Poland Tricity attracts with its Scandinavian climate

Material partner
It will soon be two years since the first COVID-19 cases appeared in Poland. What can be said about the current condition of the office market in our country?
You are reading this content because it is covered by the free limit. Buy full access!

Have developers recovered from the shock caused by the changes on the labor market and related to leasing of office spaces?

Agnieszka Krawczyk-Rogowska, leasing director at Skanska’s commercial development business unit: After the initial shock following the outbreak of the pandemic, companies were forced to start developing new strategies in terms of office work. However, as it is a long-term process, many companies are still debating on how to address this issue. Since last summer, we have been observing a lot of activity on the leasing market and an increased interest in office spaces. Most importantly, the length of the leasing process has changed – it takes much longer to conclude agreements today than before 2020. Nevertheless, we are optimistic about this year, as we expect companies to take considerable steps over the summer towards their employees’ return to offices.

The fact that working remotely is not ideal has been reflected, among others, in a recent survey conducted by Skanska among office employees in CEE. The results indicate that working exclusively from home has a negative impact on, for example, their mental wellbeing. Are companies aware of that?

Working from home has many advantages, but in the long term it does not have a positive impact on both individual and team work. Based on months of working remotely, employers have noticed that this model severely limits team management capabilities – not only in terms of operational management, as many managers have learned to distribute tasks for employees to perform at home, but also in relation to team development. Managers are not able to observe employees while they work – how they interact with their colleagues, what attitude they have towards their job, how they motivate others and how they look for solutions. As a result, it is difficult for managers to assess the soft skills of their employees or identify their strengths and weaknesses, which significantly affects the evaluation of an employee’s potential and the possibility to determine the direction for their development. At the same time, managers have realized that face-to-face meetings help in making the employees feel more integrated and emotionally connected to the company, which positively influences maintaining relationships with teams.

As a developer who is active in seven Polish cities, Skanska has a rather broad perspective in terms of local office markets. Are any of them particularly interesting?

In my opinion, a highly interesting market is Tricity, which is very attractive for IT companies, mainly due to a wide talent base. Unlike in Krakow or Wroclaw, where the markets are saturated, in Tricity it is easier for new companies to compete in recruiting the best specialists. All of this results in a demand for office spaces – core, flex or co-working, depending on the needs and the size of a given organization. Another advantage of Tricity that distinguishes it among Polish cities is its attractive location.

Tricity it is then. What are the market forecasts for this area?

Companies are interested in locating and developing their businesses in this region. We see a great potential in Scandinavian companies that perceive Tricity as a perfect place to operate, due to the cultural proximity. Good air quality, extensive railway and bicycle infrastructure, seaside climate and lifestyle, as well as an excellent connection with Warsaw – all that makes this market very appealing to corporations. What’s also important is the fact that Tricity offers a wide range of possibilities in terms of choosing an office location. Companies can choose between Gdynia, rather cosy Sopot, or Gdansk, with its business center in the district of Oliwa.

Speaking of the business center – Skanska’s representative in Gdańsk is the Wave office building. What distinguishes it among other structures of this type in Tricity?

Wave is our first project in Gdansk and one of the most sustainable office buildings developed by Skanska in Poland. The building is powered entirely by energy from renewable sources. The investment is surrounded by an anti-smog pavement made of green concrete, which, when exposed to sunlight, initiates a photocatalytic reaction. As a result, air pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides, are reduced to simple compounds that are safe for the environment. Nearly a quarter of the materials used for the construction of Wave contained recycled components and almost half of the utilized products were provided by local companies and suppliers. In addition, the building was constructed using products with a low VOC content and wood certified with FSC, which sets the standards for responsible forest management. All of these factors make our building attractive to tenants who value caring for the environment. Among such tenants in Wave is the Danish company LEO Pharma, which has now, due to its dynamic growth, leased additional office space in the building.

Let’s talk about the tenants. What are the most important factors that affect their choice of an office space?

The work model has changed significantly since 2020 – hybrid work has evolved from a temporary solution to an increasingly common practice. As a result, companies are facing the challenge of creating workplaces to which employees will want to, rather than have to, come. Therefore, employers are looking for the best office spaces on the market – modern, innovative, comfortable, stylish and eco-friendly – which will be an attractive alternative to working from home. Due to the pandemic, minimizing the risk of disease transmission is also a key factor. According to the survey conducted by Skanska in 2021, high sanitary standards confirmed by independent certification, such as the WELL Health-Safety Rating, which Wave has received, can encourage employees to work from office more often. For this reason, ensuring the safety of employees is a priority for tenants. Wave is also the first building in Tricity to receive the WELL Core & Shell certificate. One of the factors taken into account during the assessment process was Wave’s impact on the physical and mental health, as well as generalwell-being of its users.

Wave stands out among other investments in the Pomerania Province, also with its shared mobility hub. Do tenants appreciate such an amenity? How does it affect the immediate surroundings of the office building?

Wave is located at Tricity’s main thoroughfare. In addition, there is a bicycle path and a railway station in the vicinity of the office building. However, we wanted to offer our tenants an additional solution that would facilitate travelling to work and, at the same time, contribute to sustainable development – in this case, through promoting the trend of sharing. City Hub, the hub of shared mobility, is the first project of this kind in Gdansk. It is a unique space where you can rent electric scooters from Hop.City, via the Bolt app or Traficar vehicles. We have noticed that it is appreciated and used not only by tenants at Wave, but also local residents.

Latest news

Retail & leisure

Romania E-commerce as a major driver

schedule 03 April 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

According to the "Quo Vadis E-commerce" report released by Cushman & Wakefield, the online commerce continues to be a growth driver for the industrial & logistics real estate sector, generating significant opportunities for developers and investors.

Investment & finance

Poland BIG Poland acquires Power Park Olsztyn

schedule 03 April 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

BIG Poland has announced the acquisition of Power Park Olsztyn, a shopping centre located in the southern part of Olsztyn. This strategic investment reinforces the company’s commitment to expanding its presence in Poland’s retail sector through high-quality assets.

Warehouse & industrial

Germany Panattoni City Dock Hilden now fully leased

schedule 03 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

All 17 units of Panattoni City Dock Hilden are now fully leased with the signing of two new tenants. The park comprises almost 27,000 sqm.

Hotels

Poland Condo to be built on the Baltic

schedule 03 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

Peninsula Property has signed a contract with Doraco to build The Elements Resort, a condohotel in Dźwirzyno on the Baltic sea.

Warehouse & industrial

Poland Accolade takes on BTS project

schedule 03 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

Accolade is to construct a BTS project in Świdnik for an undisclosed Polish courier firm.

Office & mixed-use development

Romania Henkel enters Equilibrium 2

schedule 02 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

Consumer chemicals producer Henkel is relocating to the second building of the Equilibrium complex, developed by Skanska in Bucharest's Barbu Văcărescu-Floreasca.

Investment & finance

Poland Syrena sells PRS project in Warsaw

schedule 02 April 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Syrena Real Estate has sold its first PRS project at ul. Wolska in Warsaw. The new owner is the Belgian company Xior Student Housing NV. The transaction value was EUR 12 mln, making it the second successful sale of a stabilised PRS project in Poland.

Warehouse & industrial

Poland pbb lends EUR 120 mln to EQT Real Estate

schedule 02 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG (pbb) has underwritten an investment facility, totalling EUR 120 mln to refinance a logistics portfolio for EQT Real Estate.

Warehouse & industrial

Poland Igepa Polska leases new space at MLP Łódź

schedule 02 April 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Igepa, the paper and visual advertising media distributor, is expanding its cooperation with MLP Group. Under the new agreement, the company has leased approx. 7,650 sqm of space at the MLP Łódź logistics centre, which includes modern offices, a showroom, and a terrace. 

Infrastructure

Poland Tunnel to be built under Baltic

schedule 01 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

The Polish and Danish governments have entered preliminary discussions for the construction of a tunnel between Szczecin and Copenhagen underneath the Baltic sea.

Hotels

Europe Marriott plans to expand Four Points by Flex portfolio

schedule 01 April 2025
Opr./edited by AH

Marriott International has announced plans to double its portfolio of Four Points Flex by Sheraton hotels across Europe by the end of 2026.

Investment & finance

Germany KGAL buys office complex in Munich

schedule 01 April 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

KGAL has acquired the Streitfeld Lofts office complex with 8,400 sqm of rental space and 54 underground parking spaces for one of its institutional special funds. The seller of the property is one of the BlackRock Real Asset Funds.

Investment & finance

Germany IntercityHotel sold in Berlin

schedule 01 April 2025
Opr./edited by JC

CA Immo has successfully sold the IntercityHotel Berlin Hauptbahnhof on Washingtonplatz. The property was sold at a premium to the book value.

Warehouse & industrial

Poland Global fashion giant chooses Lower Silesia

schedule 01 April 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Panattoni has secured a new tenant to its Lower Silesian investment. A leader in fashion retail has leased 56,000 sqm at Panattoni Park Legnica. 

Investment & finance

Poland Punkt gets some money

schedule 31 March 2025
Opr./edited by JC

Torus has successfully signed a EUR 20 mln facility agreement with PKO Bank Polski, securing financing for its latest office investment, Punkt in Gdańsk.

Events

Poland Back to the Future Conference

schedule 31 March 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

The Back to the Future conference, organised by Urban Land Institute Polska, will take place on 9-10 April 2025 at the Norblin Factory Event Hall in Warsaw. ‘Eurobuild CEE’ is the media patron of the event.

Hotels

Europe Hotel brand makes further debuts

schedule 28 March 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Handwritten Collection announces further expansion in Europe. The chain plans to open more than 10 new hotels in the coming months. The new Handwritten Collection hotels include the first hotel in Croatia in a historic building in Rijeka, a hotel in Debrecen, Hungary, and a hotel in Tirana, Albania.

Warehouse & industrial

Poland Iron Mountain extends lease contract

schedule 28 March 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Iron Mountain, a company offering information and document storage services, has extended its lease for almost 31,000 sqm of warehouse space in three buildings at Prologis Park Błonie.

ESG

Poland Nestlé House is Excellent

schedule 28 March 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Nestlé House office building, located at ul. Domaniewska, in the business district of Mokotów in Warsaw, has been awarded the prestigious BREEAM In-Use certification at the Excellent level. The property is part of the Hines Poland Sustainable Income Fund  portfolio.

Warehouse & industrial

Germany Panattoni's new tenants in Hamburg

schedule 27 March 2025
Opr./edited by ANZ

Three more companies, Innovaze Media, Thiele & Fendel and Avaso Technology Solutions, have joined the City Dock Hamburg Norderstedt business park on the outskirts of Hamburg.

Latest in Material partner

schedule 07 October 2024

Brownfield rather than greenfield – a model for sustainable development at City Point Targówek

Contemporary cities are grappling with the challenge of fostering dynamic growth while alleviating environmental pressures. Traditional infrastructure expansion often requires the development of greenfields, with adverse impacts on both local ecosystems and communities. A sustainable alternative is to revitalise brownfield urban sites, as exemplified by City Point Targówek, a project led by Peakside Capital Advisors.

schedule 02 May 2024

Nordbygg 2024: Many innovations and strong interest

Last week, Nordbygg, Northern Europe’s biggest trade fair for professionals in construction and real estate industry, took place at Stockholmsmässan in Ävsjö, Sweden. 35,000 visitors attended which, combined with the 5,000 people on the stands, gives a total of 40,000 participants. New features for Nordbygg 2024 included the strong involvement of the City of Stockholm and a popular online app.

schedule 04 April 2024

Excellent Fern at Off Piotrkowska

Intensive commercialization of the multifunctional Fern building under construction at Off Piotrkowska Center has begun. A modern building, the construction of which will start at the turn of 2024/2025, offers 4,700 sqm of service space and 2,700 sqm of office space.

schedule 21 March 2024

New opportunities emerge in uncertain times

Over 20,000 delegates representing 90 countries gathered in Cannes for the 34th edition of MIPIM, the global urban festival that brings investors, political leaders and the real estate community together to facilitate relationships and find solutions to the challenges facing the built environment.

schedule 07 March 2024

Silesia invites you to Cannes!

We would like to invite you to the meeting: "Explore Silesia: Where Economic Resilience Meets Opportunity!", held at MIPIM this Wednesday. Silesia and its metropolise are one of the fastest growing and most innovative regions in Europe. During the discussion, the roots of its success and specific future prospects will be discussed.

schedule 12 February 2024

Challenges accepted at MIPIM!

The premier real estate fair of the year is now fast approaching! On March 11–15th, at its usual grand venue of the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, MIPIM will welcome delegations from more than 90 countries to take part in an extended four-day programme of speeches, panels, awards and networking

schedule 15 November 2023

In business, we focus on long-term partnerships

Michał Ptaszyński, Country Manager Poland, Logicor, tells us optimistically about the future of the logistics industry in Poland, the company's upcoming investment plans and explain why it is worth cooperating with local communities

schedule 29 September 2023

Łódź invites you to Munich!

We cordially invite all guests of this year's Expo Real to the events organized at the stand of the Łódź City Hall, "Eurobuild" will also be there as a media patron.

schedule 25 September 2023

Grounded in experience

Justyna Cymerman, the head of the urban planning department of land transaction consultancy Greenfields, and Michał Różycki, its director of the land department – living sector, tell us about the company’s greatest achievements, the state of the market, and what needs to happen next to tackle the housing shortage

schedule 06 July 2023

A solid relationship for years

Operational and financial systems supporting property managers are constantly expanding and changing to keep up with changing market needs. Good relationships between providers and users of these systems and a willingness to face challenges together remain invaluable.

schedule 13 April 2023

Land is the key to success but requires skills

Warsaw is one of the most affordable capitals in the European Union to live in. In order to maintain its competitiveness, it is crucial to expand the availability of plots

schedule 22 December 2022

Biuro Na Miarę - more comprehensive, across Poland

The company has been strengthening its position on the commercial real estate market as a specialist consultancy providing comprehensive tenant and landlord services.

schedule 02 August 2022

New ESG Report – Atrium

Atrium European Real Estate has published its 6th ESG report summarising the company's achievements in 2021. The report details the key initiatives involved in the implementation of the its ESG strategy. The company has set new and even more ambitious medium-term targets for 2030, which include a 40 pct reduction in the carbon footprint of its shopping centres by 2030, compared to 2019 levels. By 2050, Atrium wants to have become a carbon-neutral organisation.

schedule 15 June 2022

Power is in people

SKJB Szybkowski Kuźma Jeleń Brzoza-Ostrowska is a Polish boutique legal practice that’s not only celebrating its 5th birthday this year but also its listing on the Legal 500 ranking.

schedule 04 April 2022

Coworking in Atlas Tower

In the times of uncertainty due to the pandemic situation worldwide and restrictions connected with that, co-working spaces and offices are gaining more and more popularity amongst potential tenants. Flexibility of renting terms plus tax law support for new entrepreneurs are things highly needed for small and medium businesses and these come in handy when cooperating with Twój Startup foundation.

schedule 22 March 2022

Tricity attracts with its Scandinavian climate

It will soon be two years since the first COVID-19 cases appeared in Poland. What can be said about the current condition of the office market in our country?

schedule 01 February 2022

How to return to the office in good health?

Skanska has recently carried out its third survey on the return to the office in four countries – Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic and Hungary. While previous studies have focused on the needs of employees and their expectations of offices in the new reality, this time Skanska has focused on the impact that the pandemic has had on the employees’ mental health and well-being.

schedule 08 November 2021

Sustainable attraction

"Our research shows that 65 pct of employees in the CEE region want to work in a certified sustainable office. We expect that tenants will opt to migrate to new buildings that suit their needs better", admits Paweł Warda of Skanska Commercial Development Europe

schedule 20 October 2021

MAPIC returns to Cannes

MAPIC 2021 will be held at the Palais des Festivals from Tuesday, the 30th of November, to Thursday, the 2nd December, 2021

schedule 31 August 2021

It's a comfortable life

Ziv Zviel, the CEO of Atlas Estates, tells ‘Eurobuild’ about the company’s plans for the residential sector, top investments and the future of the market

Read flipbook version

Edition 3 (296) March 2025

Latest comments

Categories

Your order
Your data
Number of access accounts
Each account provides independent access on one device. You will be able to create additional access accounts in the account settings.
Invoicing data
Order summary
Net price
Access accounts #
Net order
VAT (%)
Gross order
Payment security is ensured

Don`t miss out the current edition