Nice Plaza: in a class of its own

The sumptuous Nice Arénas Plaza project offers the ultimate in comfort. Interview with Christophe MILESI, Associate Director, Groupe LAZARD.

The Nice Plaza project in the center of the city’s Arénas business district has the ideal location right across from the airport with all the ancillary services close at hand (Hotels, Restaurants, Banks, Shops, Airport etc.) Designed by renowned architect Francis CARDETE, the Nice Plaza is a world class complex with 16,000 m2 of luxurious office space due for completion in May 2008. 3 questions to Christophe MILESI, Associate Director, LAZARD Groupe 1. HOW DID THE PROJECT ORIGINATE WITHIN LAZARD? It took off at MIPIM 2004 through a contact on the Côte d’Azur’s stand. We were looking for opportunities but everything seemed to be at a standstill until they started to tell about this project, which had just come back on the market after the previous operator let his options expire. It consisted of building open-plan offices without waiting for the pre-commercialization, which was our speciality and we were the only group in France doing that at the time. 2. HOW IMPORTANT IS THE NICE PLAZA PROJECT WITHIN YOUR GROUP AND HOW DOES IT DIFFER FROM YOUR OTHER PROJECTS? Nice Plaza is one of our largest projects to date as it comprises 16,000 m2 of office space and a 44M€ investment. We started out with a totally blank sheet and created a top class architectural project designed by Francis CARDETE that was quickly backed by Commerz Bank. It’s a very high class building with offices with direct sunlight that offers a high level of comfort along with the very latest energy saving solutions. 3. CAN ONE ALREADY SAY THAT IT’S A SUCCESS? Yes, absolutely. It’s a success because there’s already the market demand in Nice, rental contracts have started being signed (by Price Waterhouse and Landwell in particular) and numerous additional rental agreements are in the process of being finalized. We’re convinced of the Côte d’Azur’s potential and we hope to continue to develop at Sophia Antipolis and Nice. We’re looking very closely at the opportunities offered by the Nice Méridia 200,000 m2-program with the firm intention of being a key player.