The Gaia Hills residential project, promoted by the Belgian groups Promiris and Thomas & Piron, was officially presented this Wednesday in Vila Nova de Gaia. With sales expected to start in May, and construction due to start in the last quarter of the year, the apartments range from 250,000 euros to 1.7 million euros.
Located in the heart of the riverside area, aimed at families and the middle/high-end segment, the new project in the hills of Gaia will include the construction of eight buildings with 4 and 5 floors, divided into four plots, for a total of 251 apartments ranging from 1 to 5 bedrooms.
The dimensions of the apartments vary between 62 sqm (T1) and 278 sqm (T5) and the average sale price will be 4,800 euros per square meter. All the apartments benefit from large terraces overlooking the River Douro, the city of Porto or the Urban Leisure Park to the south.
First phase starts in the 4th quarter
With a total construction area of around 30,500 sqm, in a first phase a residential area of 16,200 sqm, 640 sqm of commercial area and 9.100 sqm of underground parking, technical and storage areas, of which 1,600 sqm will be dedicated to a public parking lot. Construction of the first phase is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of this year and to be completed by the end of 2026.
In the second phase, a total residential construction area of 15,000 sqm and 6,600 sqm underground for parking lots, technical areas and collections will be built. Construction of the second phase is planned to begin in 2027, with the start of sales expected around 3 months earlier, and its completion in 2029.
It is also planned to build a central plaza called the Ágora. To the south, the green areas will be transformed into a nature park, which will then be ceded to the municipality for public use, and where it will be possible to be in direct contact with nature.
Gaia Hills integrates green and residential spaces
Gaia Hills integrates green and residential spaces into its urbanization, also incorporating sustainability into its design by focusing on solutions such as the use of natural heating through openings located in the southern quadrant; natural lighting with openings in the most permanent spaces; efficient thermal insulation; sustainable mobility, with the possibility of installing electric car charging points and bicycle parking spaces.
According to David Carreira, from Thomas & Piron, "we intend to start marketing this development this May and conclude the process of choosing the contractor, which is already at a very advanced stage, by the end of June. The lengthy licensing processes have meant that we are now in a position to start building Gaia Hills, six years after it was acquired. This fact, along with the international situation, which we are well aware of, has led us to have to make adjustments to the sale price per square meter. We will, however, put 251 apartments on the market for the middle class, which is Thomas & Piron's main core business. The quality of the construction, along with the functionality of the apartments, and the creation of exclusive green and leisure spaces, in an overall investment of around 100 million euros, will make this a distinctive project," he says.
According to Christian Terlinden, Managing Partner of Promiris, this type of residential concept, emblematic in terms of environmental and ecological sustainability, is increasingly sought after as contact with nature and a contemporary lifestyle are increasingly valued. Its prime location, on the first line of the River Douro, is an added value and a unique investment opportunity.