The apparent differences between the various business centres (from their architecture to the properties’ geographic location) cannot conceal the fact that many office properties have similarities. Whether they are located in “Transdanubia”, on the Waterfront, in the Wienerberg area or in the middle of the city – the locations all offer first-class connections to the motorway network and the public transport system. Another conformity trend can be seen in the increased use of energy-efficient building concepts: Through heat recovery and activation of thermal mass as well as the use of natural resources such as groundwater, solar and geothermal energy, energy costs – and as a result, operating costs – are being lowered. [ IN ]

Commercial Area becomes Business Park

In Vienna’s 14th district, a new creative cluster is being formed. After the renovations and redesign are completed, the old commercial area on Missindorfstraße will present itself as “Business Park Breitensee”. The small but fine business quarter is being developed by Wien Holding and “at home”, a subsidiary of the non-profit housing construction group “Neue Heimat – Gewog”. In the new part of the Business Park Breitensee, Wien Holding will also implement their UNIT concept. Nine custom-made, separate office and work units for production and services are already available. The entire business park will offer 25,000 square metres of office and commercial space as well as approximately 70 apartments; completion is scheduled for 2011.

At the Top of Wienerberg

Construction continues at Euro Plaza: Real estate developer Strauss & Partner initiates the fifth expansion stage at the modern office park, during which three buildings with a total of 35,000 square metres of office space will be erected. After the scheduled completion in 2011, the following sixth construction stage will follow immediately with two more buildings which will form the southern end of Euro Plaza. Another office property by Strauss & Partner, located right next to the Vienna Central Station, is about to be opened. LX2 does not only offer approximately 6,000 square metres of modern office and commercial space, it is also the first office building to be completed in the area of the new Vienna Central Station. The location of Wienerberg has even more potential thanks to its smart usage mix of offices, residential projects and a shopping and entertainment centre. Business Park Vienna’s plans for expansion are being forged as well. Directly on Triester Straße, right next to the Vienna Twin Towers, two new, ultra-modern office properties are being projected. Further south, in Vienna’s Liesing district, the Vienna Business Agency (VBA) together with Immorent is transforming a former industrial area into the new Business Park South. The six hectare large, completely developed area offers plenty of space and excellent infrastructure for expanding businesses and newly established companies. Immorent offers full service for new business settlements, “from planning to construction management and of course financing as well,” says Gerald Antonitsch, Executive Director at Immorent.

Biotech Centre in the North-West

The spatial expansion of the Vienna Insitute of BioTechnology (VIBT) of the University of Natural Resources and Applied Sciences Vienna (BOKU) on Muthgasse through a new laboratory and office building is adding further value to the location in Vienna’s 19th district. The new institute was completed by Glamas Beteiligungsverwaltung GmbH & Co “Alpha” KEG, a consortium consisting of BAI Bauträger Austria Immobilien GmbH, Porr Solutions, Vienna’s urban development organization WSE, and MAP Bürodienstleistung Gesellschaft mbH, a subsidiary of the Vienna Insurance Group. “Glamas and WSE have even more land at our disposal in this area. We are aware of the area’s great potential and if there is a need in the future, we will gladly build further expansions for university and business users,” says Josef Herwei, Managing Director of WSE.

Business District Vienna-Erdberg

For some years now, there has been a lot of activity surrounding the former abattoir quarter, where a new district for scientists and businesses is forming. The centrepiece of the St. Marx urban development area is the Media Quarter Marx, the new stronghold for the creative industries. Until the end of 2010, the city will develop approximately 25,000 additional square metres of rentable space as a PPP project. Development of the 37 hectare large area is the responsibility of WSE, who are implementing numerous projects themselves together with partners from the finance and construction industries. One of them is Marxbox, a new technology property with laboratory and office space that will be completed in cooperation with S+B Group by early 2011. Marxbox is located in the immediate area surrounding the Campus Vienna Biocenter (VBC). The 40,000 square metre large Office Campus Marximum, a green building complex consisting of five individual building units that was developed by Hochtief Austria, is ready for occupancy. Another 9,000 square metres of office space are offered at S+B Group’s green building Solaris, which was handed over to tenants in late 2008. The business park of TownTown, which has entered its final construction stage, is only a few minutes’ drive away. By the end of 2012, the last six of 21 Company Buildings are scheduled to be completed. Not far from TownTown, the former Customs Head Office is awaiting its revitalization and new purpose: The federal real estate management company, BIG (Bundesimmobiliengesellschaft), together with real estate developer Soravia will transform this seventies landmark into a modern, multi-functional residential, commercial and office complex starting in mid-2011.

Wien Mitte

Just outside Vienna’s inner city, in “Wien Mitte”, the construction project around one of the city’s most important traffic hubs is moving ahead – “Wien Mitte” is taking shape. Two thirds of the approximately 92,000 square metres of rentable space are designated for office use, while the rest will be used for shopping. This central business, shopping and traffic location also houses the terminal for the City Airport Train (CAT), a non-stop direct connection from Vienna’s inner city to the airport. BAI Bauträger Austria Immobilien GmbH is responsible for developing the project; completion is scheduled for 2012. In the vicinity of Wien Mitte, a modern office complex is being developed at Vordere Zollamtsstraße 13 through the complete reconstruction of the former Zentralsparkasse building. Re-developer of the office property known as VZ13 is Signa Holding, who through the addition of an extra floor to the building will create a total of 18,500 square metres of rentable space by the spring of 2012.

From Danube Channel to Handelskai

With the recent purchase of the IBM building, Raiffeisen-Holding NÖ-Wien has completed the “Raiffeisen Mile” along the Danube Channel. It stretches from the Uniqa building to the Uniqa business tower with the new five-star Sofitel hotel and the NEWS tower all the way to the Vienna Raiffeisen building and its neighbouring annex at the location of the former OPEC building. Vienna is growing, and leading the way is the district of Leopoldstadt. The business and office axis stretches from the Praterstern traffic hub via the Vienna Exhibition Centre all the way to the Danube. A mixed-use project is being developed at the Ausstellungstraße/Perspektivstraße location, including modern office space, as well as a hotel, serviced apartments and even a kindergarten. Starting in 2010, it will be implemented by two Viennese development experts: IG Immobilien and IC Projektentwicklung. Close to the Praterstern location and until 2011, S+B Group will transform the former UCI cinema centre in two construction stages and convert it into “Green Worx”, a modern office building in connection with a 420-room hotel.

Viertel Zwei & Messecarrees Vienna

Viertel Zwei, an entire neighbourhood in Vienna’s 2nd district, is collecting awards. Since the first of parts of the project - which includes four office properties, a hotel and a residential complex - were completed, one award is following another. In 2008, Hoch Zwei and Plus Zwei were honoured with the Diva Award; at last year’s awards ceremony, it was Rund Vier’s turn to win. This was followed by the 2009 “Bauherrenpreis” builder’s award for Hoch Zwei, and to top it all off, Michael Griesmayr, owner of IC Projektentwicklung, received the Cäsar 2009 in the category of Builder 2009. Besides the previously mentioned award winners, the office ensemble at Viertel Zwei is completed by the office building Biz Zwei. To the north and south of the new Vienna Exhibition Centre, the two projects “Messecarree Nord” and “Messecarree Süd” are awaiting their implementation. On the southern side of the Exhibition Centre, excavator machines have already driven up in order to make room for the new Vienna University of Economics and Business. After demolition of the existing halls, construction of the individual new buildings will begin in the fall, starting with the centerpiece of the new campus – the “Library and Learning Centre”. If the project proceeds as planned, the new campus will be ready for approximately 25,000 students by the winter semester of 2013/1014. For the development and operation, the federal real estate management company BIG and the Vienna University of Economics founded the project company Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien Neu GmbH. In cooperation with Wien Holding subsidiary Wiener Messe Besitz GesmbH (MBG), the PRISMA Group of Companies and Österreichisches Siedlungswerk (ÖSW) are responsible for the development of the new district north of the Exhibition Centre. The urban development competitions are closed, and the planned office and commercial spaces, hotel and a so-called short-term residential tower are about to be implemented. The new properties are scheduled to be completed by 2013.

On the Waterfront

For over ten years, the Millennium Tower has dominated the Handelskai area; now, the Waterfront’s skyline has changed considerably thanks to the two office buildings of Catamaran and Rivergate. Developed by Signa Holding, Rivergate is located in the immediate vicinity of Millennium City. This green building already made waves during its construction stage due to its distinctive architecture. By the spring of 2010 at the latest, Rivergate will offer 50,000 square metres of rentable space. By positioning the Catamaran building near the urban motorway, Aucon Real Estate ensured that the prominent office building is seen by approximately eight million people every month. ÖGB, the Austrian Federation of Trade Unions, will be the main tenant after having secured 60 percent of the total of 40,000 square metres of available space. Besides two Sky Offices with an impressive 360-degree view, Catamaran also offers access to the Vienna marina.

Siemens is building its own City

The decision to concentrate the majority of Siemens’ Vienna offices into one location for the long-term was the moment of birth of Siemens City. The significance of Vienna as a hub into the East was the deciding factor in choosing the north of Vienna as the location to implement the group’s largest real estate project worldwide. Completion of all buildings is scheduled for mid-2010. The first building phase includes the construction of the 52 metre high Tower, the five-storey office buildings of Nordspange, the Conference Centre and the Communication Line, a central, covered walkway connecting the individual buildings of Siemens City with the infrastructure facilities. Innovative building technology and energy efficiency play an important role at Siemens City, which will take part in the EU’s Green Building Programme: The activation of thermal mass and the use of geothermal energy allow savings of approximately 40,000 tonnes of CO2 per year; solar panels provide hot water; heat exchangers convert energy from exhaust air.