IMMOFINANZ AG has acquired the corporate headquarters of the German insurance firm Gerling in one of the prime inner city locations in Cologne. The existing buildings and underground car parks on the 47,000 sqm plot provide somewhat over 140,000 sqm of total space.

The purchase was made in the form of a joint venture with renowned German property developers Frankonia. IMMOFINANZ holds a 50 percent stake in the joint venture and has an option to buy the remaining shares. Frankonia also developed and constructed the Lenbachgärten in Munich, which was acquired by IMMOFINANZ at the beginning of 2006.

Sole tenant Gerling will continue to use the premises as its corporate headquarters until the end of 2008. Thereafter, the buildings will be comprehensively modernised, with considerable portions of the office property designated for new applications. This will result in a new quarter, a “city within the city”, where living, working, leisure activities and shopping are combined harmoniously. The project costs (purchase price and construction measures) will reach around 380 million Euro. The refurbishment will increase total floor space to some 155,000 sqm. Approximately half of the space will be occupied by offices, in addition to a hotel, apartments, underground car parks as well as a smaller amount of retail space.

Given the excellent location, it is practically self-evident that all portions of the project will cater to the top end of the market. Around 140 luxurious apartments, high quality and distinguished office space, a hotel with adjoining serviced apartments, restaurants and generous areas for leisure activities are planned with a uniform service concept. The first and larger of the two construction phases is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2011; the second construction phase is scheduled for completion at the beginning of 2013.

“The purchase of the Gerling headquarters is our largest single activity in Germany”, says IMMOFINANZ CEO Karl Petrikovics. “As is the case with the Lenbachgärten in Munich and the housing project 'Köngskinder' in  Düsseldorf, we are dealing with an outstanding development project that will unrivalled in Cologne. We are creating what will be undoubtedly the top address in one of the most important economic centres in Germany.”

IMMOFINANZ's German portfolio currently comprises 81 properties with a total of 1.13 million sqm of floor space. The properties are widely diversified and cover all of the important market segments: housing, offices, retail, logistics and hotels.