Building F, the sixth Class A office building of Krakow’s Bonarka for Business (B4B) complex has opened today. TriGranit, the developer plans to deliver three more office buildings in the near future due to the increasing demand for office space in the region.
The eight-storey building has 10 000 sqm of gross leasable area, of which half has been leased before the official opening. Building F will host GlobalLogic and Luxoft, global providers of IT services.
The high standard areas in the new office building include among others good quality finishing materials, functional interior design, structured cabling, two staircases and fire protection, access control and DSO (sound warning system) systems. The building has been certified by BREEAM, which evaluates buildings for their friendliness to the environment and future user comfort, having gained very good grade.
„In Krakow we are seeing very high demand for modern office space. The capital city of Maopolska is willingly chosen by investors from the sector of modern business services, who are looking for high-end office buildings. Every year new businesses open their outsourcing centers and those already operating here are expanding their activities and recruit new employees. According to estimates, ITO/SSC/BPO centers in Krakow will employ 61 000, people by the end of the year and they will have more than 100 000 employees by 2020. Currently, nearly 40% of the offices built for leasing in Polish regional markets are located in Krakow, which shows the enormous potential of this segment. We expect its further development and we want to participate in it,” said Tomasz Lisiecki, Chief Investment Officer of TriGranit. “Our next Building G will be ready in early 2017. It is already 100% leased by Euroclear, which is currently operating in the Building C. The ability to expand the complex and offer current tenants more office space tailored to their needs is one of the strengths of B4B next to its functionality and convenient location."
Ultimately Bonarka for Business will offer 10 office buildings with a total leasable area of 95 000 sqm with a value of EUR 200 million. In the first stage of construction four seven-storey Class A office buildings (Buildings A, B, C, D), were put into service in 2011, 2012 and 2013. The second phase of the project consists of three eight-storey buildings - E (inaugurated in 2015), F and G (scheduled to open in 2017). Construction of another three office buildings H, I and J is planned for the next three years.
Bonarka for Business
B4B is part of a retail and entertainment center formed on the post-industrial area in the Podgorze district, one of the largest revitalized areas in Europe. In the years 1946 - 2002 the building housed Chemical Facilities Bonarka. Work on the restoration of 19 hectares of land began in 2006. Two years later the construction of shopping mall Bonarka City Center (opened in 2009) and a complex of high-class office buildings began.
One of the important aspects of the project was to change the existing local awareness of the negative connotations of the name Bonarka - from association with the degraded industrial area - to the vision of environment-friendly, attractive and friendly urban space.
This objective was achieved by using all existing natural attractions, such as parks, ponds, proximity to open spaces as well as through the integration of the functional and spacious shopping center.
The B4B complex was designed in the original urban layout, providing guests and customers with easy access to the offices with open public space that gives the opportunity to organize outdoor events and user activity. A 105-meter-tall chimney of the former cement factory, perceived now as a visual symbol of investment, stands as a relic of the former industrial function of this area.
The construction of the office complex B4B is conducted in accordance with the highest standards - both in terms of architecture, construction, safety regulations and environmental protection.
B4B is a laureate of many awards, for example "Krakow - my home 2014", "artURBANICA 2012" in the category of architecture and public space, "Prime Property Prize Malopolska 2013" in the category office building, as an example of a modern facility fully satisfying the needs of the most demanding tenants.
The main tenants in the complex are Alexander Mann Solutions, State Street, Euroclear, Herbalife, Lufthansa Global Business Services, RWE, SolarWinds, Global Logic and Luxoft.
TriGranit in Poland
The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Budapest, Hungary with additional offices in Warsaw and Bratislava. In 2015, TPG Real Estate, the real estate platform of TPG, one of the top global private investment firms, gained sole ownership in the company. With the transaction and by additional capital injection of TPG, the parties aim to create the leading retail and office platform in Central Europe.
TriGranit’s primary focus is on dominant, mixed-use “city centre” projects in strategic urban locations. TriGranit creates prototype developments including retail & office developments. The company has so far developed nearly 50 landmark projects in 7 CEE countries with a total value of €2 billion and has won more than 40 highly prestigious international awards. Beneath development and property management of own buildings, TriGranit focuses on the future on acquisition of Class A office and retail buildings as well.
Since 2003 TriGranit opened three shopping and entertainment centres in Poland. In this way, Katowice, Krakow and Poznan were enriched by half a million square meters of commercial space. In addition, TriGranit has also built a complex of 500 apartments in the vicinity of its shopping center Silesia City Center in Katowice.
Poland is one of the focus markets in the region for TriGranit in the future, the company sees great potential for the next years in the Polish market for shopping centres in regional cities with a population under 500,000 and also for office building developments in Poland’s large regional cities.
Currently, the company has a pipeline of over €500 million of developments in Poland, consisting of 2 retail projects with 160 000 sqm GBA and 8 office buildings offering around 135.000 sqm GLA, all of which are scheduled for completion within the next 3 to 5 years.
