The heart of Nicosia is to play host to a new boutique hotel as Bank of Cyprus and an Israeli company are a step away from sealing a €9 mln deal that involves an ex-Laiki Bank building in the city centre.
The building that once hosted Laiki Bank offices on Makarios Avenue in Nicosia has been acquired by an Israeli consortium aiming to transform the property into a hotel which will add value to the capital as a tourist attraction.
Israeli Fattal Hotel Management has agreed to buy the former 5,600 sqm Laiki building in the centre of town after it was put on the market for €9 mln.
It will be Fattal’s fourth hotel in Cyprus after it bought the Leonardo Plaza Cypria Maris, the Sentido Cypria Bay and Leonardo Laura Beach & Splash Resort from the Libra group.
The ex-Laiki building is not the only hotel project in the pipeline for the capital. The development comes shortly after news of the Greek company Pangea NBG is to acquire MIG’s majority share of the Hilton Hotel in Nicosia which is up for grabs.
Pangea, according to press reports, is the preferred investor to acquire 96.82% of the company which currently owns the prestigious Hilton.
If there are no last-minute changes, the deal is expected to be signed in the next few days and the transaction will be completed in the coming months.
Quoting industry sources, Stockwatch reports that the Bank of Cyprus is also negotiating with a foreign investor for the sale of Cyta's parking lot at the corner of Makarios and Naxos Avenue opposite the Ministry of Commerce, for the amount of €6.2 mln.
Reportedly, the investor wants to build another boutique hotel.
A Lebanese-backed UK-based company has bought a five-story building on Omirou Avenue, which it plans to modify into a boutique hotel with the addition of another 3 stories. The company has already filed the necessary paperwork.
Meanwhile, local developers are lining up a series of projects to meet expected demand for offices and commercial properties in the capital.
PCMK Holdings Ltd has plans to build a seven-story commercial development on Kallipoleos Avenue opposite the old military camp near the Hilton Hotel.
The project is to consist of offices, shops, parking lots and will be erected on an area of 12,454 sqm, following energy efficiency guidelines given by the European Commission.
