Freo, an independent pan-European investment manager and developer, is building a new business complex in the 22@ district by the second half of 2022. Mile 22@ Business Campus', the name of the project, will comprise three separate buildings totalling 38,000 sqm of GLA. The office complex will be made up of the 'Mile Badajoz' building, with 8,000 m2 and 10 floors, 'Mile Llull', with 13,700 sqm and 10 floors, and 'Mile Avila', with a surface area of 16,500 sqm and 7 floors. Construction of the new complex began at the beginning of March.
Two of the buildings are connected to each other by landscaped areas, the third being a separate building. All three are located in the so-called "Badajoz Axis", an area within 22@ that has emerged as the new engine of transformation of the district, where companies such as Amazon, T-Systems, Oracle, Facebook, HP, Everis, Criteo, Henkel and Schibsted are located. The business campus, based on a unique architectural concept inspired by the local heritage, is designed to accommodate up to three independent corporate headquarters, with open-plan, efficient and modular floors of up to 3,200 sqm, adapting to the demand of large corporations.
Sustainability is another of the differentiating factors of the Business Campus planned by Freo. More than 30% of the surface area of the campus is dedicated to outdoor garden spaces, patios and terraces, and there is a unique landscaping project with an urban forest and native plants. The building materials used are sustainable, and prior to construction they have already received a Leed Platinum pre-certification for their characteristics and for tangible reductions in water and electricity consumption, air conditioning, air quality and the installation of solar panels on the roof, among other aspects. In addition, its location promotes sustainable and efficient mobility, as it has connections with bicing, metro, bus and tram.
The 'Mile 22@ Business Campus' is set to be one of the clearest examples of the transformation of offices to the new reality, in a district that in recent years has become the area with the highest demand for offices. In fact, in the last 5 years, the district has accounted for an average of 30% of the annual contracting that has been transacted in Barcelona. The area has successfully positioned itself as a new technology and innovation hub where the main rental and investment operations in Barcelona have been concentrated. The district closed 2020 with 42,500 sq m of office space under contract and average rents of €23/m2/month, with the availability rate still low at around 6%. The area continues to follow this trend after the first quarter of 2021, in which 22% of demand has been for space in this submarket.
