Real estate developer Zacaria signed one of the largest rental contracts in 2017 for an industrial space in Sibiu, with the German company Kuka Systems, which will expand its activity in Romania. The new Kuka production space is a built-to-suit project, covering more than 10,000 sqm.

Union Investment has expanded its Polish shopping centre portfolio by making its first investment of this kind in Wrocław. The latest addition to open-ended real estate fund Unilmmo: Europa is Magnolia Park, which comprises some 100,000 sqm of retail space. Sold to Union Investment by Blackstone for around €380 million, the shopping centre is almost fully let, with leases having an average of 4.2 years to run. The shopping centre will continue to be managed by Multi after the sale. Cushman & Wakefield advised Union Investment on the transaction.

A Slovak private equity group has disposed of a 6,800 sqm hypermarket in Liptovský Mikuláš with an exceptionally long lease with Tesco to a Czech private investor, Cushman & Wakefield announced on Twitter.

The Hungarian government plans to maximise the height of any building in Budapest at 65 metres, the minister leading the Prime Minister’s Office announced. János Lázár told journalists that there is a bill before Parliament that would ban the construction of buildings higher than 65 metres.

Tricity is the third largest regional market in Poland, after Krakow and Wrocław, in terms of office stock, now at 693,000 sqm. Absorption set a new high of 62,600 sqm in the first three quarters of 2017, compared to the five-year average of less than 39,000 sqm, says Cresa in its latest report.

A huge increase in urban logistics property space is required across key centers in Europe in the next few years to meet the exponential growth of e-commerce and the resultant need for last mile delivery in cities, according to a new research report from Cushman & Wakefield.

As a response to continued strong demand from tenants in Budapest and Bucharest, Skanska plans to launch several new projects in both capital cities. Marcin Łapiński, Managing Director for Hungary and Romania talked to Property Forum about the differences between the two markets.

Forte Partners have inaugurated the first phase of The Bridge office project located in the Grozavesti-Basarab area in Bucharest. The first building offers 36,871 sqm of leasable space. Its tenants include IBM and BCR. The first phase of the project was financed by UniCredit Bank. Bog’Art was the main construction contractor.

CPI Property Group acquired three hotel properties in the Czech Republic and Hungary: a historical building in Český Krumlov, an existing hotel in Olomouc and an office building adjacent to a hotel in Budapest.

Shopping centres of the future will become just ‘centres’ and will reinvent themselves as mixed-use destinations. Healthcare, educational and leisure facilities will all become a fundamental part of the shopping centre, according to new insights from the Future of Retail 2030, by CBRE.