The pride of the Cote d'Azur is a French science city of Sophia Antipolis. Pleasant climate and proximity to the Mediterranean, make this center of scientific research and technological development attractive for scientific elites from all over the Earth.
French Silicon Valley
Sophia Antipolis is often called the French Silicon Valley. Such a comparison has a right to exist, but not in full. The concept of Silicon Valley was invented in 1950 by Dean Frederick Terman at Stanford University. He described the idea as an innovative settlement that lives at the expense of knowledge and the smokeless production. Technopolis of Sophia Antipolis was born in the mind of the director of the Paris Institute of Mining Pierre Lafitte. Construction began in 1972.
In 2008, the science and technology park of Sophia Antipolis, created four decades ago, has 5,000 students, 4,000 scientists and 1,414 companies that have created 30,000 jobs, 54% of which are considered particularly prestigious. Blend well into the natural landscape, buildings made of cement glass and metal meet thousands of people every day.
From the beginning it was planned to take a set of nearly 6,000 acres of land, with support of the Department, state, regional government of five communes: Biot, Valbonne, Mougins, Vallauris and Antibes. Four more villages joined later Villeneuve-Loubet, La Colle-sur-Loup, Opio and Roquefort-les-Pins. Together they form the Community of Agglomerations of Sophia-Antipolis (CASA).
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How much is the technological paradise?
"Many of those who work in Sophia-Antipolis, came to the Alpes-Maritimes from other regions and even countries, and buy their own house for the first time," said Jalil Harati from the agency Bienvenue.fr. The conditions in which they work allow to spend €300,000 - €400,000 for apartments, semi-detached house or a single villa.
Built less than ten years ago, near the golf course residence Saint-Philippe are sold for €5,000 per sq.m. There you can buy a house of 80 sq.m with a garden area of 400 sq.m and a swimming pool for €500,000.
The green acres
Lack of leased space, which are also still quite expensive (€15-20 per sq.m) explains the high price of housing. 70% of buyers are looking for a villa. Since the crisis, the choice declined. People now prefer the proximity to work and school, the lively streets of the village, the international airport and the sea just a 20-minute drive away. The most popular is Valbonne, followed by Biot and Mougins, then Opio, Le Rouret, Roquefort-les-Pins and Chateauneuf.
Those who can not leave the city for the benefit of the village, go to Antibes. It recently sold a house of 180 sq.m in perfect condition on a plot area of 1,700 sq.m for €970,000, and the second house of 200 sq.m. with a swimming pool and a great view of the Alps, was sold for €1.1 million.
Special preference
British prefer accommodation in walking distance from the center of Valbonne, which is a scarce commodity. Unlike directors, ordinary workers of Sophia-Antipolis rarely buy housing more expensive than a million euros. Customers from Monaco, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany and Scandinavia prefer to buy a home for retirement or a house for rent.
"Out of the total number of customers willing to pay from €800,000 to €1,000,000, 25% work in the industrial park," said Nathalie Chalion from the agency Arthur Amilton. Also, here comes a lot of people who do not have enough space in Cannes.
Creation of a technology park had a positive impact on the surrounding communes, which resulted in the construction of new roads, building infrastructure for tourism and recreation, and helped to increase the budgets of municipalities. In addition to the ideal nature the area boasts two internationally-known schools. Many Europeans brought their families here, taking advantage of low-priced flights, which is provided by airport of Nice.
Fact. Sophia-Antipolis technology park was named after Sophia Glickman-Tumarkin , the wife of French Senator Pierre Laffite, who founded the park. In addition, Sophia in Greek means "wisdom", while Antipolis is an ancient Greek name for Antibes.
Text: Ivan Ulitin, ee24.com