CEDER 2023 in review: Mixed-space and commuting

23 May 2023

Geo Margescu, Founder & CEO of Forte Partners: “Developers have a great responsibility to reshape cities, […] giving back to the city with nicer open areas, nicer squares and community centres.”

According to the European Office Occupier Sentiment Survey conducted in Spring 2023, access to public transportation (mentioned by 80% of responders) and car parking (57%), as well as storage for bicycles and scooters (38%) emerged as some of the most sought-after features organizations looked for in an office building.

During the Office Panel held at CEDER 2023, Geo Margescu pointed out that he saw commuting as the most important issue brought up by employees resisting the return to the office. “We have two solutions […] to avoid this commuting time, which is the worst problem of Bucharest: either to go with the office building closer to the residential areas, or to build mixed-use projects.”

Other members of the panel also agreed with the benefits of a mixed-use concept. Marius Perșenea, COO of IULIUS, pointed out that since 2012, mixed-use projects have been core assets for his company, and that one of their biggest business drivers has been urban regeneration. Doron Klein, CEO of AFI Europe Czech Republic & Romania added that, in his opinion, “if we can create within a one-mile radius all kinds of usages, where people can live, can work, can be entertained and shop, […] that’s the solution to the future office occupier.”

Stefan Tudos, Vice President of Genesis Property completed this picture by adding that in his view, the office building itself was not enough to satisfy the employees’ requirements. “What happens outside the building is a big kind of feature that is very important for employees. We offer an ecosystem, where employees can come and have a good time and collaborate and talk to each other”, he said, adding that his company’s approach to this issue is to make commuting worthwhile.