of the premises), ventilation with an effective recovery, using of advanced materials, LED lighting and automated control of building’s engineering systems;
  • Effective layout, providing comfort working conditions for tenants. 100% of office premises have access to daylight and view out. Ventilation is provided with recovery system – fresh air is provided to the premises all the year round;
  • Reduction of water consumption through the use of cost-effective plumbing equipment, as well as the installation of water leak detection and prevention system;
  • During the design stage of the project a series of studies were conducted to make environmentally informed decisions on design alternatives – such as energy modelling in line with the international ASHRAE standard and the assessment of environmental impact of materials over the full life cycle of the building;
  • Landscaping design of the project creates pleasant environment and contributes to enhancing of local biodiversity due to use of native plant species;
  • The project aims to promote the use of alternative modes of transport through provision of bicycle racks and charging stations for electric vehicles. In the course of designing a comprehensive approach to creating an environment, provided by public transport and facilities for cyclists and pedestrians, the travel plan was developed in order to improve the transport accessibility of the building.

 

The decision to certify the Astarta business centre under the BREEAM standard reflects the aspiration of developer to create the commercial properties, which will correspond to the most recent international requirements, including the “green” building trend.

 

Yulia Schastlivaya, Deputy Director of lease department at TEK Energoinvest, comments: “Astarta business centre is the first class A office building in Ukraine, which was certified under world-wide international environmental standard BREEAM International 2013. Our goal is to bring the best and most recent international practices of ‘green’ building. The project is designed to meet the requirements and aspirations of international and leading Ukrainian companies. The company SCG International (London) was involved in the project development. Ukrainian company Kramall Studio has been acting as designer. I am sure that due to the modern and innovative engineering solutions implemented in the project, the excellent location and the possibility of renting a large space on one floor, our business center will be highly appreciated by customers.”

 

Martin Townsend, Director of Sustainability BRE Global, adds: “I’m always excited when I hear about new clients applying BREEAM; this is perhaps even more hard fought where BREEAM as a standard is not widely adopted in a country, where being a champion of best practice, comes with even more challenges, and the need to educate and inspire others to follow. In such a highly populated city such as Kiev it was also good to see that the client and the consultant pushed hard using BREEAM on looking at sustainable alternative to travel.”

 

Ksenia Agapova, Head of Sustainability Services at JLL, Russia & CIS, says: “Piloting ‘green’ building certification in Kiev and Ukraine influences greatly the real estate market on social and economic levels. For a number of international companies energy efficiency and independent environmental certification become key selection points when choosing a building for the new office or relocation. The BREEAM certification of the Astarta business centre will have positive impact on attractiveness of the object and will profitably allocate it on the high-quality real estate market of Ukraine.”

 

BREEAM is the leading international environmental assessment method for built assets; it was created in 1990 by BRE Global. Today BREEAM is a global quality mark for high-tech buildings. Over 546,000 certificates have been issued under BREEAM around the world, and 2.25 million buildings and communities are registered for certification. BREEAM helps to drive sustainable performance and value of a property asset and developments as a whole.

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