Hines Breaks Ground in Poland

Hines, the Houston-based international real estate developer, has broken ground on its latest project -- Twarda 2/4, a 43-story skyscraper in Poland.

The residential tower was designed by Chicago starchitect Helmut Jahn.  The full Hines press release follows.

---

HINES ANNOUNCES THE START OF CONSTRUCTION

ON LUXURY RESIDENTIAL TOWER IN WARSAW, POLAND

(WARSAW, POLAND) - The Warsaw office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that construction has begun on Twarda 2/4, a 43-story 274-unit residential tower located at the center of Warsaw on Twarda Street adjacent to Grzybowski Square and near the Palace of Culture and Science. Project completion on the for-sale apartments is expected in the third quarter of 2012.

World-renowned architect Helmut Jahn, principal of the Murphy/Jahn design studio, was chosen through a competition in 2007 to design the 344,320-square-foot tower.   Apartments will range from 560 to 3,766 square feet.  In addition to the refined finishes and spectacular views, Twarda 2/4 will include state-of-the-art building features to meet the highest Western-European and American apartment standards.  The ground floor will contain 77,000 square feet of retail and office space for sale in the five-level horizontal podium of the project.  Below-grade parking for 299 cars will be provided.

Hines is managing the development on behalf of a consortium of private investors. HOCHTIEF Polska is the contractor on Twarda 2/4.  Site preparation work began in November of last year. 

 "We are delighted to bring this high caliber project to Warsaw, and are happy to be joining forces with HOCHTIEF for the second time in the city," said Mieczysław Godzisz, managing director for Hines Poland.  "As demonstrated with our previous undertaking, Metropolitan office building located at Piłsudskiego Square, we will add to our track record of delivering technically sophisticated, architecturally significant buildings."

"The high-rise apartment tower at Twarda Street is one of the largest residential projects under development in Warsaw," said Henryk Liszka, head of the management board of HOCHTIEF Polska.  "Every new development poses new challenges.  To ensure the highest quality working and living standards for the future inhabitants of Twarda 2/4, we will draw upon our expertise gathered over our history of constructing numerous upscale projects."

 "Since the market has experienced several false starts on comparable residential projects, we believe it is important to rebuild consumer trust in upscale projects such as Twarda 2/4," explained Iwona Strzelecka, project manager for Hines Poland.  "Sales will commence in late autumn, when construction is well underway and a sales office is in place to give potential buyers a feel for the quality that will be contained in the project." Pricing for the apartments has not been set; however, it will be competitive with the market.

Hines entered the Poland real estate market in 1997 with the development of Metropolitan, a Class A office building at Piłsudskiego Square in Warsaw.  Metropolitan received the MIPIM Award in Cannes in 2004 for the Best Office Building in the World.  Hines also developed the Impresja apartments in Wilanow.  Currently, the firm is developing the Arboretum residential complex and the Sterlinga Business Center in Łódz and the Quattro Towers residential complex in Gdansk.

Hines is a privately owned real estate firm involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The firm's historical and current portfolio of projects that are underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes 1,111 properties representing more than 451 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments.  With offices in more than 100 cities in 17 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $22.2 billion, Hines is one of the largest real estate organizations in the world. Hines is also a world leader in sustainable real estate strategies, with extensive experience in LEED^®, ENERGY STAR^®, BREEAM in the United Kingdom, France's Haute Qualité Environnementale and with the German Sustainable Building Council.  Visit www.hines.com for more information.