Skanska has commenced the construction works on the first phase of the Spark office project. Spark will be developed on the so-called Serek Wolski area at the cross section of Okopowa and Towarowa Streets and will comprise office space distinguished by a publicly available square, open fresh-air working areas and an amphitheater. It will be the first office complex developed by Skanska in Poland to have beehives located on the roof of its first building. Furthermore, Spark will be the first office project to be recognised with “Object with no boundaries” certificate approved for buildings adjusted to the needs of disabled people.
Spark was designed with focus on the needs of all of its users – employees as well as local residents and people with disabilities. In order to ensure the wellbeing of day-to-day users of space available at Spark, foundations such as Na Miejscu and Project for Public Spaces - both specializing in friendly public spaces - were invited to co-operate on the project and design works. Thanks to consultations conducted with experts and the support of foundations in collecting opinions from residents, Spark will be fully adjusted to users’ needs. Furthermore, representatives from Skanska are also conducting talks with, among others, local entrepreneurs operating within the area and aim at selecting retail and services points so that they conveniently complement each other with local businesses.
In total, the project will consist of three office buildings, including a 130-meter high tower. After completion, Spark will provide its tenants with approximately 70,000m² of leasable space.
“During the project and design phase we focused greatly on developing Spark in a socially responsible way. We also want to go a step further and create a good place for business development that evokes positive emotions on one hand, and on the other, provide office space serving well to the residents of Wola district and Warsaw as a whole. We will provide space for relax both inside and outside the buildings. By combining knowledge from our partner foundations and our project team, we were able to appropriately consult the planned space and adjust it to the needs of resident and people with disabilities. We hope that Spark will become the new showcase of this part of Warsaw,” said Arkadiusz Rudzki, managing director at Skanska Property Poland.
The architectural project of the complex was prepared by Kuryłowicz&Associates.
“Due to the fact that the location’s character is described mainly by nearby communication arteries, we would like to develop a complex of buildings with a unique, characteristic architecture that would be available for all and open towards its surroundings as well as enhance local space. The complex’s architecture will be modest, elegant and unified. We operate with common means of expression in all our buildings and individualize them through details. One of the main goals was to develop internal common space despite the independence of particular buildings. Thanks to different forms of openings, internal courtyards are linked with both Aleja Solidarności and Wolska Streets and eliminate barriers characteristic for building quarters with full-length frontages. We planned to develop an oblong square along Aleja Solidarności Street on the corner with Okopowa Street. It will provide urban space with greenery and elements of urban furniture and will reach deep inside the quarter,” said Jacek Świderski, Kuryłowicz&Associates.
