The financial difficulties of Martinsa-Fadesa that came to light last summer made huge headlines because it was one of the first major European developers to be hit by the deepening credit crunch.

In the post-Lehmans Brothers torrent of worsening news from ever-larger companies, the company’s gradual steps towards stability have made far less of an impact.

Many Budapest developers may have caught the whiff of opportunity at the news of the bankruptcy proceedings in Spain, assuming it was only a matter of time before the company sold off its Hungarian assets. It’s hard to blame them. Along with some residential and hotel sites, the real gem they have in mind is the 80 ha plot on Csepel Island that Martinsa-Fadesa has held since 2006.

It’s not just the spectacular location of this huge tract of land that makes it so enticing. It’s the fact that while the city’s vision for what should be built there is not yet formulated, Budapest clearly sees the island as a prime region for growth. In fact, there are indications from city sources that the city sees the island playing an important role in its plans to host the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Despite the persistent rumors that the plot is for sale, or eventually will be, managing director José Luis Moreno Alcaniz says that nothing could be further from the truth. Asked point blank about the vultures circling over the island, waiting to swoop in, Alcaniz smiles easily. “They can keep waiting,” he says. “Actually, we aren’t really having many inquiries about it. We hear many rumors but we’re not getting anyone serious in buying.”

In fact, Csepel Island is likely to emerge as a flagship project in the new Martinsa-Fadesa that its top management hopes will eventually emerge. Less dependent upon the Spanish market, the company will look to foreign markets to produce its future growth. Under a current restructuring process, Budapest is being turned into one of its regional headquarters, from where Alcaniz will drive the Czech, Romanian and Bulgarian activities.

“We are reinforcing the importance of the international part of the company and Csepel is one of the pillars of this development,” says Alcaniz. “Not only because of its size, but because of the quality of the development and the opportunity to change the face of the city. Such a thing happening close to the downtown of a European capital is quite rare.”

While discussions are still underway at the highest levels, Alcaniz is hopeful he’ll be able to have the shape of the new Csepel Island included in the city’s master plan by the end of the year. This means that it’s still too early to say much else beyond the fact that it will obviously have to be a multifunctional zone, with all of the attributes required in any city neighborhood.

He compares the location to neighborhoods in other big cities where water is a commanding presence. “Think what Manhattan looked like 100 years ago, or Canary Wharf in London. It’s an area within a city that needs to be redefined and filled by a natural extension of the city.”