Hines has acquired the 13,610 sq m (circa 146,000 sq ft) La Distillerie Art Deco building in Saint-Ouen, in the northern suburbs of Paris, on behalf of the South Korean investor Hana Securities – represented by Vestas Investment Management – for an undisclosed price.
The red brick façade of the 1930s building will be retained, but the rest of La Distillerie will be rebuilt and turned into an office campus for the Eiffage Group, which has taken a long-term lease on the whole building.
Designed by B&B Architecture, La Distillerie will provide generous floor plates exceeding 2,000 sq m (circa 21,500 sq ft), a double height lobby, fitness room, restaurant space, a business centre and an auditorium.
La Distillerie is Hines’ first green loan project in France and is targeting the highest ESG criteria aiming to achieve BBCA Excellent, BREEAM Excellent, NF HQE Excellent and E+C- level E2C2 certifications.
Around 90% of demolition materials will be reused either on site or off site, with bricks from the old building being recycled to construct the new façade.
Xavier Musseau, country head of Hines in France, said: “Following our recent acquisition of La Manufacture, we are investing once again in the northern area of Paris. The design of La Distillerie corresponds very closely to our ESG criteria and, upon completion, it aims to be one of the first buildings to comply with RE2020 regulations. In terms of the workforce, the building plans to provide users with a unique working environment, dedicated to their professional and personal comfort. We are pleased that the property will be occupied by different entities of Eiffage as the group stands out for its forward-thinking ways of developing generous and bright workspaces.”
Eiffage Construction commenced construction of the reimagined La Distillerie in April this year and Hines France will be responsible for overseeing the transaction pending future completion and the subsequent asset management of La Distillerie.
