STA, March 10, 2018 – The South African fund Greenbay Properties has sold the 9,932 square metre plot in the centre of Ljubljana only months after obtaining the permit for a EUR 70m luxurious development. The new owner is ILAG Tivoli, owned by the Turnauers, one of the richest families in Austria, the newspaper Dnevnik reported on Saturday.
The sale of the plot, located at the former site of Kolizej, an Austro-Hungarian-era army housing complex that was pulled down in 2011, was being announced by the media for some time already.
While it was speculated that the delayed permits were behind Greenbay's withdrawal, the official reason is not known. One the fund's executives Jan Wandrag said the sales contract was signed on Thursday and was worth EUR 16.2m.
The South African fund had bought the plot in 2016 for EUR 15.4m from Tivoli projekt, one of the companies owned by businessman Jože Anderlič, with the deal including the promise that Andrelič's company Reitenburg would be picked as the builder.
The plans for the project have been changing, starting with Anderlič's idea for an extravagant complex housing a huge concert and opera house, a housing and office tower and a shopping mall, and ending with one featuring a villa with 15 flats and a palace with 112 flats.
The last plan was okayed by the Slovenian Environment Agency (ARSO) a few months ago and also includes a small multi-purpose arts hall - this had been one of the conditions set by the Culture Ministry in 2009 before allowing Anderlič to tear down Kolizej.
The old building at the site. Wikimedia
The environmental permit suggests that construction would take 30 months and could already begin this summer.
According to Dnevnik, Anderlič is also in talks with the new owners on Reitenburg executing the construction. A major indicator that Anderlič has preserved a key role in the project is that his wife Tina Anderlič Jelenc is among ILAG Tivoli's executives.
