No tenfold increase in land rent charged to the Riga Olympic Sports Centre

The Riga City Council has decided to keep the current land rent for the Olympic Sports Centre at 1.5% of the ‘cadastre value’ of the land plot. The Sports Centre, located at 6b Grostonas iela, Riga, is owned by a company that belongs to the Latvian Olympic Committee.

The Riga Olympic Sports Centre was facing a potential tenfold increase in land rent due to amendments passed in April to a government regulation on the lease of public land.

COBALT advised the city council on whether the land was leased for a ‘public function’ and whether the lease transaction did not entail state aid. If both conditions are satisfied, the current rent, expressed as a percentage of the ‘cadastre value’ of the land, may be retained.

The COBALT team consisted of Partner Uģis Zeltiņš, Senior Associate Kristīne Rāviņa and Associates Toms Dreika and Maira Pužule.