JLL has completed the first phase of the modernisation of the Liberty Center shopping centre in Bucharest, owned by three banks (Alpha Bank, Bank of Cyprus and Eurobank) following the insolvency of developer Mivan Kier. Occupancy rate at Liberty Center has reached 91%, following a €400,000 investment.

NEPI Rockcastle has announced the acquisition of a 200,000 sqm land in Craiova and plans to construct one of the biggest retail projects in the region of Oltenia. The value of the investment is estimated at approximately €110 million and the construction will start after obtaining all the necessary approvals.

IMS Budownictwo has completed the sale process of Building A of the Zabłocie Business Park in Kraków. A company from the Austrian insurance group Uniqa became the office property’s new owner. The final agreement was signed on September 12th, with the transaction amounting to nearly €30 million. Knight Frank acted on behalf of the seller.

Ceetrus has unveiled plans for its Góraszka Project which the developer has dubbed an innovative retailtainment destination with a GLA of 77,000 sqm. It will be a premium location for the inhabitants of south-eastern Warsaw for shopping and spending time with family and friends. The facility is expected to be completed by 2022. Ceetrus is open to cooperating with new investors, the press release adds.

Ambitious revitalization plans, a thriving academic centre, nearly one million inhabitants living within its metropolitan area, as well as an increasingly improving infrastructure and extensive transport network are factors that are shaping the image of Łódź as a strong location for real estate investors. However, not only the office market is developing rapidly in the city. According to the report concluded by JLL, the City Hall of Łódź and HAYS Poland entitled "Łódź - Revitalizing a vibrant business and living hub", the residential and hotel segments are also achieving better results.

Bucharest’s modern office stock will increase by over 500,000 sqm in 2019 and 2020. According to Colliers International Romania, these dynamics of the office market could generate variations in the office buildings’ market values of plus or minus 5% during the indicated period. To measure these possible changes, three factors were considered: the average vacancy rate, the level of the incentives packages that owners offer to tenants and yield compression.

Panattoni Europe embarks on the construction of Panattoni Park Częstochowa. It is the developer’s first project of this kind in the north of the Silesian voivodeship. Two modern halls will offer in total 30,400 sqm of Class A space. Construction works are set to begin in October, and the first units will be handed over to tenants in February 2020.

Warburg-HIH Invest Real Estate is about to acquire the River Garden 1 in Prague via a share deal. The office building with its gross lettable area of 19,000 square metres and another 1,300 square metres of patio space is earmarked for the individual fund of a German investor. In addition to flexible office accommodation on six floors, the property from 2012 offers around 2,200 square metres of retail area.

Sylwia Toczyska, Director, Client Services at Vistra Poland looked at the withholding tax rules in the country, examining how further clarification is needed and the action that companies may need to take. An article from Vistra’s Global Real Estate Trends publication.

CA Immo has begun the construction of two premium office properties in the River City Prague complex, which is located in Prague’s Karlín district. Mississippi House and Missouri Park will complete the office complex, which currently includes three Class A- office buildings (Amazon Court, Nile House and Danube House).