A joint venture between London-based Benson Elliot Capital Management, acting on behalf of Benson Elliot Real Estate Partners IV, and KauriCAB Development Berlin, has entered into a share sale agreement with a subsidiary of Frankfurt Stock Exchange-listed ADLER Real Estate AG, relating to Wasserstadt Mitte, the joint venture’s 700-unit, residential-led mixed-use project fronting the Spandauer Schifffahrtskanal (Spree Canal) in central Berlin.
Since the acquisition of the riverfront site in August 2016, Benson Elliot and KauriCAB have worked to secure the necessary consents, designs and a fixed price construction contract to deliver a significant, high-quality scheme focused on multifamily rental accommodation. On completion of the c. 50,000 m² project, expected by year-end 2019, Wasserstadt Mitte will provide over 700 apartments, accompanied by a high-quality retail offering. It will become home to over 1,400 residents, helping to meet the growing demand for residential accommodation in one of Europe’s most dynamically evolving cities. The project is expected to have a market value upon completion and lease-up of c. €385 m.
Joseph DeLeo, Benson Elliot Senior Partner, said:“Benson Elliot began investing in Berlin residential in 2010, seeing early the opportunity in a city that has since enjoyed consistently strong economic, population and rental growth. Wasserstadt Mitte was Benson Elliot’s most ambitious Berlin residential project, but one we felt confident taking forward given the unique waterfront location and the secure outlook for rental housing in the city. Having taken the project through the planning and pre-development phases, it was an opportune moment to identify a long-term owner. We look forward to working with both KauriCAB and Adler to deliver this landmark contribution to Europacity’s renewal and Berlin’s continuing growth.”
Hagen Kahmann, Managing Partner KauriCAB Development, said: “This is one of the most significant residential developments in Berlin and we are pleased to have been involved in shaping a regeneration project that will have an influence on the city for years to come, both in terms of meeting its growing housing needs and in delivering a new quarter with high-quality architectural design to further enrich the capital’s international appeal.”
The Europacity project has transformed c. 40 hectares to the north of Berlin’s main railway station – an area which lay derelict for decades – into a new, mixed-use city quarter. The area is located a short walk from the Bundestag, various federal ministries, the Charité (Europe’s biggest university hospital) and Humboldt University.
Benson Elliot was advised by Greenberg Traurig.
