Hamburg passes the Elbtower at a height of 245 meters

Urban development - Hamburg passes the Elbtower at a height of 245 meters

The city of Hamburg is building the Elbtower in Hafencity up to the planned height of 245 meters during its construction. The city was involved in the ongoing sales process on behalf of the insolvency administrator to ensure in the tender documents that a new buyer takes over the obligations of the previous owner, a spokesperson for the city development office told the "Hamburger Abendblatt" (Saturday). "These obligations include the height, as well as the observation platform and publicly accessible uses in the ground floor of the Elbtower."

The Elbtower was supposed to be the third tallest building in Germany according to the original plans, with 64 floors and a height of 245 meters. It was supposed to be completed in 2025 and cost around 950 million Euro.

At the end of October last year, the commissioned construction company stopped work at a height of 100 meters due to unpaid invoices from the Signa Group, the Austrian real estate company of entrepreneur René Benko. The Elbtower Immobilien GmbH & Co. KG filed for insolvency in January. It is a subsidiary of the also insolvent Signa Prime Selection AG.

So far, offices, shops, galleries, cafes, restaurants, a fitness studio, and a publicly accessible observation platform on the 55th floor, as well as a hotel were planned for the tower.

Since the bankruptcy, there have already been several more or less serious ideas for the future of the building. They ranged from demolition to using it as a refugee shelter, to a place for luxury apartments. Most recently, a project developer had proposed leaving the building as it is and adding a large globe on top of it.

Insolvency administrator Torsten Martini expects his job to be completed by the end of the year. "The purchase contracts should be signed by the autumn. The sales process should then be completed by the end of the year," he told the newspaper. So far, he has about a handful of purchase offers from both in and outside Germany.

1. Despite facing insolvency, the city of Hamburg continues to pursue the construction of the Elbtower in Hamburg's Hafencity, originally intended to be the third tallest building in Germany with a height of 245 meters.
2. As part of the city's involvement in the insolvency process, the new buyer will inherit responsibilities such as maintaining the tower's height and public accessibility, as outlined in the tender documents.
3. Occupying a significant place in Hamburg's urban development, the Elbtower was intended to feature various facilities, including offices, shops, galleries, cafes, restaurants, a fitness studio, hotels, and a publicly accessible observation deck on the 55th floor.
4. The insolvency administrator, Torsten Martini, is optimistic about completing the sale of the Elbtower by the end of the year and expects several purchase offers from both within and outside of Germany.

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