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In the South of the city, at the crossroads
The area adjacent to Pulkovo airport attracts the attention of investors not by chance. Here, in the southern part of the city, major transport routes are intersecting. The Moscow, Pulkovo, Kiev and Tallinn highways provide 70% of the St.Petersburg cargo transportation. In close proximity there is a railway station Predportovaya providing access to the seaport terminal. International and national airports offering cargo transport are close by. At the same time, this area is only 18 kilometers away from the historical center of St.Petersburg. That is why a special business and industrial zone is being created here. This area as well as the entire Moscow region of St.Petersburg has always been thought of as having the cleanest environment in the city. In order to protect this unique area, only the enterprises that would not pollute it, were allowed here. Ecologically clean factories, transport terminals and warehouses, trade and commercial objects, parking lots, business centers, hotel complexes for the transport personnel, guests and partners of our city — this is a brief list of those who can count on being admitted to the industrial and business zone along the Pulkovo highway now. JSC Coca Cola St.Petersburg bottlers Ltd. started to explore this region opening the first line of the enterprise producing world famous soft drinks in 1995. The second line already begun to function in March, 1997. A few blocks away, JSC Sosna Ltd. (daughter company of the Lentransgas) have commenced the building of a modern pharmaceutical factory which will be meeting European standards of technology and other parameters. Here, the production of infusion solutions, widely used in medicine, will be established: blood-substitutes, nutrient and anti-shock liquids, the demand of which amounts to 14 million packs a year only in St.Petersburg. In the same area, major projects are being prepared for realization: the building of a new chewing gum factory Wrigley’s Ltd., and of the St.Petersburg branch of Gillette International — world leader in shaving accessories, toothpaste and writing articles. However, the Economic and industrial policy committee is now carrying out energetic measures to make participation in the area development affordable not only for large international corporations but for all potential investors. The development of an industrial and business zone along the Pulkovo highway was kept back by the lack of required technical infrastructure capacities. To lay a water pipe system, a heating system, a sewage system, to create electric and telephone networks is now very expensive. It amounts to a considerable part of the entire project cost. The risks that make projects unacceptable for many investors are connected with that. We hope that coordinated area development will help to intensify the building activities of several companies at the same time and make joint participation in the building of engineering structures possible. This will reduce the investors’ risks in this stage. Our committee is already co-ordinating this kind of collaboration between JSC Sosna, Wrigley’s Ltd. and Gillette International Ltd. We are organizing their meetings and negotiations and help them to co-ordinate their projects and solutions with the other supervising organizations and executive power bodies of our city. As a result, we are hoping that these companies will soon sign an agreement to unite their efforts for the development of the building area. The Economic and industrial policy committee is ready to render assistance to other investors there. To the west of the Pulkovo highway, in the area of Startovaya and Shturmanskaya streets, there are about 20 hectares of this industrial and business zone still available for non-housing development. We are intending to split that land into strips of 0.5-5,7 hectares each. We are sure that the development of the area adjacent to Pulkovo airport will be mutually profitable. The industrial and business zone is extremely attractive for investors and beneficial for the economy of the city. Its development will provide new jobs for the people of St.Petersburg: to build and operate future objects. Also, the necessary goods and services will be purchased here in St.Petersburg. City budget income from the new tax payers and additional inflow of cargo and tourists will also grow. The position of St.Petersburg in the Russian and international business world will improve. The appearance of the zone itself will change as the vacant lands are transformed into beautiful business blocks.
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