MA DRID
Nuevo Norte will aid Madrid in its attempts to attract UK business as Brexit draws near
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TOURISM TRENDS Despite growing security concerns across the continent, tourism here remains strong, with 6.7 million international visitors exploring Madrid in 2017. Brands such as W and Four Seasons are set to open hotels in the next year or so, while recent city-centre launches include properties from Hyatt, Only You, Melia and NH Hotels. Monica Torres is general manager of the 83-room
NH Collection Palacio de Tepa, which is housed in a 19th-century palace that was once home to the last viceroy of Spain in Mexico. “The next few years are going to be quite challenging, with the opening of Four Seasons and W nearby, so this area is going to be a hotspot,” she says. Meanwhile, an ambitious regeneration project in
northern Madrid is likely to up the ante for many businesses when it eventually sees the light of day. Designed to rival international financial hubs such as Canary Wharf and La Défense in Paris, the Madrid Nuevo Norte project plans to transform 268 hectares of industrial wasteland into a business zone also encompassing homes, parkland and a metro extension. While this should be cause for excitement, no one
is holding his or her breath for a timely delivery – the project was first announced in 1994 and has been held up by years of bureaucratic and political wrangling. Last summer, a revised version of the project was finally approved and, when work begins later this year, it will be one of the largest urban regeneration projects in Europe, with proposed funding in the region of €6 billion (US$7.4 billion). “We have studied other projects in Europe to decide
which features to replicate and errors to avoid,” says a project spokesperson. “Several studies indicate that there is a lack of high-quality offices here. We want big companies to choose Madrid as their headquarters. All companies will be welcome.” Although in its early
AP RIL 2 0 18 FROM TOP:
Nuevo Norte development; NH Collection Palacio de Tepa; Only You Atocha
stages, the project has allocated 149 of the 268 hectares to commercial use, and expects to build close to 11,000 new homes. All of this will aid Madrid in its attempts to attract
UK business as Brexit draws near. Invest in Madrid’s Rocio Guemes says that the Madrid Nuevo Norte development will be one of the most advanced business zones in Europe. “We are perceiving interest in the project from
foreign companies and, once it is launched, there will be excellent opportunities for investment,” she says. Having weathered the storm, it’s clear that, today, Madrid is open for business.
bus ine s s tr a v el ler .c om
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