Barcelona's skyline will get a new building. Hines has announced a sale and purchase agreement with Grupo Inmobiliario Sacresa for the acquisition of a 21,000 square metre tower with a hotel licence in Esplugues de Llobregat, in the Porta Diagonal development area.
The US real estate company has indicated that the tower, which is 100 metres high, will house 526 rooms. It will have a range of communal facilities including a roof terrace with swimming pool, study areas, communal kitchens, a cinema, gymnasium and all rooms will have their own private terrace.
The future asset will offer flexible accommodation comprising studios, shared rooms and one and two-bedroom flats, all designed for stays of varying lengths. Its target audience will be students, young professionals and workers at the nearby Sant Joan de Déu Hospital.
In this way, the tower will form part of the transformation of the Barcelona skyline, located between Finestrelles, Esplugues de Llobregat, near the campuses of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia and the University of Barcelona, and the ESADE and IESE business schools.
The asset, acquired by the Hines European Value Fund 3, will be managed by Hines' international student residence platform, Aparto. Once constructed, the building aims to achieve BREEAM Excellent and Well Silver certification. Delivery is scheduled for 2025.
The tower is located in Porta Diagonal, an area under development that will comprise several office buildings, hotels and flats, spread over an area of more than 90,000 square metres. It is also expected to add to the current development of the area, which will include new facilities for the Hospital Clínic and Barcelona's metro system will reach the immediate vicinity.
The acquisition is part of Hines' commitment to the living segment in Spain, where it plans to expand with the development of more than 1,500 beds for accommodation in Barcelona. Hines currently manages, through its subsidiary Aparto, a student residence in 22@, Aparto Pallars, with 743 beds.
