This is the first PRS project in the company's Polish portfolio to undergo certification for buildings already in use. This is also another element of the consistent ESG policy, under which ZEITGEIST confirms the quality, durability and environmental efficiency of its investments both in Poland and other countries in the region, including in the Czech Republic.

A mature building under the scrutiny of independent auditors

BREEAM In-Use is a certification designed for buildings already in use – you can apply for it no sooner than two years after obtaining an occupancy permit. In the case of the Górskiego Street development, scheduled for completion in 2022, ZEITGEIST deliberately chose this path: the certification was intended to confirm – based on an independent, external audit – that the building, now several years old, maintains good operational, energy, and environmental parameters despite the passage of time since its completion. The entire certification process was conducted by MVGM, the property manager, in collaboration with the ZEITGEIST team.

Estate Górskiego HOME by ZEITGEIST has 203 apartments Two- and three-bedroom apartments, ranging from 35 to 68 square meters, are located in four buildings at 6, 8, 10, and 12 Górskiego Street in Gdańsk's Oliwa district. Tenants can choose from furnished or unfurnished units. From the outset, the development was designed with energy efficiency and resident comfort in mind. Electric car charging stations are located in the surface parking lot.

"BREEAM In-Use is a certificate that doesn't evaluate a project on paper, but rather the actual functioning of the building – its energy and water consumption, management methods, quality of maintenance, and environmental policy. For the investor, this means a more difficult, but also much more reliable test. The result obtained for the five-year-old housing estate in Gdańsk confirms that the quality we designed at the outset translates into the building's actual parameters in everyday use," says Tomasz Dąbrowski, Managing Director of ZEITGEIST Asset Management in Poland.

Two stages, two standards

ZEITGEIST consistently pursues environmental certification at both stages of a building's lifecycle, adapting the type of verification to the stage of the project. Where the certification process begins during the design phase, the company utilizes standards designed for new developments. This was the case with ZEITRAUM Racławicka in Krakow, which received BREEAM International New Construction V6 certification shortly after construction completion. This mixed-use project, located on Racławicka Street in Krakow, combines a 289-bed student residence with 182 serviced apartments.

Quality confirmed also in the Czech Republic

The certification of the Górskie Home by Zeitgeist development is consistent with the ZEITGEIST Group's broader ESG strategy, implemented across all markets. In Prague, the office and retail complex Palac Dunaj, the result of the revitalization of a historic building, achieved LEED Gold certification, confirming high energy efficiency and the quality of the materials used, and additionally WELL Gold, assessing the comfort and health of the building's occupants. Prague's Rezidence Delta Hagibor, a PRS project implemented by ZEITGEIST in partnership with Invesco, also received the BREEAM designation.

"Environmental certification for residential projects, especially those already in use, is still rare in the Polish market. ZEITGEIST demonstrates that the quality of the building and the comfort of its residents are more than just a lip service to the company. As the facility manager, we were responsible for the entire process, which demonstrates that the market increasingly values ​​our knowledge of the properties we manage daily. This reinforces our belief that expanding our offerings to include commercialization, fit-out supervision, project management, and certification is the right direction for development, " emphasizes Jakub Kaźmierczak, managing director of MVGM Polska.

"For us, environmental certification isn't a PR exercise, but a part of how we manage buildings on a daily basis – in the Czech Republic, Poland, and other markets. Whether we're talking about the revitalization of a historic tenement house in the center of Prague or a new rental development in Gdańsk, the standard is the same: the building must be durable, energy-efficient, and suitable for living or working for decades. Certifications like BREEAM or LEED are a way for us to have this claim verified by someone other than ourselves," says Peter Noack, founder and Managing Director of ZEITGEIST Asset Management.

(Press materials)