How Almaty Devalued a Prestigious District

What determines the price of a square meter? Any developer will tell you: the three Ls: location, location and location. And what defines a location? Public space. The quality of public space is determined by the urban environment. A square meter in a home near a park or a body of water costs more than one along a highway. A square meter of retail space with parking costs more than one without. An office with good transport access will cost more than one without. Good and bad locations are made by people. If you invest in real estate where the urban environment is being shaped badly, it is a bad investment in every sense.

We have two office locations: 38 Al-Farabi and 98 Panfilov. Two years ago, I could not find any way to motivate my employees to move to Panfilov. Now I cannot motivate them to move back. Fewer traffic jams, good transport access, the metro, a pedestrian zone, restaurants and cafés, and parks have created the right urban environment, and people have realized that Panfilov is far more comfortable to work in.

Al-Farabi is beginning to lose its exclusive status. The high-rises that have gone up over the past five years, and that are still going up around Gagarin, Rozybakiev and Remizovka and along Al-Farabi, have turned the district into one big traffic jam, with no clear prospect of how it will all be resolved. I am afraid to imagine what will happen when everything is finished and occupied.