Złota 44 is a residential

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

(192 meters high, 52 stories) in central Warsaw, Poland. It was designed by Polish-American architect

Daniel Libeskind Daniel Libeskind (born May 12, 1946) is a Polish–American architect, artist, professor and set designer. Libeskind founded Studio Daniel Libeskind in 1989 with his wife, Nina, and is its principal design architect. He is known for the design a ...

, in association with Polish architects Architecture. It was developed by US real estate investment manager Amstar and Warsaw developer

BBI Development BBI may refer to: * Biju Patnaik Airport (IATA code: BBI) in Bhubaneswar, India * BBI Centar, a mall in Sarajevo * Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport in Germany * Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE ticker: BBI) * Building Bridges Initiative, an attem ...

, which bought the topped-out but unfinished building from its initial developer,

ORCO The Orco ( pms, Eva d'òr, that is lit. ''Water of gold''; la, Orgus) is an Italian river. It originates in the Piedmontese slopes of Gran Paradiso and after about reaches the Po river near Chivasso, in the Metropolitan City of Turin. Its drain ...

Design

The building's name comes from its address on Złota ("Golden") Street. Złota 44 is located next to

Varso Tower Varso or Varso Place is a neomodern office building complex in Warsaw, Poland. It was designed by Foster and Partners and developed by HB Reavis. The complex features three buildings, of which the main one, Varso Tower, at in height, is the ta ...

, the tallest building in the European Union (310 m), the

Palace of Culture and Science A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

, the second tallest building in Poland (237 m), and the

Złote Tarasy The Złote Tarasy (''Golden Terraces'') is a commercial, office, and entertainment complex in the center of Warsaw, Poland, located next to the Warszawa Centralna railway station between the Jana Pawła II and Emilii Plater streets. It opened ...

shopping center. At 192 meters, Złota 44 is one of the tallest residential buildings in Poland and the European Union. The luxury 52-story skyscraper contains 287 apartments. All of these are equipped with the home management system (HMS), facilitating control of the air conditioning, roller blinds, heating, illumination, and allowing online restaurant orders and other services. All residents receive a security card, which only allows them to reach the floor their apartment is located on. Residents have access to a wine cellar which accommodates up to 10,000 bottles and includes a tasting room. In addition to a 25-meter swimming pool (the largest private pool in Poland), the recreational floor has a hot tub, massage rooms, a Finnish sauna, a steam room and outdoor terrace. The floor also features a private movie theater with a golf simulator, children's playroom and conference rooms. A dedicated concierge is at the disposal of residents.

Apartments

The apartments are located between the 9th and 52nd floors. Fully finished apartments were offered in nine interior design variants and four sizes: one-bedroom units (from 62 to 70 square meters), medium-sized units (90 to 120 square meters), larger apartments (140 to 250 square meters) and penthouses (which may exceed 1000 square meters, possibly encompassing the entire floor). On 16 April 2015, the sale of apartments officially resumed. Depending on location, size, layout and finishing standard, the price per square meter ranged from 24,000 to 40,000 PLN.

History

File:Złota_44.jpg, April 2011 File:Złota_44,_Warszawa.jpg, May 2012 File:2014-02-21_Libeskind’s_Złota_44_in_Warsaw.jpg, February 2014 Due to financial problems experienced by the developer, as well as invalidation of the construction permit and disputes with the inhabitants of the surrounding buildings, Złota 44's construction was put on hold in 2009, but resumed in January 2011. On 3 February 2012, the building was topped out. In December 2013, ORCO terminated its contract with general construction contractor Inso. By the end of the year, ORCO was calling the investment a "major financial failure for the group in the fall of 2013". It announced a €121 million (approximately 500 million PLN) write-down of the value of the building, and went on to announce its intention to sell it as quickly as possible. One of the banks financing the skyscraper's construction terminated its contract and wanted its 250 million PLN loan refunded. ORCO also disclosed that the high apartment prices (up to 65,000 PLN per square meter, at the time the highest in Poland) were artificially inflated to generate media coverage. On 28 August 2014, ORCO's sale of Złota 44 was finalized; the skyscraper was acquired by American real estate investment company Amstar and Polish property developer

for €50 million (approximately 215 million PLN), a fraction of the estimated €163 million (700 million PLN) construction cost. In January 2024, IT entrepreneur Rafał Zaorski announced he would resell Apartment 504, which he bought in 2022 for PLN 22.9 million making it "the most expensive single-story apartment sold in Poland". He came up with a new idea that would see up to 20,000 "keys" to the apartment sold for the equivalent of PLN 5,000 a piece describing it as the "largest real estate experiment in the world" and an "interesting social experiment". In return, buyers would be given access to the flat and its assorted amenities, as well as an official entry in the land and mortgage registry.

Panorama picture

References

External links