On Thursday, 8 May 2014, the real estate developer Townscape One Properties GmbH and the housing society HOWOGE Wohnungsbaugesellschaft mbH celebrated the topping-out ceremony for the housing development ‘Krokant’, the last vacant plot of the so-called ‘Schokostücke’ development on the site of the former confectionery factory ‘Alte Zuckerfabrik’ in the Alt-Hohenschönhausen area of Berlin. At the event, which was attended by the managing director of HOWOGE Wohnungsbaugesellschaft mbH, Stefanie Frensch, and the managing directors of Townscape One Properties GmbH, Henrik Sassenscheidt and Sebastian Grabianowski, more than 100 guests watched as the topping-out wreath was hoisted into the sky. In a living area of 10,300 square metres, 157 rental apartments are being constructed in five blocks at the site. HOWOGE already purchased the development from Townscape One Properties GmbH back in October 2013.
Creating new living space
‘Purchasing 157 rental apartments before the completion of the development represents the systematic continuation of our strategy of actively shaping the destiny of the district and consistently progressing the creation of new attractive living space in Alt-Hohenschönhausen’, states Stefanie Frensch, managing director of HOWOGE Wohnungsbaugesellschaft GmbH. ‘We are pleased to have been able to purchase and successfully sell on the final construction plot at the former confectionery factory in Alt-Hohenschönhausen in Berlin in such a short space of time. We can guarantee that the development will be completed by the deadline. The actual construction work on the apartments to make them ready for occupation is expected to take 14 months’, reports Henrik Sassenscheidt, managing director of Townscape One.
The last vacant plot ‘Krokant’ in the ‘Schokostücke’ development on the site of the old confectionery factory
In the overall development ‘Schokostücke’, five construction sections containing a total of approx. 270 residential units are being developed on the site of the former confectionery factory covering two hectares. The realisation of the first four construction sections was completed by other property developers, and the sales of these sections have now been concluded. The development is characterised by its townhouses, lofts and one-storey apartments. The attractiveness of the development is enhanced by small gardens, green roofs, roof terraces and a 1,000 m2-large park. Future users can make the most of an excellent and well-established infrastructure. The site is located in close proximity to schools, nursery schools, doctor’s surgeries, gyms and a comprehensive range of shops offering everyday essentials. The Berlin-based architecture firm Elwardt & Lattemann is responsible for the design of the ‘Schokostück Krokant’. The construction company Zechbau has been contracted to build the development, which is being financed by the bank HSH Nordbank.