The Circle 2020: Event mecca with its own runway

Anyone who frequents the airport in Kloten can literally follow the progress of the construction work. After six years of project development, marketing and planning, the excavators rolled out in spring 2015 to start work on the gigantic The Circle project. Currently, around 350 people are working every day on Switzerland's largest building construction site, a stone's throw from the terminals. And the number is growing all the time as the project moves toward completion. In a year's time, at the end of 2019, the majority of the construction work on The Circle should be completed. The grand opening is scheduled for 2020.

Desired location for companies

However, a number of companies and organizations have already secured their location within the walls of the century-old complex, which will offer a total of 180,000 square meters of usable space on a floor area of around 30,000 square meters. "Around 60 percent of the space has already been leased," says Beat Pahud, overall project manager for Flughafen Zürich AG, which holds a 51 percent stake in The Circle as part of a co-ownership agreement. The remaining 49 percent is owned by Swiss Life AG.

For example, the U.S. chain Hyatt will operate "The Circle Convention Centre Zurich Airport" congress center on an area of 5,000 square meters in addition to two hotels on site. The University Hospital Zurich is planning to open a health center for outpatient medical care on an area of 11,000 square meters. Furthermore, in the "Brands & Dialogue" module, Jelmoli and the Swatch Group, together with Omega and Dufry, will open brand platforms of the future. It has also just been announced that Raiffeisenbank and two IT companies have signed joint leases for a total of 8000 square meters of office space.

Wide range of spaces for all types of events

Pahud is confident that much of the rental space will be spoken for by the time it opens in just over a year. "Inquiries are coming in almost daily." Many prospective clients from the meetings and events sector inquire specifically about the convention center, with which The Circle is setting new standards. It offers state-of-the-art event space with 15 meeting rooms suitable for conventions, events, meetings, gala dinners, trade shows and product presentations for up to 2,500 guests. The huge Convention Hall alone, which can be divided into three sections, has the capacity to accommodate 1500 guests in theater seating, their 1200 in banquet seating or 970 in classroom seating. All rooms are fully audiovisual and equipped with high-speed Internet.

Top infrastructure

Something will be on offer to meet all requirements, says Pahud. "Both international groups looking for well-connected European locations and companies from Switzerland and the region planning events for domestic and foreign guests will find top infrastructure in the new Convention Centre at Zurich Airport," he believes. The convention center offers optimal conditions for both daytime and evening events and also a breathtaking view of a park landscape, he said.

Inside the semicircular building complex, a lush green area of 80,000 square meters is being created.

Accommodation and gastronomy for high demands

In addition to optimal seminar and congress infrastructures, meeting and event customers in The Circle should of course not miss out in terms of accommodation. Hyatt will ensure this with its two hotels. A Hyatt Regency and a Hyatt Place will be built. The former has four stars and is perfectly geared to the needs of both business and leisure travelers. This includes a professionally managed event management team that takes care of every detail of event planning for corporate groups as well as individual travelers. The hotel has 250 rooms, including an executive and a presidential suite. A highlight is the Regency Club Lounge with its own terrace and direct view of the park. "The inviting lobby with bar, market and restaurant is ideal as a central meeting point in a prime location, directly connected to the convention center," describes Beat Pahud.

Hyatt Place is also a comfortable and modern hotel with 300 generously designed rooms in the three-star superior segment. "It is located on North Square with direct access to the park and its coffee-to-cocktails bar & restaurant invites guests to interact in a relaxed atmosphere," says the project manager. A 24-hour fitness is also part of the offer, as well as the Gallery Kitchen breakfast, he added.

Own culinary concept

In culinary terms, future conference guests should want for nothing. A successful Zurich restaurateur has developed a French concept called "Sablier" especially for The Circle. "The location is being built in a central location with inviting terraces and a view of the adjacent park," explains Beat Pahud. In addition to a restaurant with a salon and a private area, the location will also include a large bar and lounge. Furthermore, the well-known brand Yooji's with its popular sushi format wants to set accents on two floors with an impressive sushi treadmill. Leon Coffee & Grill", a café on the main square, aims to appeal to employees, visitors and airline passengers from early morning to late at night in a cozy atmosphere with a cosmopolitan offering. Caviar House & Prunier", the well-known producer of caviar and salmon, is also launching a food concept in The Circle with a completely new state-of-the-art design, inspired by existing and famous seafood bars and retail formats.

Proximity to airport and city of Zurich

The fact that The Circle has the best chances of establishing itself as a popular event mecca for a national and international conference clientele is not only due to the high-quality internal infrastructures. The location of the complex is also almost unique and unsurpassable. From an objective point of view, the congress center is located in the best place in Switzerland. Direct flights, intercity trains, the S-Bahn, connections to the local public transport network and the freeway, as well as underground parking facilities, guarantee optimum transport links. Zurich city center can be reached by train in just over ten minutes. In addition, The Circle has direct underground and ground-level connections within walking distance of Zurich Airport, where over 150,000 passengers, commuters, visitors and employees access a very diverse range of shopping and dining options every day.

"This unique location also offers event groups a number of options for exciting social programs, be it cultural highlights in Zurich, a visit to the nearby Rhine Falls, or experiences at the airport itself, such as a visit to the spectator terrace or a guided airport tour," Beat Pahud notes. The perfectly trained Hyatt Regency event management team will take care of every detail for any type of event and also support customers in the implementation of social programs with their own ideas or organizational help.

Sustainability in focus

Finally, The Circle should also score particularly well with the international conference and event clientele in the area of sustainability. The entire building's heat and cold supply is regulated using the earth as a storage medium. The demand for energy and water can thus be greatly reduced by means of recovery. "In addition, a huge photovoltaic system will be installed on the roof of the building area, providing an additional renewable energy source," explains the project manager. The Circle will be certified to the highest "LEED® Platinum" standard and is also striving for Minergie certification, he says with pride. A building project like this, a pioneer in terms of technology, and at the same time sustainable in terms of ecology, creates good conditions for itself to become a new beacon in the international meeting and event market.