Belgrade Waterfront


Belgrade Waterfront, known in Serbian as Belgrade on Water, is an urban renewal development project headed by the Government of Serbia aimed at improving Belgrade's cityscape and economy by revitalizing the Sava amphitheater, a neglected stretch of land on the right bank of the Sava river, between the Belgrade Fair and Branko's bridge. It was started in 2014 with the reconstruction of the Belgrade Cooperative building, which was finished in June of the same year. It is the second largest mixed use complex under construction in Europe, just after Minsk Mir worth 3.5 billion dollars. 6.000 apartments, seven hotels including W Hotel and St Regis, 2000 offices, the largest shopping mall in South East Europe and public buildings are planned for the area.
It was announced on 15 March 2015 that the Phase I apartments in BW Residences, a residential development, will be launched for sale. These two towers will each have around 20 floors, consisting of 296 apartment units, and construction started in October 2015.

Overview

The project was initiated in 2014 between the Government of Serbia and Eagle Hills, a leading Abu Dhabi-based private investment and development company that is focused on the creation of new city hubs in high-growth international markets. Around €3.5 billion will be invested by the Serbian government and their Emirati partners. The project includes office and luxury apartment buildings, Belgrade Park, Sava Promenada, five-star hotels, Belgrade Mall and Belgrade Tower, which will be the home to Serbia's first St Regis Hotel & St Regis Residences. Standing at, this building is designed by the architectural firm, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

Criticism

Among Belgrade residents, there is a great deal of contempt for the project. The points criticised encompass the lacking of a public consultation process as well as the disconnect of the lifestyle of Belgrade's middle and upper classes on one hand and the target group of the developed apartments on the other hand. In addition to this, the intransparency and perceived backroom nature of the Belgrade Waterfront deal has caused real anger, expressed most visibly by the street protests organised by the movement Do not let Belgrade down, accusing the development of money laundering and corruption.
In May 2016, thousands of people went on the street to protest against an incident where dozens of men with masks demolished buildings in the area, where the Belgrade Waterfront complex is planned to be built. Contrasting the allegations of the protesters, the government denies any responsibility in and knowledge of the event.

First phase

Currently, there are 10 buildings and a shopping mall under construction or finished, including:

Finished