Tbilisi City Hall agrees deal with development company to finish suspended 30 residential blocks

About 2,500 families affected by ongoing projects of the development company Sveti will receive apartments, announced Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze today.

Georgian real estate developer m2 will continue three suspended constructions, begun by  Sveti, on the streets of Mirtskhulava, Nutsubidze, and Chkondideli in Tbilisi.

These projects comprise a total of  30 residential blocks.

The construction will begin as soon as the project agreement and construction permits are obtained and will be completed within three years of obtaining the permits.

M2 has invested 250 million GEL (about $84/€76 million)  into the projects. 

Kaladze also spoke about families affected by construction issues caused by other development companies, specifically naming Center Point Group.

[Tbilisi City Court] is doing everything to solve the problems of other families affected by [construction issues] of Center Point Group and other development companies”, said Kaladze.

M2 has invested 250 million GEL (about $84/€76 million) into the projects. Photo: Tbilisi City Hall.

On the basis of an application lodged by the future owners of the construction-developer company Sveti on 29 May 2018 an investigation was initiated into a case of misappropriation of funds by the abovementioned company, which was paid by citizens to purchase residential apartments”, read the press release by the Investigation Service on October 3, 2018.

The statement continues,

Evidence obtained by the investigative activities confirms that the indictees G.J. and T.J. were intentionally using their official positions to deliberately take possession of large amounts of money belonging to citizens. For this purpose, construction-development company Sveti announced the commencement of large-scale housing construction projects at the beginning of 2016… In order to acquire large amounts of money, active advertising campaigns, including on social networks, were conducted to attract local and foreign residents interested in purchasing a flat, the press release reads".

The investigation revealed that the heads of Sveti, Givi Jibladze and Tornike Janelidze, fraudulently acquired 3,356,385 GEL ($1,129,754/€1,028,556 ). The Investigation Service of the Ministry of Finance of Georgia announced on October 3 that they had been arrested on charges of fraud, misappropriation of funds and abuse of authority.