The 150 Million Euro Arter District That Laid Its Cornerstone Today Stays on Schedule
Today, the cornerstone was laid for Arter, a district quarter being developed by Kapitel at the corner of Liivalaia and Juhkentali streets, with a total investment of 150 million euros. Despite the challenges of the construction market, one of Estonia's largest construction projects remains on schedule and is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2024.
According to Taavi Ojala, CEO of Kapitel, this is the company's largest development project, the construction of which has coincided with a particularly challenging period, yet confidence in its concept remains high. "The health and environmental requirements that have grown in recent years are here to stay, and people are increasingly the most valuable asset of companies – Arter is designed for businesses that value their employees. Arter also enhances urban space – alongside buildings of quality architecture, a new city square will be created here and a park on the former Härjapea river bend area, which will be open to all city residents," added Ojala.
"Arter is a new landmark and a people-centered urban space in central Tallinn. A new meeting place where bold and creative ideas emerge and which shapes the workplaces of the future," explained Allan Remmelkoor, project director of Arter, describing the core idea of the new quarter. "The wellbeing of their employees is today the most important thing for our partners, and we are creating the best possible work environment in Arter. Health, time-saving and good social space, or ecosystem, are our focus and interest in Arter's values is truly great," added Remmelkoor.
The office spaces in Arter quarter will have better than standard ventilation and air humidification, which is rare in Estonian office buildings. The office spaces feature first-class indoor climate, floor-to-floor heights of at least three meters, with some offices featuring full-height glass facades. Raised floors ensure flexibility for changing spatial solutions and workplace locations. In addition, companies can use various meeting rooms and outdoor areas for work and creativity – a city square will be built in front of the quarter's buildings, a 500 m² urban garden on the roof terrace of the 15-story office building, and a park open to all city residents behind the buildings.
"Arter quarter is one of the most demanding projects in Estonia in terms of both scale and nature. In one complex, world-class technical systems coexist with top-level office spaces and apartments, sports and leisure facilities. Construction takes place in turbulent times; reaching a successful result requires only very good cooperation between the client, contractor and all other parties, which by now has lasted for almost a year and a half," said Ivo Volkov, CEO of Merko Ehitus Eesti.
"The increasingly popular 15-minute city concept certainly applies to Arter, even more so – regarding services consumed during the working day, we can talk about a few-minute city. Thanks to this, every future Arter employee can save nearly 3 hours of valuable time per week," said Remmelkoor. Services include, in addition to cafes and restaurants, a sports club with a 20 m swimming pool, relaxation pools, saunas and an outdoor terrace, health and beauty services and childcare.
Arter quarter consists of 28-, 15- and 9-story buildings and a connecting central building with a parking facility. With a total of 38,000 m² of rental space, the quarter will include 29,000 m² of high-quality office space, 6,000 m² of various catering and service spaces, including a restaurant with a roof terrace on the 28th floor, and 3,000 m² of rental apartments. Near-zero energy buildings with environmentally friendly energy solutions are designed and will be built to meet the international BREEAM Excellent standard. The heating and cooling needs of the buildings will be covered by energy wells and district cooling. The architect of the quarter is Martin Aunin and the interior architect is Arhitekt11, with Merko Ehitus Eesti as the main contractor.
The quarter will have a total of 470 parking spaces, a car wash and Estonia's largest – 90-space indoor bicycle parking with a bicycle washing and maintenance area and changing and shower facilities for cyclists. The entire quarter will be completed in the third quarter of 2024, including the new Veski street and the renovated section of Imanta street, which will ensure safe and peaceful movement around the quarter.
