Fantasy on 15 ha in Nis - Lozni Kalem to become the most luxury tourist destination in the Balkans

Fantasy. That is the name and the shortest description of the aqua park that is going to be the main attraction within the future tourist-sports-business complex on the right side of the entrance to Niska Banja spa. In the location of Lozni Kalem, the new owner of 14.94 ha of land - Serbian-Italian company Italnis, plans to build an aqua park with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, two high-category hotels with a heliport, a lake, a football field and courts for tennis and mini sports, shopping, wellness and spa zone, cinema halls, a bawling room, restaurants, bars, a congress center, exhibition halls...

In order to fulfill all of its plans, the investor needs to invest between 120 and 150 million euros. The project should include several phases of construction, the last which should be finished in five years. Bojan Stanisavljevic from Naissus Company and Giorgio Zanmarki, a representative of the group of capital owners named Stefania, announced that the complex would employ about 800 citizens.

- The city of Nis sold the location of Lozni Kalem to Italnis on December 17 at the price of RSD 780 per square meter. That company was also the only bidder at the auction so that it bought the lot at the starting price - Goran Mraovic from the company Colliers, which was the main adviser and mediator in the conclusion of the agreement between the city and Italnis, explained for eKapija.

In the interview for eKapija, Mraovic presented contents of the future luxury complex in the south of Serbia, which would be the largest and the most luxury complex of the kind in the Balkans. The author of the project is Nis-based Art Pen studio.

- Fantasy aqua park will occupy a surface of about 5 ha, and there will also be a possibility of its expansion to another 2.31 ha in the near future. The project meets the world`s latest standards and its construction will cost about 10 million euros. It will have both indoor and outdoor sections so that it will be open during the whole year. The project will employ about 70 workers, construction works will last for 12 months, the complex is expected to be visited by minimum 10,000 people a day during the summer period, while its maximum capacity will amount to 20,000 visitors - Mraovic explains for eKapija.

An unusual ship-shaped modern facility is planned to be built at about 7,000 square meters in the vicinity of Fantasy aqua park. That facility will consist of two wholes: a wellness center will be situated on the ground floor and the first floor, spanning a total of 3,500 square meters, while a casino that will meet the world`s latest standards will be located on the second and the third floor. A total value of that investment exceeds 20 million euros.

- That facility is a real futuristic building of the state-of-the-art materials, and the plan is that about 70 people get jobs in it - our interlocutor points out.

The third facility, as Mraovic explains, will be a commercial building, for which two options exist at the moment.

- One is the construction of an outlet, while the other option is the construction of a mega-center. In both cases, the exterior of the facility will be the same, while its tenants will be the stores of world-famous fashion brands, a hyper-market, cinema halls, restaurants and bars. Projected surface of the facility is 20,000 square meters, while the number of workers will range between 300 and 350.

Our interlocutor underlines that the facility will be built of top-quality materials and in accordance with the world`s latest standards, while solar panels will be installed on its roof to enable significant energy savings. The value of the investment in that complex is estimated at 30 to 35 million euros, while the deadline for its construction is 2 years from the day of issuance of the building permit.

In the future tourist pearl of the south of Serbia, visitors will be able to stay for couple of days because the complex will also comprise luxury accommodation facilities. Namely, two high-category hotels, with about 300 beds, are planned to be built in the location of Lozni Kalem.

- The first hotel will be intended for commercial purposes and it will have all the contents that are usual for a five-star hotel. It will comprise a congress center, symposium halls, and a heliport. The hotel will also include presidential suites, while its total surface will exceed 10,000 square meters. Three exhibition halls at 5,600 square meters are planned to be built next to the hotel and they will exclusively host various exhibitions and trade fairs during the whole year. The construction should last for 12 months, while the investment is worth about 35 million euros. A total surface of the hotel and the exhibition halls will be 3.76 ha, while the number of workers who will be employed in this part of the complex will be close to 100 - Mraovic explains.

According to his words, the other hotel is intended for sports and recreation tourism. It will also meet all the standards of a five-star hotel. In addition to classical contents, that facility will also be equipped with the contents that are necessary for trainings of professional athletes.

- It will also comprise a large football field with artificial grass, reflectors, locker rooms, boxes for coaches, managers and sports officials, a modern sports hall, a multifunctional hall with two universal courts for mini sports, three professional tennis courts, mini golf courses, a bawling room, a professional gym, etc. The hotel will have about 250 beds, while the period for its construction is 18 months. The investment is worth about 30 million euros, and it will also enable employment of about 80 people.

Mraovic pointed out that all facilities would be furnished and equipped according to the world`s latest standards and that up-to-date techniques and materials would be used in the construction.

- Since the future complex will be situated in the center of Niska Banja spa, we also plan to use mineral thermal springs for the needs of health care and recreation and as a means for heating water and facilities - said our interlocutor.

T.S.

(Note: the photos are taken from the web portal www.juznevesti.com)