Gallery: A rafter party during the renovation of the 125-year-old main building of Volta Quarter

Yesterday, property developer Endover held a rafter party at Volta Quarter to mark a major milestone in the renovation of Volta’s historic 1899 main building, which received new roof rafters and now interior finishing works begin. By the end of summer, the 125-year-old building will get 23 new exclusive apartments.

Endover, in cooperation with the architectural bureau APEX, is restoring the headquarters of the former industrial giant Volta, located on Tööstuse Street in Põhja-Tallinn. This is the third stage of development of the residential and business quarter on the former territory of Volta, during which, in addition to reconstruction, three new apartment buildings of energy class A will be built.

Architect Janar Blehner from APEX, whose portfolio also includes architectural solutions for other stages of the Volta development, said that such important historical buildings as Villa Volta, converted into residential houses, are a rarity in the modern real estate market. “When working on the Volta Quarter, we followed the principles of sustainable development in architectural solutions. We restore as much of the old as possible and add new energy-saving elements,” said Blehner.

The Volta Villa renovation is unique due to the original details that have been preserved and restored. “In addition to the signature arched and rose windows of the Volta main building, we must preserve the interior and exterior limestone walls, the grand main staircase with vaulted ceiling, cornices and metal railings, and the splendid entrance and facade with its magnificent columns,” the architect said. The common areas will retain the original wooden swing doors and historic floor tiles. The basement floor will have restored vaulted brick ceilings, with storage rooms and rooms for bicycles planned there.

The entire facade of Volta Villa will be preserved in its original form during the reconstruction. Volta Villa apartments, ranging from 49 to 127 m2, will have ceilings of up to 3.6 meters high and arched windows, and will feature an open-plan layout across two floors.

Endover CEO Robert Laud said that nine buildings have already been built in the Volta block, with a further four to be delivered in the next nine months. Endover has also begun preparations for the construction of one of the largest business campuses in all of Põhja-Tallinn with 35,000 m2 of commercial space.

“We are currently entering into lease agreements for key premises and in the coming years we want to introduce services that are not currently available in the area,” Laud said. “We asked local residents what businesses they would like to see here. People are looking forward to various services, such as a large sports club or a spa centre, which currently do not exist in Põhja-Tallinn.”

According to Endover’s CEO, the Volta Quarter, the planned Krulli tech campus and the Noblessner port area – the “golden mile” of Põhja-Tallinn – are among the fastest growing residential and business areas in Tallinn, where demand for new real estate is always high, despite general market decline. “This has encouraged us to continue developing the area and embark on ambitious projects such as the construction of 35 thousand square meters of new commercial premises,” said Robert Laud.

In the Tallinn real estate market – and for Endover – the Volta Quarter is one of the most important and successful properties. An industrial zone with more than 100 years of history is being developed as a “15-minute city”. The total development volume of the quarter is 142,000 m2, with more than 750 apartments and over 50,000 m2 of commercial space planned.

View the selection of Volta Villa homes HERE.

In the Volta Quarter, a kindergarten, a food street, as well as recreational facilities for different age groups are planned – both indoors and in a park area of 15,000 square meters. In connection with the development of the quarter, Endover has created extensive new infrastructure in Põhja-Tallinn, including two new streets. The architecture of the quarter is created by the architectural bureaus KOKO, Apex and ARS, and the largest banks in Estonia are participating in its financing: LHV Pank, Coop Pank and Bigbank.