PROJECT

Construction of Orco Property Group's Z∏ota 44 project, a new luxury high-rise located in the heart of Warsaw, is slated to begin early next year. The building, designed by Daniel Libeskind, will include 251 apartments, a yoga room, spa and swimming pool. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2009.

SALE

IPB Real, a member of Orco Property Group, began selling apartments in its Štěrboholské zahrady residential project. The project's 108 apartments have easy access to a park, and eight detached villa houses have large, private gardens. The apartments are going for 37,200 Kč per square meter ($1,750 per 11 square feet).

MARINA

Prague Marina, a new housing project taking shape on the Czech Docklands in Prague 7-Holešovice, will contain almost 350 apartments, ranging from studio flats to spacious penthouses. In addition to apartments, the buildings will include restaurants, coffeehouses and other services. An extensive landscaped green area will provide a recreational zone with plenty of room for both active leisure and relaxation. The first phase of the development began in October. It will be completed in mid-2008. Two more phases will take place from 2007 to 2010.

DEVELOPMENT

Construction of Green City, a new housing development that will consist of nearly 900 residential units, will begin this spring. The project, designed by United Architect Studio, will go up in the area where Prague 3 borders Prague 9. Nearly every apartment will have either a terrace or a balcony, while the ground-floor apartments will have small gardens. The first tenants will be able to move into the apartments in autumn 2008.

HOMES

The ECM Group plans to build 104 family homes in Unhošť, beginning next spring. The first phase will include 55 family homes that will be completed by the end of next year. The second phase will be completed a year later. Buyers can choose between three- and four-bedroom options. The average cost will be around 5.5 million Kč.

SHOPPING

The Šestka Shopping Center in Prague 6 has opened. The center has more than 100 shops, including restaurants, a bank, hairdresser's, nail studio, florist, express dry cleaner's and a children's play area. There will be more than 1,000 parking spaces available. Šestka is open every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. TK Development also has plans for development of the area adjacent to the shopping center. Plans there include a retail park, a hotel complex and office buildings.

LEASE

Pivovary Staropramen has leased more than 2,000 square meters of office space in Building 10 of The Park at Prague 4. The new European Shared Service Center will provide export services for several European countries and has been fully operational since September.

SELECTION

Skanska Property Czech Republic selected DTZ, a global real estate consulting firm, to help market and lease its new 4,500-square-meter office project in Prague 4. The Grade A office building is due to start construction at the beginning of next year.

VACANCY

Almost 150,000 square meters of modern warehouse space was leased during the third quarter of this year, according to a recent report published by CB Richard Ellis. But, despite this strong demand, the overall vacancy rate of Czech warehouse space increased to new record levels, according to the report. Vacancy rates as of the end of September reached almost 6.5 percent in the greater Prague area.

REPORT

This is an "excellent year" for the Prague office market, according to the latest publication by CB Richard Ellis. Total takeup for the first three quarters of 2006 reached 213,924 square meters, and, if things continue at this rate, office takeup could surpass 2003's record of 267,170 square meters, according to the report. The trend of declining vacancy continued in the third quarter, falling more than 200 basis points to 8.96 percent, the report states.

SPA

The ECM Group signed an agreement with the Hamburg-based company MeridianSpa to develop the first spalike sports and recreation center in the Czech Republic, in one of the complexes that is to be built on the Pankrác Plains. The CITY DECO building will offer its future clients and visitors a full-scale combination of sports and relaxation activities, including professional complimentary services. The facilities will offer special programs for mothers with children, senior citizens and active citizens, as well as managers with heavy workloads.