The Bulgarian Investment Agency has certified Forum Sofia as First Class Investment under the new Encouragement of Investment Act of the Minister of Economy, thus making the development possible of this 170,000-m² shopping center in Sofia. Forum Sofia is a joint venture between the biggest European investing developer Multi Development, and Meinl European Land, one of the leading retail property developers and investors in Central and Eastern Europe.
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Artist impression of Forum Sofia.
The Agency has awarded this certificate to the Forum Sofia project as part of their programme to promote large investments in the country. For the first class certification, the minimum requirement of investment is €35.8 million (70 million leva). Forum Sofia will become one of the biggest development projects in Bulgaria. For Multi Development and Meinl European Land this is a unique entrance on the Bulgarian Market that confirms and further extends their strong position in Central Eastern Europe.
The Project
Commercial center Forum Sofia will be situated on 180,000 m² of land in the southern part of the city of Sofia. It is a mixed-use commercial and leisure center on a total construction area of 170,000 m² with a leasable area of approximately 88,000 m². Forum Sofia will comprise more than 200 shops including big retail anchors in the sphere of furniture and DIY, a hypermarket and leisure, offering the best of retail in a state of the art shopping center.
The Concept
The concept of Forum Sofia has all the key ingredients to make it a success with the local community and to become a leading shopping destination for the whole city of Sofia. The location, the quality of the architecture, the quality of the shops and leisure facilities, the ease of accessing the scheme and the knowledge that each visit will be an enjoyable experience will all contribute to the scheme's drawing power. The top level of the project with food court and terraces offers scenic views over the Vitosha Mountains.
The open air scheme consists of buildings of different architecture set in a green environment with lush greenery and numerous plazas. Public transport is accessible from all sides of the project. Design elements pay tribute to historical local culture and architecture. Forum Sofia will bring a unique and new quality in retail shopping to Bulgaria that differs from the existing retail offer. Forum Sofia will be finished within two years from the start of the construction work.
The master plan of Forum Sofia is from T+T Design, from the Netherlands and the architects are ERA Architects, from Istanbul.
Bulgarian Investment Agency
The Bulgarian Investment Agency operates under the new Encouragement of Investment Act that regulates the terms and procedures for investing in Bulgaria. The law equally applies to Bulgarian and foreign investors. According to the new law, the Minister of Economy is the leading executive authority that shall perform the state policy in the investment sphere. In the implementation of this activity the Ministry of Economy prepares a strategy for encouraging investment in cooperation with other authorities of the executive power. Because of its size and investment volume Forum Sofia was
