Quantum Metrocenter to start construction in Hato Rey
By Dennis Costa Pacheco of Caribbean Business

Quantum Metrocenter, a mixed residential / commercial / tourism complex, will soon start construction in the Hato Rey Golden Mile banking district in what is regarded as the first privately funded project to support the Ciudad Red initiative, which aims to stimulate development around Urban Train stations. Construction on the 300,000-square-foot, $300 million project is expected to start near the end of 2006. Quantum Metrocenter Corp. is the developer of the project and architectural firm Sierra, Cardona Ferrer SRL (SCF) is in charge of design.

The three-building complex will consist of two areas, the first being a residential structure made up of two towers, each with 80 apartments and 28 stories high. A commercial building named Q Tower, to be built next to the residential structures, promises to be the tallest building in Hato Rey, with a height of more than 300 feet and a 100-room hotel (the first one in decades to be located in Hato Rey) planned for the building’s top seven floors (total number of floors for the Q Tower was not specified). The name or franchise to manage the hotel has yet to be determined.

Quantum Metrocenter will be constructed in two phases starting with the first tower and a parking complex to be built between the two residential towers. Abraham Linkewer, president of Quantum Metrocenter Corp., expects delivery of the first apartment units by the end of 2008. Following the start of the project’s first phase, construction on the commercial “Q Tower” building is slated to start in the first quarter of 2008 and end sometime in 2010. The project will be on Chardón Avenue at the corner of Sotomayor Street, contiguous with the Westernbank building in the south and federal government grounds in the west and walking distance from the Puerto Rico Coliseum and two Urban Train stations.

Although multipurpose projects that combine residential and commercial spaces have been the trend in recent years, chief architect Segundo Cardona claimed this project is set apart from all the others. “Most projects of this kind just stack up the residential segment on top of the commercial areas in a single building; this forces everyone, from residents to commercial clients, to enter through a same access point. Our project, on the other hand, will be the first one to offer exclusive entrances for residents,” indicated Cardona. The residents’ entrance will be on a street between the complex and the federal grounds, while the commercial building will be accessible from Chardón Avenue and other nearby roads.

The apartments, which approximate 2,000 square feet each, are designed to cater to a high-end clientele, with elevators that will take residents directly to their apartment’s lobby and dimensions that approximate those of a full-fledged house, something made easier by the fact that there will only be four apartments per floor. The two towers will have between them a parking complex with space for 1,177 automobiles, on top of which there will be a recreation center with a pool; Jacuzzi, gazebos and meeting centers. Cardona and his team made sure to provide all apartments with clean, unobstructed views, while minimizing direct sunlight for a cooler atmosphere. Linkewer estimated prices for the apartments to approximate $600 to $700 per square foot. Meanwhile, there are already plans to establish a state-of-the-art gymnasium on the first levels of the Q Tower commercial building, revealed Linkewer.

Even though it is the first privately funded building to be supported by government agencies as part of the Ciudad Red initiative, Linkewer admitted the permits process for the project was nevertheless an uphill battle, taking upwards of three years. “You would think such a concept would be highly attractive, especially with the purpose of stimulating a healthy nightlife in the Hato Rey area, but it was still tough to convince all the agencies,” said Linkewer.