Archive for the 'Golf property' Category
Wednesday, October 24th, 2007
Black Sea Golf & Country Club Ground-breaking ceremony
The ceremony of the 2000-decare Black Sea Golf & Country Club was held on October 24 in the coastal town of Kableshkovo, Pomorie Municipality. “The terrain looks like it has been created for a golf course on purpose. But when we first came here three years ago, this site was designated for a dung-hill. Fortunately, we came to an agreement with Pomorie Municipality and now we can create something beautiful.” said Thomas Gallagher, one of the project’s investors.
The project is evaluated at 194 million euro. Nineteen million of that will be invested in infrastructure - roads, sewerage, electricity supply, and a waste-water treatment plant. The project is entirely financed by Thomas Gallagher, David Newman, and Nicholas Gallagher. At the present moment, the three men manage investments in Europe at a total value of over 1 billion euro. Pomorie Municipality joined Kabland Ltd, the joint stock venture set up to develop the project, by apportioning almost 2000 decares of land for the complex’ construction in the picturesque area of Kableshkovo.
The complex will include a championship golf course (18 holes, 850 000 sq m), various sports facilities, a four- or five-star hotel, and houses and apartments with a bed-capacity of minimum 3000. After completion of the first development phase, in three years, investors expect the infrastructure, the course, the sports facilities, hotel, and 700 villas and apartments to be finished. At the present moment, the project has a Detailed Zoning Plan and an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The project will be designed by Spanish architects, and local companies will carry out the construction. Eight hundred permanent new jobs will be created with the golf complex development.
Thomas Gallagher, David Newman, and Nicholas Gallagher invest mainly in holiday and commercial properties in Spain, France, the UK, Ireland, and the USA. They are developing another holiday project in Bulgaria - Premium Holiday Complex in the coastal town of Tsarevo, comprising 270 holiday apartments. The project is in the planning stage. Investors told journalists they are willing to invest in the Super Borovets project, as well.
“Golf tourism in Bulgaria is immature. There are many golf projects, but few are completed. The situation was exactly the same in Spain some 30 years ago. And now it is a world-famous golf destination. We believe Bulgaria has a great potential to develop as an attractive place for golfers,” said Thomas Gallagher. The golf industry’s global value is estimated at 15 billion euro a year. In Europe, there are at least five million golfers. Blagoy Ragin, chairmen of the Bulgarian Hotel & Restaurant Association, said Bulgaria has the potential to welcome 10 to 12 million tourists a year. About four million tourists have visited Bulgaria since January 2007.
Thursday, July 5th, 2007
4 investors propose Banya golf, spa developments
Four companies are seeking the approval of the local government in the Bulgarian town of Banya, in the mountainous Karlovo region, to develop spa and golf tourism in the area.
The Karlovo municipal council, which has jurisdiction in Banya, will review the submissions on July 10.
One of the entries comes from local businessman Hristo Danov. It is submitted on behalf of the Banyasoccer club presided over by Danov.
The other 3 proposals have been collecting dust in the municipal archives for quite a while. Some were handed in no less than a year ago.
The most expensive development is the 60 mln euro Banya Golf and Spa Resort proposed by the company of the same name.
The investor has invited the municipality to co-create a joint venture and contribute a 157 ha land plot valued at 12 mln levs. BanyaGolf and Spa Resort will provide a capital of 25 mln levs for the JV.
The company wants to build a golf course, a five-star spa center and entertainment venues.
Luxembourg-registered Rose Valley Investment also favors a spa tourism joint venture format involving the municipality.
The fourth proposal comes from a Dolna Banya entrepreneur Georgi Genov.
The projects will be tabled for a public discussion on July 5. If they get the popular vote, they will probably get ours as well, said municipal council chairman Stoyo Karagenski
Friday, May 11th, 2007
5 golf course projects to tee off in Shabla coastal area in Bulgaria
Developers plan to shoehorn no less than 5 golf resorts between Shabla and Durankulak, a 20 km stretch on Bulgaria’s northern Black Sea coastline. The Shabla municipality said the projects will be developed by Bulgarian Golf Society and Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Co., both part of Varna-based economic conglomerate TIM, Litex Commerce, Bulgaria Hold and Rosinvest. 
TIM is also developing a marina project in the Shabla bay area. The developers are in a rush to secure planning approval and all the necessary documents before the state designates the sites in the area that will be protected under the European Natura 2000 network. The Natura 2000 decision for the Shabla area and the area of the Durankulak lake was postponed for October 2007. Sites with approved masterplan or detailed development plan are not eligible for Natura 2000 protection.
Shabla mayor Velichko Makakov said the developers have squared their plans with the environment ministry and have no concerns about a likely wildlife protection zoning. The Shabla municipality will participate in 3 of the golf developments. The municipal council has already approved the contribution on the part of the city of 120 ha of land. The city will control 35% stakes in the joint ventures with the private developers.
The first of the 3 golf resorts is located near the villages of Vaklino and Krapets. It will be implemented by Bulgarian Golf Society over a 5-year period. The second project approved by the municipal council is the golf resort near the village of Ezerets which will be developed by Litex and Bulgaria Hold.
Shabla Golf is the third project involving the municipality. It will be developed by Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Co. on 140 ha near the village of Tylenovo. Litex and Bulgaria Hold each have one more golf resort in the area. Those projects require no sanction from the municipal authorities because they will be implemented on private land.
The Litex golf course, a partnership with Rosinvest, will take shape near the village of Krapets while the Bulgaria Hold project is located near Durankulak. Neither has building permits but the developers are hopeful they will be granted by September.
Litex Commerce recently announced it will invest some 100 mln euro in a 60 ha vacation complex near Balchik, another coastal town emerging as a major golfing destination along the Northern Black Sea coast. Construction of the 500-villa complex should begin this summer.
Thursday, April 12th, 2007
Terra Tour Service to invest 71 mln levs in Pravets golf resort, 40 min away from Sofia
Local company Terra Tour Service has announced plans to invest 71.8 mln levs in a golf resort near the town of Pravets, 40 min away from the capital city of Sofia. The project will be granted a First Class Investor certificate by the InvestBulgaria Agency, the local investment promotion authority. Terra Tour Service is managed by Vasil Zlatev, father of Lukoil Bulgarian executive director Valentin Zlatev.The 60 ha resort will comprise a PGA-level course, clubhouse and 35 villas.
Terra Tour Service, which owns 4 hotels, game parks, sports venues, spa center and a Pomorie holiday complex, plans to self-finance 30% of the project cost and borrow the remainder.
The Pravets development is the 5th golf resort awarded a First Class Investor certificate after projects in Pomorie, Razlog, Kavarna and the village of Kurilo near Sofia.
Tuesday, April 10th, 2007
Construction pace in Bulgarian ski resort of Razlog reaches one of famous Bansko
The bed capacity in the Razlog/Bansko skiing area will jump to 200,000 over the next 5 years, Razlog mayor Lyuben Tatarski said in a statement based on the number of building permits issue by the two municipalities.
According to Tatarski, five new resorts will pop up alongside Razlog and Bansko which are already established destinations. The local government official tipped Betolovoto, where 2 golf complexes are already under developments, Dobrinishte, Bania, Predela and a golf hotspot taking shape just outside Razlog.
The only thing that could sidetrack the multimillion euro investments are the latest changes to the land use regulations and the uncertainties surrounding the designation of protected sites under EU’s Natura 2000 program.
The municipal authorities are campaigning against a recent legislative amendment which bars them for a period of 5 years from disposing of land unclaimed by its rightful owner. According to Tatarski, the changes should not apply to land that will be contributed to the golf course developments because it consists of rugged and rocky terrain unsuitable for farming. The Razlog municipal council has so far given the go-ahead to 7 golf course projects.
The municipality plans to set up joint ventures with each respective developer, contributing parcels ranging from 140 to 220 ha which translate into an equity stake of 20-30%. Tatarski said one work-around in case the law is not amended would be to prepare a land management plan stating that 30% of unclaimed land will be earmarked to compensate owners while the other 70% will be given over to golf resorts. Another option is to draft a masterplan where the farmland parcels slated for golf developments are rezoned as urbanised land.
The last 4 golf resorts approved by the Razlog municipality will be developed by Austria’s Nord Investment, Britain’s Emerging Capital Fund Management and the local Razlog Valley Golf and Balkanstroy. Investment is seen at 60-100 mln euro, said Tatarski. The golf resorts should be completed within 6 years.
Over 130 ha of land adjacent to the first golf resort set to partially open for business this summer have been bought up by developers at 100 euro/sq m. They are already building a number of holiday villages with local and foreign fundsDnevnik daily
Monday, April 2nd, 2007
Banya area holiday village development announced close to the Bulgarian ski resort of Bansko
Lewis Charles Sofia Property Fund Limited has signed a contract with Winslow Developments
to regulate and eventually develop a holiday village project near Bania, which is close to the Bulgarian ski resort of Bansko, the fund said in a press release quoted by news agency Dow Jones on Monday, April 2.
Winslow Developments and the Lewis Charles Sofia Property Fund have signed a 4- year contract for the implementation and management of the project. The deal, which could generate approximately 113 mln euro in total project revenue, subject to planning permission, involves the regulation of the 121,420 sq m area within the next year, the planning and construction of a holiday village, as well as the marketing and sales of the completed buildings.
The two Companies are continuing discussions concerning the arrangements for after-sale property management. The Fund announced the acquisition of the land at Banya in August 2006. The Banya project, subject to the grant of planning permission, will involve the building of a first-class holiday village consisting of chalets and spacious apartments. The village will provide all the necessary facilities to guarantee the maximum comfort of its residents such as tennis courts, swimming pools, spa centre, restaurant and bars. The development is situated on a hill offering very attractive views of the Rila, Pirin and Rhodopi Mountains.
Lewis Charles Sofia Property Fund is an AIM-listed investment company focused on investment in the Bulgarian residential property market. The fund has a portfolio of about a dozen projects, mainly in Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo and winter resorts.
Winslow Developments operates since 2001. The company invests primarily in Bulgarian ski resort Bansko where it has completed 5 projects and has another 2 in development. The developer has also completed a villa community in Sofia and a logistics center in the village of Petrich.
In 2006, Winslow Developments announced it will implement jointly with RREEF, the real estate investment arm of Deutsche Asset Management, the global investment management business of Deutsche Bank, 2 large-scale residential projects in Sofia. The two developments, with cost estimated at 100 mln euro, will deliver a total of 1,000 apartments.
Monday, March 26th, 2007
Bulgaria to Become a Monte Carlo of the Balkans
Bulgaria’s Black Sea Coast is on its way to becoming a Monte Carlo of the Balkans. As it is a matter of prestige to have a house in Monaco world celebrities are buying estates in Bulgarian resorts and complexes on a mass scale.
One of the most famous investors is Eddie Jordan, former owner of a Formula 1 team. The famous Irishmen bought his estate through a prestigious English fund,” said Christian Saraliev, Chief Architect of the municipality of Byala (northeast Bulgaria).
One of the best-known architects in the world - Norman Foster, designer of the London City Hall was hired for the project. He is also winner of the Sterling Prize for one of his other projects - the London Sky Scraper nicknamed the Gherkin because of its unusual shape. His project in Bulgaria is still kept secret but it will probably be something eccentric, say well-informed sources.
Yurii Luzhkov, Mayor of Moscow, has also decided to invest in Bulgaria. He plans to build a huge holiday village on 230 000 sq.m. with an outdoor track and an Olympic size stadium. The investment is evaluated on 100 mln Euro, and the constrution is expected to start at september 2007.
Other famous investors include Fernando Roig Alfonso owner of the Spanish football club Villarreal who plans to erect a modern port for yachts and a luxury holiday village with little hotels, family houses, expensive restaurants and bars, swimming pools and tennis courts. The total cost of the project is estimated at 100 million euro. Roig also plans to invest in the construction of a golf course worth between 8 and 10 million euro. According to the plans the construction has to start every moment now and will be completed in three years.
Standart Daily
Friday, March 23rd, 2007
Luxury golf developments are leading the way in Bulgaria’s latest property boom
The signs are that Bulgaria, once consigned to the cheap and cheerful bracket, is now heading up-market. Several new developments are now marketing themselves as “five star” with many based around golf courses.
The Black Sea coast is still attracting the bulk of buyers. Savills recently launched a new golf and country club development called BlackSeaRama, where apartments and villas are set within a gated community around a Gary Player-designed 18-hole course near Balchik. Apartments range in size from 95 to 170sq m, and villas measure up to 230sq m. The development is set within attractive gardens with on-site amenities, including communal pools and a five-star hotel. Buyers will have access to other sports such as tennis and the development lies near the Tuzlata Spa where visitors can enjoy its thermal baths and mud baths.
BlackSeaRama prices start from €124,000 (£88,570) for one-bedroom apartments, rising to €246,000 (£175,710) for duplexes. Lemore Kayvan from Savills admits that, for a country long considered an emerging market, this is relatively expensive. “It is a lot for Bulgaria but, for something of this calibre, it’s not bad especially when compared with other golfing destinations.” A one- bedroom apartment works out at €1,300 (£928) per sq m and Kayvan points out that buyers are getting something special in a country where five-star luxury is a relatively new concept.
Response has been good despite the development being targeted at a “niche market”. Luxury may be the main attraction but as there are few other five-star amenities in the area, does Kayvan think that buyers may be disappointed by a lack of amenities off site? “In terms of infrastructure you actually don’t need much to install a golfing development,” says Kayvan. “You just need space and beautiful countryside, which Bulgaria certainly has.”
Many investors bought in Bulgaria several years ago and have seen their investments soar in value. Today’s investors might question whether Bulgaria still has growth left in the market but Avatar International’s Amar Sodhi offers an interesting perspective: “In the past investors may have paid too much for developments that were of poor quality. In the early days, most developments were sold completely off plan leaving the developer with no incentive to use high-quality finishings. Today the market has cooled slightly and developers must compete for business.”
The market may not have the frenzy of the early years but Bulgarian tourism is still booming and Sodhi says that further growth is inevitable: “As long as the hotels are full, then there’s room for investment potential.”