The retail market in Romania is set to expand by more than 500,000 sqm in the next four years, with 10 of the projects in the pipeline each having more than 10,000 sqm, according to  Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. 

There are strange dances around the reconstruction of the baroque Savarin Palace in the centre of Prague. The CZK 10 billion project has been approved by the city's conservationists and city councillors and the first phase of the project is already underway, according to the builders. However, the Ministry of Culture has now rejected the project, saying it would threaten the city's conservation area, the Czech News Agency (ČTK) reports. Therefore, Culture Minister Martin Baxa has a request on his desk from the construction company Crestyl to review the decision of his officials, as company spokesman Ondřej Micka confirmed to Property Forum today.

EPP has finalised the sale of its 70% stake in the Towarowa 22 mixed-use project in Warsaw to AFI Europe. It is historically one of the largest land transactions in Poland in terms of value, with the total plot value exceeding €180 million.

Fidurock, the Czech/Dutch company that owns Retail Park Trnava, has started to build phase II of the project, which is located in Western Slovakia, 44 km northeast of Bratislava. The extension of this retail park is planned to be completed by the end of this year.

LPP, the biggest clothes manufacturing company in Central and Eastern Europe and owner of the Reserved, Mohito, House, Cropp, and Sinsay brands, is implementing Singu FM, a facility and maintenance management software from Velis Real Estate Tech. The system will be deployed across the LPP’s brand sales network of over 1,600 stores in 20 countries.

EPP, the largest asset manager of retail real estate in Poland, implemented a sustainable development strategy in 2021. The company aims to conduct its business in a responsible and transparent way while reducing its environmental impact and strengthening its social commitment. Following the strategy, EPP has set targets for the years 2022-2025 and is launching its first report, giving its ESG achievements to date the framework of GRI international reporting and EPRA standards.

The footfall in Czech regional shopping centres remained almost unchanged despite the previous years of the pandemic and all the lockdowns. The turnover and the average basket increased, and the vacancy is stable. However, due to the 18-week lockdown, the year 2021 fell behind 2019 by about 15%. The biggest concern now comes from the inflation and spending cuts reported by CBRE in its regular Shopping Centre Index analysis together with the results of two surveys on customer behaviour and expected plans of retailers.

Bratislava's Aupark shopping centre, owned by Wood & Company and Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, is adding another step to improve its sustainable management. In addition to sorting, low-energy lighting and water conservation, it is now installing hundreds of photovoltaic panels on its roof. The owners are hoping to make significant savings in energy resources, most notably saving 100,000 cubic metres of natural gas per year, reports the online daily Reality.trend.sk.

Multi Forum is a multi-tasking facility management application developed for Multi Corporation by a Dutch proptech startup. Data from several Multi managed shopping centres across Europe shows efficiency benefits. The Multi Forum app is now used in five out of the six shopping centres managed by Multi in Poland.

Romanian construction firm Synergy Construct will open in September a new retail park in northern Bucharest, next to highway A3, following an investment of €15 million.