New kid on the block

Sir Norman Foster, Richard Meier, Zahad Hadid and Anthony Bech have all accepted an invitation extended to them by Artsi Wine, president of Lilium, to participate in the design contest for a 200-meter-high skyscraper in the center of Warsaw. The architects are all flying in over the course of the next few weeks to examine the plot.

Lilium purchased the Marriott building together with the plot - which stands adjacent and includes the Marriott's in-ground courtyard - earlier this year in a transaction worth zł.430 million. The future building will stand on the corner of ul. Chałubińskiego and Al. Jerozolimskie, and plans call for it to be taller and more modern in design than its neighbor. Built in the 1980s, the Marriott hotel building is one of the city's older high-rise buildings.

"Our decision to develop the plot was based on our vision for Warsaw - a highly visible area in the center of the city, the center of Poland. It warrants a unique design," says Wine. "The four architects we invited to contribute ideas to the project are very enthusiastic and they all bring in an individual wealth and range of experience and know-how."

Lilium has given each architect three months to come up with a design concept which takes into account the current skyline and the project's relation to both the Marriott and the Palace of Science and Culture. The developer will also create an underground connection between the building and the central railway station, which is expected to undergo reconstruction itself once Polish State Railways, national and local governments have agreed upon terms. Lilium has set Q3 as an approximate date for the start of construction, and its completion date is aimed for 2012. The total cost of investment is estimated at E200 (zł.770) million.

The skyscraper will be a luxury residential development in the vein of nearby Złota 44 - Orco's high-profile project already under construction - or Donald Trump's residential/condo hotel developments in New York and around the world.

"There is a tendency all over the world for a return to the city center, especially for so-called 'empty nesters,' to be close to the action - culture, shopping, entertainment," says Wine. "There are a number of expats in the US, France, England and Germany who see Poland's great progress and who want to be a part of it by owning such an apartment in the center of Warsaw."