Near Krakow's central station, ECE is tackling one of the most ambitious construction projects in Central Europe the multi-functional service center Nowe Miasto. As the heart of Nowe Miasto, the Galeria Krakowska has celebrated its topping-out ceremony yesterday.
The Galeria Krakowska is scheduled to open in the fall of 2006 and with it more than 250 stores on an overall leasing space of 60,000 m². Additionally, around 10,000 m² of office space and a four-star hotel with about 150 rooms are being developed. The investment volume of all projects amounts to ca. 250 million. The project partners for the construction of the Galeria Krakowska are ECE Projektmanagement and HGA Capital, a member of the HSH Nordbank group. In the second construction phase, which is currently in planning, two further hotels of different categories, apartments and offices with a total surface of 45,000 m² will emerge on the site.
With its direct access to the railway platforms, the Galeria Krakowska will actually become the new entrance hall of the Krakow central station. "The Galeria Krakowska is not only a shopping center. Most of the travelers will pass through the gallery on their way to the trains, and I can hardly think of a more beautiful entrance hall in all of Europe", says Jan Debski, manager at ECE Polska. After its opening, around 2,000 new jobs will be created in the Galeria Krakowska.
90 % already leased
One year before the opening, 90 percent of the sales floor has already been leased. The largest tenants are an "Ahold" food market, the consumer electronics store "Saturn", the large fashion stores "Peek & Cloppenburg", "H & M", "C & A", "New Yorker" und "Reserved", the sports shop "Maks Sport", and the children's fashion outlet "Smyk".
The reason for such positive response by the retail trade is the excellent accessibility of the service center. Nowe Miasto lies at the most frequented traffic junction of the town, only 5 minutes walking distance from Krakow's jewel: the Rynek, with its famous cloth halls and the Holy Virgin Mary Cathedral. Even today, 100,000 people pass by this location daily. The central station and the main bus station are directly connected to the Galeria Krakowska. Additionally, there is direct access to the municipal railway from the bottom story of the gallery. Nowe Miasto is also easily reached by car: 1,400 parking places provide sufficient parking space for the customers.
First-rate offices
This excellent location also benefits the office tenants. About 10,000 m² of class-A office space are being developed in Nowe Miasto. The modern design concept allows flexible arrangement of the stories into open-plan offices, conference chambers, and practices fully adaptable to the clients' individual requirements.
Project partners
HGA Capital issues closed-end real-estate funds and belongs to the HSH Nordbank Group. HGA Capital offers funds with the main focus on commercial real estate. These include office / business / administration centers, shopping centers, hotels and apartments. The properties are located in Germany, in the USA, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Austria and the United Kingdom. The sales of closed-end property funds issued by HGA Capital occur mainly through selected banks and savings banks.
Source: ECE
