(MUNICH) - Hines, the international real estate firm, has outlined its plans to deliver a culinary, cultural and sustainable interim use concept for ‘aer’ in Munich's Neuperlach district, named ‘shaere’.
The ‘aer’ comprises two office buildings at Fritz-Schäffer-Street 9 with a total area of 87,000 square meters. The space was previously occupied by Allianz and was vacated at the end of 2020. Following the acquisition of the office property in February 2020 by the Hines European Value Fund 2 (HEVF2), Hines has initiated a far-reaching transformation process of the site. A sustainable and innovative working and living environment is to be created. The existing building in the western part of the site will be completely renovated and redesigned. A multi-tenant office building with a sustainable energy concept is intended – with the aim of achieving complete carbon neutrality. In this context, the property is to receive a DGNB rating. In combination with the plans for the existing building to the east, a campus is also to be created with attractive outdoor areas that are accessible to everyone. On this second plot of land, reorganization is planned, including the creation of affordable housing units.
In close cooperation with authorities, politicians, associations, business organizations and other interested parties, Hines has been working intensively on an interim use concept over the past few months. With ‘shaere’, the real estate firm is creating a social and cultural meeting place for citizens not only in Neuperlach, but throughout Munich. The first project is now in the starting blocks. The "Community Kitchen," spearheaded by local entrepreneur Günes Seyfarth is set to launch in September 2021 and will be based in the ‘aer’ for at least 12 months. The initiative will focus on the sustainable use of food by stemming from edible food waste.
Christian Meister, managing director at Hines in Germany, says: “We are very pleased that we were able to create a collaborative and meaningful project with the interim use concept 'shaere'. With the Community Kitchen, we are now offering citizens a first real added value in their neighborhood. It becomes a place of encounter and participation and at the same time addresses the important issue of food waste in a responsible way. This type of project is a blueprint for the future of ‘aer’ characterized by sustainability, creativity, inspiration and productivity.”
The former canteen area of the office building will be converted into a community kitchen where Seyfarth's team will process rescued food. From September 2021, the commercial kitchen will be able to produce up to 10,000 meals a day and deliver them to daycare centers, schools and companies in Munich and the surrounding area. In addition, there are long-term plans to expand the range to include on-site consumption in the company's own restaurant, as well as selling the products in retail stores or online stores. Furthermore, training courses and workshops for all age groups on the topic of food and sustainability will be offered.
Günes Seyfarth, initiator of the Community Kitchen, comments: “Each year, 18 million tons of edible food ends up in the trash in Germany alone. With the Community Kitchen, we want to put an end to this and at the same time fulfill the third most effective measure in global climate protection. We are happy to start in September in the 'aer', where we have found the ideal premises for our project.”
Visit www.aer-muenchen.de for more information or follow the project on Instagram (@aer_neuperlach).
About Hines:
Hines is a privately owned global real estate investment firm founded in 1957 with a presence in 240 cities in 27 countries. Hines oversees a portfolio of assets under management valued at approximately $160.9 billion1, including $81.7 billion in assets under management for which Hines serves as an investment manager, and $79.2 billion representing more than 172.9 million square feet of assets for which Hines provides third-party property-level services. Historically, Hines has developed, redeveloped or acquired 1,450 properties, totaling over 485 million square feet. The firm has more than 180 developments currently underway around the world. With extensive experience in investments across the risk spectrum and all property types, and a pioneering commitment to ESG, Hines is one of the largest and most-respected real estate organizations in the world.
¹Includes both the global Hines organization as well as RIA AUM as of December 31, 2020.
Since entering Europe in 1991, Hines has grown its European platform to include offices in 16 cities as well as a presence in 62 cities in 13 countries. Hines oversees a portfolio of assets under management valued at approximately €26.3 billion of assets under management in Europe, including €21.9 billion for which Hines serves as an investment manager and €4.4 billion representing more than 3.8 million square meters of assets for which Hines provides third-party property-level services, in Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Since the opening of its site in Germany in 1991, Hines has acquired or developed a total of 61 properties with an overall surface area of over 2.5 million m² for Hines or on behalf of external clients, including properties such as the Main Tower, 160 Park View, Werfthaus and the Silberturm in Frankfurt, Zoom and Quartier Südkreuz in Berlin, Hofstatt, Uptown München, Tucherpark and OSKAR in Munich, the Überseequartier Nord district in Hamburg, the Benrather Karree and Kö-Quartier in Düsseldorf, and the Postquartier and Kronprinzbau 1+2 in Stuttgart. Hines currently manages property in Germany with an overall value of around €10 billion as an asset and development manager.
Visit www.hines.com for more information.
About the Hines European Value Fund 2 (HEVF 2):
HEVF 2 is a euro-denominated, Luxembourg-based investment fund launched in December 2019. Managed by Hines, its objective is to acquire a portfolio of core-plus and value add profile commercial real estate investments throughout the major European markets on behalf of an institutional investor group. Whilst the fund has broad flexibility across sectors, the portfolio is largely focused in Logistics, Residential and Office usages.
HEVF 2 follows its predecessor HEVF 1 (2017 vintage) in continuing the flagship HEVF series for Hines in Europe, alongside the Hines European Core Fund (HECF) open-ended core flagship vehicle. HEVF 1 raised €721 million of equity commitments, exceeding the original fund target size by over 40%. HEVF 2 secured €637 million of investor commitments in its initial closing in December 2019 and held a number of subsequent closings through 2020. Final closing is expected to take place by July 2021.
