Czech developer UDI Group has started construction of more apartments in the Polish capital. As part of the Classic Ursus project, it has now started construction of the second phase, in which it will build a total of 272 apartments in two apartment buildings. The phase also includes a challenging reconstruction of the listed original entrance building to the Ursus factory. A total of 960 apartments will be built in the Classic Ursus project in Warsaw under the Czech developer's management for a total cost of CZK 2.8 billion (€117.7 million).
"Due to the increase in the price of construction materials and works, the cost of the second phase has risen by about 30 percent compared to the first phase completed last year. The selling prices of the flats are also slightly higher. Nevertheless, they are roughly half of the current prices of new buildings in Prague. Buying an investment apartment in Warsaw would thus be worthwhile for Czech investors, even taking into account the historically record exchange rate of the koruna against the Polish zloty," explained Marcela Fialková, Director of Strategy at UDI Group. "The primary buyers for us, of course, continue to be local households - families and young people, but also local housing investors," she added. "The entire construction market in Europe has reacted to the shortages of material supply during Covid and the subsequent rise in energy prices. Prices are rising in the same way here and in other European countries where we do business," Fialkova added.
The modern housing was designed by the leading Polish architectural studio Kuryłowicz & Associates
The author of the architectural design of the entire complex is the renowned Polish architectural studio Kuryłowicz & Associates. The industrial character and the brick entrance building are written into the design of the new buildings. The UDI Group development is one of the last on the original brownfield site of the Ursus factory. On the surrounding parcels towards the railway that connects the site to the city centre, projects are already completed and occupied. Only the more distant plots from the railway are under construction.
"When creating the Classic Ursus project, our main goal was not to differentiate ourselves from the surrounding development. But as we can see, it has become so. It comes from the higher standards of the project and the contrast of the light grey shade of the façade against the dark graphite architectural details, which on the whole creates a minimalist, elegant architecture," said Salma Amarin of Kurylowicz & Associates, the project's designer.
The first phase was built for UDI Group by Hochtief Polska, and the next phase will be built by Unibep, a major Polish construction firm that offered better terms in the tender. The project envisages both smaller starter flats for young people and larger flats for families.
A challenging reconstruction of a historic building
"The historic building of the original gatehouse of the Ursus tractor factory from the 1930s will provide the entrance to the site. This will be revitalised by the UDI Group and will most likely house a restaurant, shops or offices," said Fialková. The project will also include a park.
