A ten-hectare plot on the edge of Ljubljana's BTC shopping district best known for its grain silos will be converted into an affordable mixed-use neighbourhood with a thousand apartments, according to plans unveiled by the company of aviation pioneer Ivo Boscarol.

The property developer, named Boscarol, had explored multiple options, including preserving the grain silos, but decided they could not be repurposed. The silos will be torn down by August next year.

Building a mixed commercial-residential neighbourhood on land currently zoned for commercial and industrial purposes will require a change of municipal spatial plans.

Maša Čertalič, the company's head of strategic projects, told reporters on 22 October the area could be rezoned within five years, during which time the building permits would be finalised as well.

The project is planned to proceed stage-wise. The final result will be 1,000 apartments, 3,000 parking spots, 40,000 square metres of office space, a hotel, and recreational areas.

The total gross surface of buildings is projected to be 290,000 square metres.

Development "accessible to everyone"

Ivo Boscarol had initially said apartments built there would cost around €3,000 per square metre, significantly below the €5,000-7,000 new housing in the capital costs at present.

Now he says the price may not be as low, but by the time the property is developed flats there will be about as affordable as €3,000 per square metre would be now.

"We're not planning to build a luxury neighbourhood, we are developing a friendly neighbourhood accessible to everyone," he said.

Boscarol got into property development in 2022, after he sold his ultralight aircraft maker Pipistrel for €218 million.

He owns another major property in BTC just across the street from the grain silos, a defunct cinema multiplex previously known as Kolosej that will now be renamed Odiseja (Odyssey).

The building is in the process of being converted into a mix of movie theatres, performance venues and conference halls. Boscarol said it would reopen after New Year's.

Boscarol's property portfolio also includes an office building and a shopping mall in Maribor, and multiple commercial and residential buildings in his native Ajdovščina.