The 125-Year-Old Main Building of Volta Quarter Reconstruction Has Reached the Roof Trusses
Yesterday, real estate developer Endover held a timber framing celebration at Volta quarter to mark a significant milestone in the reconstruction of the historic Volta factory's main building from 1899 – the building's roof has received new timber framing and interior finishing work has begun. By the end of summer, 23 exclusive homes will be completed in the building with 125 years of history.
Real estate developer Endover is restoring, in cooperation with the architecture firm APEX, the historically valuable headquarters building of the former industrial giant Volta, located on Tööstuse Street in North Tallinn. This is the third development phase on the Volta industrial building site, during which, in addition to the reconstruction of the historic building, three new energy class A apartment buildings will also be built.
Architect Janar Blehner from Apex Architecture Bureau, whose portfolio also includes architectural solutions for other development phases of Volta quarter, said that there are few dignified historic buildings like Volta Villa on today's real estate market that are being reconstructed into homes. "In our architectural solutions for Volta quarter, we have followed the principles of sustainable development. We are restoring as much of the old as possible and adding energy-efficient new solutions," said Blehner.
The reconstructed Volta Villa building is made unique by the preserved and restored dignified original details. "In addition to the arch and rosette windows characteristic of the Volta main building, the building's limestone interior and exterior walls are to be preserved, as well as the grandiose main staircase with its vault, cornices and metal railings, and the magnificent columned main entrance and facade," described the architect. Additionally, the original wooden roof structure and historical floor tiles will remain in the common areas. The basement will be decorated with brick-laid vault ceilings and will include storage areas and bicycle storage rooms.
The entire dignified facade of Volta Villa will be preserved in its original form during reconstruction. Volta Villa homes ranging from 49-127 m2 have ceilings up to 3.6 meters high, deep loggias and arch windows, and open floor plans spanning two floors.
Endover's CEO Robert Laud said that 9 buildings have already been completed in Volta quarter, and 4 more will be finished over the next nine months. Additionally, Endover has begun preparations for creating one of North Tallinn's largest business districts, during which 35,000 m2 of commercial space will be developed.
"Currently we are negotiating agreements regarding anchor tenants and we want to bring services to this area over the coming years that are not yet here," said Laud. "When we asked locals what businesses they would like to see here, they really wanted various services, for example a larger sports club based in the neighborhood or a spa, which North Tallinn currently doesn't have," explained Laud.
According to Endover's CEO, Volta quarter, the planned Krulli technology park, and the Noblessner port area, also known as North Tallinn's golden mile, is one of the fastest developing residential and business areas in Tallinn, where demand for new real estate has always been high despite the general downturn in the real estate market. "This has also given us the courage to continue developing the area and to undertake such ambitious projects as 35,000 square meters of new commercial space," said Robert Laud.
Volta quarter is one of Tallinn's real estate market's and Endover's most important and successful real estate developments. The industrial quarter with over 100 years of history is being developed according to the 15-minute city principle. The total development scope of the entire quarter is 142,000 m2, with over 750 apartments planned in the development and more than 50,000 m2 of commercial space.
Volta quarter is planned to include a kindergarten, food street, and leisure activities for different age groups both indoors and in a 15,000 m2 high-greenery park area. In connection with the development of the quarter, Endover has built extensive new infrastructure in North Tallinn, including two new streets. The quarter's architecture is created by KOKO, Apex, and ARS architects, and Estonia's largest banks have also invested in financing the quarter: LHV Bank, Coop Bank, and Bigbank.
