Riding the crest of a wave
 
Shopping and working in a thriving economy
 
 
Lithuania is riding high. The economy is flourishing, investor confidence is high, accession to the EU in 2004 went smoothly, and years of consistent free market reforms have given the country low taxes and inflation. Nowhere is this more evident than in Vilnius, the capital, where a programme of reconstruction and renewal of historic buildings is, in turn, encouraging significant real estate projects.
 
One of the larger projects is the Europa Centre, a state-of-the-art shopping and office development which includes the Baltic’s tallest tower block. According to the architect, the main idea was to implement something unique for Lithuania: a large and expressive transparent aluminium skylight roof with long slopes, a curved ridge and twisting lines. The developer did not attempt to limit the architect, so almost all of his ideas have been realized.