Co-investors v B Housing and COPRO obtain building permit for the Wilhelminian GLINT ensemble

Berlin, 12th November 2018 – After the previous owner had only carried out the works necessary to secure and maintain the safety of the ensemble today known as GLINT, COPRO began planning its revitalisation and expansion concept soon after acquiring the property in June 2016. The city of Berlin granted the real estate developer the building permit to develop GLINT following close consultation with the city planning and listed building protection authorities.

GLINT’s careful revitalisation

The project will be realised by COPRO and von Bothmer Architects. The construction team will combine the individual existing buildings to form an ensemble as part of the broader refurbishment and expansion work. “GLINT will be carefully revitalised in close coordination with the Berlin Monument Protection Authority. Our goal is to preserve the historical core and charm of this architectural jewel and to apply our eye for detail to carefully adapt it to contemporary requirements,” Nadir J. Guediri, Managing Director of COPRO Projektentwicklung GmbH, explains. The ground floor of GLINT will house six commercial units. The property will feature 69 apartments along with community spaces, including a courtyard oasis and fireside lounge. All apartments will be fitted with smart home technology. There is also a trend-setting mobility concept that includes e-bikes and e-mobility parking spaces. The four existing buildings will be expanded into the courtyard with a new-build extension. Meanwhile, an apartment store located within the ensemble grants interested parties an early opportunity to get an idea of how the apartment interiors will look once complete. The store also provides space for meetings with potential buyers as well as special events.

A hotbed of culture – even before construction begins

Construction is scheduled to begin in the first half of 2019 and is expected to take three years. GLINT is being used for cultural purposes even before construction begins, as co-investors v B Housing and COPRO have made the property available to artists for use as an exhibition space. For example, GLINT formed the backdrop for ‘Standard International #5: Spatial Manifestation’, a group exhibition from 22 September to 20 October 2018 to present sculptures, artworks, and environments that primarily represented the material aesthetic of Berlin’s post-reunification period. Rüdiger Lange, pioneer of the Berlin art scene, is the curator and artistic director of all these projects.

25 years of property development expertise

COPRO has been developing challenging real estate projects since 1993. The company’s work covers the entire real estate value chain: from conceiving project ideas through to development, implementation and completion, followed by the sale and subsequent management of the properties. The strength of the ongoing collaboration between COPRO and von Bothmer Architects is already evident in the success of previous projects to revitalise the Imperial Post Office in Berlin Zehlendorf and a residential as well as loft building in Berlin Kreuzberg, not far from the River Spree. COPRO also worked with TPA Real Estate Brands to develop the GLINT book. Through expressive images, impressive renderings and well-researched texts, this attractive coffee-table book enables the reader to experience the awakening of the Wilhelminian ensemble even before work begins. The project won the Red Dot Design Award 2018 as well as the European Property Award 2018/2019. The GLINT development was also awarded the prestigious gold certification by the German Sustainable Building Council (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen e.V.).

More pictures can be found on the GLINT-Instagram channel.