Infrastructure gives lifeline to developers
A river runs through it: Support towers being built on Warsaw's Siekierkowski bridge, connecting the Siekierki and Bluszcze boroughs.
Although new infrastructure projects in Warsaw are principally aimed at remedying the city's traffic problems, they inevitably create new opportunities for investors.
The development of transport infrastructure is crucial for companies when choosing start-up sites and this in turn creates pressure for developers to find suitable locations, according to Darren Battle, national director of Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) (http://www.jll.pl) in Poland.
"In Poland, and particularly in Warsaw, there is a big reliance on public transport and so any improvements tend to become foci for commercial development, whether it be retail, industrial or residential property," Battle said.
He added that keeping track of developments in infrastructure allows JLL to anticipate its tenants' requirements in the future. "If a new ringroad is announced, for example, you can bet that the logistics companies and retailers will be interested in the land around that area."
The Warsaw Metro (http://www.metro.waw.pl) has been a hot topic since city authorities first commissioned plans in 1925. Construction began in 1983 and the first 11 stations opened in 1995. Since then Centrum station opened in 1998, two new stations opened last week and a further seven are to be completed by 2006.
The tender for the Dworzec Gdanski station has already closed, with the winning bid coming from a consortium led by construction company Budimex. The tender for the Plac Wilsona station has been announced, while Warsaw City Hall estimated that the completion of the northern extension of the metro will cost zl. 6 billion ($1.5 billion) at an average of $62 million per kilometer. According to city hall, this compares favorably to metro construction costs in other major European capitals such as London ($375 million per kilometer) and Paris ($155 million per kilometer).
For Warbud (http://www.warbud.pl)'s Krzysztof Samborski, the building of new metro extensions will considerably boost realty development. "When the metro reaches the north of Warsaw (the city) should see a period of new prosperity and rapid transformation," he said.
Battle said that developers have been quick to exploit locations close to the metro and particularly sites where a future crossing of two lines could occur. One such developer was AIG/Lincoln, which completed its Saski Point building on ulica Marszalkowska in 1999. "Saski Point is a development that anticipated long-term growth in the (plac Bankowy) area on the basis of the metro extension and it will benefit from being 50 meters away from a metro stop," Battle said.
Another developer to benefit from the metro is Sweden's Skanska (http://www.skanska.pl), which is building its Generala Zajaczka development, a three-phase complex of residential, retail and office space, close to Dworzec Gdanski. The project is due for completion in 2003, the same year as the adjacent metro station. "We always try to put our projects near good infrastructure, it's a key element in the planning of our projects," said Skanska PR manager Aleksandra Wasilewska. "The area's dense housing means a large population," Samborski said. "Further north towards Bielany and Marymont or Bemowo there's a lot of land with development potential and a great number of residents who currently have poor access to the city center."
Second metro line
The city is preparing plans for a second metro line connecting Praga with the west bank of the Wisla River. The projected cost of the line is E1.5 billion, which is to be spread over 20 years. So far the main forms of public transport to the east bank have been buses and Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa's (WKD) regional rail network. But for Samborski this is proving to be inadequate. "I'm not sure if the WKD railway is sufficient," he said. "It has been around for decades. It has always been a railway link for connecting smaller towns to central Warsaw rather than a way of distributing traffic around the center."
Samborski said the new metro link will help Praga attract investors who have traditionally shown more interest in the west bank. "If an east-west line is set up, this will stimulate both sides of the river, and this is especially significant for the Praga side, which still needs greater investment."
Siekierkowski bridge
The 826.5 meter-long Siekierkowski bridge is another crucial project for Warsaw. Together with Trasa Siekierkowska, which will connect the bridge with existing roads via 3.1 kilometers of road in Praga and 3.7-kilometers in Mokotow, the project will have a serious impact on reducing downtown traffic when it is opened in September 2002.
"The Siekierkowski bridge is one of the most long-awaited investments in Warsaw and the fact that construction began at all is very important," said Samborski, whose role involves building the bridge's 90-meter support towers. "The next stage of the development will be very important and will involve connecting the bridge to the existing road network."
For Hans van Hensberge of ING Real Estate (http://www.ingrealestate.pl) the project will also open more possibilities for development in the Siekierki area and in the heart of the city. He said the Wisla is more of a barrier than a feature of the city and that once commercial and residential developments appear along the banks it will become a far bigger element in Warsaw life. "Once bridges have improved mobility across the river, building along the river bank will become a reality," he said.
Wislostrada Tunnel
Aside from projects intended to improve the flow of human traffic around the city, attempts are also being made to upgrade existing infrastructure to improve the quality of life in Warsaw. The main project of this type is funded by the city's Centrum gmina, which intends to place a stretch of the Wislostrada, the north-south route along the west bank of the Wisla, in a tunnel. The section from Swietokrzyski bridge to ulica Karowa in the north, directly opposite Port Praski, is set to disappear underground at a cost of almost E48 million. A tender for the project, which is slated for completion in November 2002, was finalized in February 2001 and was won by a consortium of Polish companies: Warszawskie Przedsiebiorstwo Robot Drogowych, Hydrobudowa 6 and Energomontaz Polnoc.
According to Krzysztof Goller, chairman of Warsaw's Zaklady Budownictwa Miastowego Inwestor Zastepczy, the construction engineers managing the project, the land freed as a result of the investment will benefit investment and life in the city. "As a city we have always wanted to get closer to the Wisla, and this has been obstructed by the main roads along both banks of the river," Goller said. "The tunnel will make land available which will allow development of the waterfront and could also provide an integrated site for Warsaw University."
