Eco-friendly project for iconic site in Beach Road

CDL-led consortium wins tender for hotly contested site with $1.68b bid.
 
SINGAPORE’S fast changing city skyline is set for an eye-catching addition after a consortium was awarded a large, hotly contested Beach Road site, with a winning bid of $1.689 billion.

The new development, called South Beach, features two striking towers, 45 storeys and 42 storeys tall, plus the original conserved military buildings of the old Beach Road Camp which will be restored.

The project will boast premium office space, two hotels, shops and city residences.

Competition to develop the 3.5ha site – seen by some as the last major iconic site in town – was fierce but was won by a consortium led by City Developments (CDL).

The futuristic design, with environmentally friendly features, is by renowned British architects Foster & Partners.

The winning bid works out to $1,068.6 per square foot of potential gross floor area and was the higher of two tender submissions earlier shortlisted by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) for their acceptable concept proposals.

Keppel Land and partner Hong Kong’s Cheung Kong Holdings lost out with their bid of $1.386 billion.

CDL, which tendered via Scottsdale Properties, tied up with Dubai World’s Istithmar Beach Road FZE and Elad Group Singapore, with equal stakes. US-based El-Ad Group, which bought New York’s landmark Plaza Hotel from CDL executive chairman Kwek Leng Beng and his partner in 2004, is owned by Israeli billionaire Yitzhak Tshuva.

Said Mr Kwek: ‘We are confident that South Beach will elevate Singapore’s branding as a global city and help attract more prominent investors all over the world.’

CDL said the 99-year leasehold development, which has a gross floor area of 146,827 sq m, will be built by 2012.

The office space will be substantial as URA requires the developers to set aside at least 40 per cent of the space for office use. At least 30 per cent of the space must be for hotel rooms.

‘Given its strategic location, South Beach is designed with a clear intent to bring economic benefits to complement the rapid growth of our city-state,’ said CDL’s managing director Kwek Leng Joo.

The consortium’s proposal adopted environmental design and green technology to create a distinctive, high-quality development that fits in well with the tropical climate and the urban context.

A key feature of the winning design is a large ‘environmental filter’ canopy that covers the open spaces and ties together the new and conservation buildings within the site.

The first storey is laid out with a series of internal streets, which will enhance street level vibrancy and allow pedestrians to move about easily.

‘The concept is a big step forward in strengthening Singapore’s stand as an environmentally friendly city,’ said Singapore Institute of Architects’ president Tai Lee Siang.

When the Beach Road tender closed in July, the URA received seven submissions from major developers and firms. Five were rejected even though some of them came with higher bids.

For instance, the Lippo Group, which had tendered through Overseas Union Enterprise, submitted two bids above the winner’s price.

‘It’s a good price for the CDL consortium because this is the last iconic site in Singapore,’ said Mr Ku Swee Yong of property consultancy Savills Singapore. ‘And hotel room rates and office leasing rates have been showing strong growth.’

Mr Li Hiaw Ho, executive director of CBRE research, said the site will add at least 500,000 sq ft of new office space and about 700 to 800 hotel rooms. It would relieve an office space shortage and offer rooms for visistors to the Formula One race, he said.
 
Source : Straits Times – 11 Sept 2007

JTC launches Tuas industrial site for sale after $5.9m bid

ON the back of good demand for industrial space, JTC Corporation yesterday launched a 235,400 sq ft land parcel at Pioneer Road/Tuas Avenue 11 for sale, and market watchers estimate that the site could fetch as much as $7.6 million – or $23 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr).

JTC launched the site after it received a bid of $5.9 million on July 18. Observers, however, said that the site could fetch more than the initial bid.

Savills Singapore’s director of industrial business space Dominic Peters pointed out that in February, an industrial site at Tuas Bay Drive/Tuas South Avenue 3 was awarded for $23 psf ppr. That site had a 60-year lease.

While the lease for the site launched yesterday is for 30 years, Mr Peters expects the site to fetch $20-23 psf ppr due to good demand. The price translates to between $6.6 million and $7.6 million.

‘We anticipate very strong demand from end-users,’ he said. Companies in certain sectors – such as oil & gas and construction – are doing well at the moment and could be interested in the site, he said.

The site has a 1.4 plot ratio, giving it a gross floor area of 329,600 sq ft. It is zoned for ‘Business 2′ use, which means it can be used for clean, light and general industrial purposes, and warehousing.

The land parcel was on the Reserve List before its sale was triggered by the $5.9 million bid. Now, it is being launched under the Confirmed List.

The government had previously announced that it will launch two industrial sites under the Confirmed List and seven industrial sites under the Reserve List in the second half of 2007 under its Government Land Sales programme.

The tender for the site will close at 11 am on Oct 18.

Source : Business Times – 7 Sept 2007

Downtown residential site put on Confirmed List

THE Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has put a residential site at Enggor Street on the Confirmed List of the Government Land Sales Programme for the second half of 2007.

Previously on the Reserve List, the site – Enggor Street (Land Parcel A) – is now almost certainly assured of a faster sale as it no longer requires a committed minimum bid before being put up for public tender.

The site has an area of about 0.30 ha and can generate a maximum permissible gross floor area of about 25,504 sq m (274,522.5 sq ft), and is zoned for residential use with commercial use on the first storey.

CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho notes that transactions in June and July showed that prices for units at the neighbouring Icon ranged from $1,150 psf to $1,700 psf while those at The Clift ranged from $1,400 psf and $2,100 psf.

‘The subject site can be developed into 260-300 apartments and assuming that it will take up the commercial option for the first storey, we expect that the site could fetch a price of $180 million to $200 million or $655 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) to $715 psf ppr,’ said Mr Li.

‘At this level, the residential units could be launched at around $1,300 psf to $1,400 psf,’ he added.

In May, the URA announced that it would temporarily disallow the conversion of office use in the Central Area, which includes the CBD, to other uses like residential apartments until Dec 31, 2009, to curb further depletion of the existing stock of office space.

The move put on hold the strategy to revitalise the CBD by encouraging owners to redevelop their old office buildings.
Mr Li notes that the core CBD area has traditionally been a place for business and as such, human activities tend to be confined to business hours on weekdays.

But revitalisation of the CBD could continue regardless of the temporary halt on office conversions.

Already being built are Icon, Lumiere, The Clift, and One Shenton.

‘With the live-in population of the core CBD areas increasing in the foreseeable future due to the influx of residential developments, more complementary uses of retail, food and beverage and entertainment might prove to be sustainable on weekends and after hours,’ he added.

Source : Business Times – 05 Sep 2007

Tanjong Pagar renewal takes shape with new site for sale

THE rejuvenation of Tanjong Pagar, right on the doorstep of the Central Business District (CBD), is gathering steam, with a new residential site launched for sale yesterday.

It could feature one of only a few new condominiums to be built downtown for the next two to three years, property watchers say.

The 0.3ha land parcel in Enggor Street, behind Far East Organization’s Icon condominium, is earmarked for a residential development with shops on the first floor.

Right next door is another residential plot, of 0.28ha, which will be put up for tender later this month.

The release of these two sites comes after four other plots in the vicinity were sold over the past few months.

These are two office sites along Anson Road – on either side of Gopeng Street – and two hotel sites between Tanjong Pagar Road and Tras Street, near Amara Hotel.

A seventh plot, at Bernam Street opposite Fuji Xerox Tower, will be made available in December.

Together, these upcoming developments will inject more life and add more definition to Tanjong Pagar. The site released yesterday can host a 50-storey condominium. Similarly, 50-storey buildings can be built on the office plots.

Of the two hotel sites, one can be built up to 30 storeys while the other can accommodate a building of up to 20 storeys.

With the release of the new residential sites in Enggor Street, more inner-city dwellers will also be drawn into the neighbourhood, said property consultants.

Currently, the only two residential projects in the immediate area are Icon and Lumiere, which sits on the former HMC Building in Parsi Road.

Developers and investors keen on the city-living concept may be particularly interested in the two new sites, because the Government recently stopped allowing the conversion of office buildings to homes in the CBD.

This means that the two residential plots in Enggor Street are part of the few possibilities for a condominium downtown until at least end-2009.

Other options are the ‘white’ sites in the Marina area, which can host some homes.This policy may be what the Government is banking on to offload the Enggor Street sites, which have been sitting on its reserve list for land sales for at least four years with no takers.

The two were offered as a single parcel until late last year, when they were divided to make them more attractive. In June, the two sites were transferred to the confirmed list to be put up for sale at a fixed date regardless of bidder interest.

The site put up for public tender yesterday has a 99-year lease and can be built up to 274,523 sq ft of gross floor area. A condominium with about 255 units can be built on the plot.

A development on the parcel ‘will be attractive to urbanites working in the CBD’, said Mr Li Hiaw Ho, executive director at property consultancy CB Richard Ellis.

‘Investors are likely to benefit from the pool of expatriates looking to rent homes in the CBD,’ he added.

He expects the site to fetch $180 million to $200 million, or $655 to $715 per sq ft (psf) per plot ratio.

Based on this, the finished units could be launched for sale at $1,300 to $1,400 psf, he said.

Recent transactions at the Icon have ranged from $1,250 to $1,928 psf. The last recorded sale of a Lumiere unit was in May, for $1,602 psf.

Source : Straits Times – 05 Sep 2007

Alexandra condo site up for tender

THE Urban Redevelopment Authority yesterday asked for tenders for a 99-year leasehold residential plot at Alexandra Road, close to the Redhill MRT station and opposite the Metropolitan, after receiving a minimum bid price that triggered the launch from the Reserve List.

The site occupies some 8,559 square metres with a gross plot ratio of 4.9, which can generate a maximum permissible gross floor area of 41,939 square metres.

It is zoned for development of condominium or serviced apartments. Property consultancies said the site could be developed into a 40-storey condominium.

Knight Frank managing director Tan Tiong Cheng said that he expects the project to have some 380 units averaging 1,200 square feet in size, given that its height and plot ratio are similar to those of the Metropolitan – a joint project between CapitaLand and Lippo Group.

Mr Tan reckons that bids for the site could have been in the region of $400 per square feet per plot ratio (psf ppr) or a lump sum of $180 million and expects the units to fetch average prices of $950-1,000 psf when they are put on the market, given that units in the nearby Metropolitan are fetching some $924 psf in resale prices in the third quarter.

CB Richard Ellis executive director Li Hiaw Ho estimates that the site could have drawn bids in a higher range of $650-750 psf ppr.

‘This will translate to an average selling price of between $1,200 psf and $1,300 psf, which could be attainable in the second half of 2008,’ he said, expecting strong demand to come from upgraders and investors who are looking to rent out the units given its proximity to the city and amenities.

In comparison, the Metropolitan site was purchased by the developers at $350 psf ppr in November 2005.

Based on the strong demand seen in Metropolitan where all 382 units were sold within six months, market watchers said that they expect the Alexandra site to draw strong interest from developers given that it is located at the fringe of the established Tanglin housing district which is within a five to 10 minute drive to Orchard Road, the Central Business District, Marina Bay, and the southern waterfront area.

Yesterday, the Housing & Development Board invited tenders for the sale of a commercial site at Toa Payoh Lorong 6, under the Confirmed List of the Government Land Sales Programme.

The 99-year leasehold site has a land area of 1,396.8 square metres with maximum allowable gross floor area of 4,190.4 square metres, and is located near the HDB Hub.

Its tender will close on Oct 16 and the project is expected to be completed by 66 months from the date of tender acceptance.

Mr Li from CBRE estimates that the site could yield about 34,000 square feet of net lettable area of commercial space and can be developed for a variety of uses including retail, F&B, office and entertainment facilities such as cinemas, bowling alleys and fitness centres.

‘It is likely that the successful bidder would devote 100 per cent of the maximum gross floor area for retail use, so as to tap on the large population catchment within the Toa Payoh housing estate as well as workers and visitors at HDB Hub,’ he added.

‘We expect bids to range between $600 and $700 psf ppr. Assuming that the mall is able to fetch a monthly rent of about $7-9 psf per month, this would provide the developer with a stabilised yield of about 5.5-6 per cent.’

Source : Business Times – 30 Aug 2007

Prime state sites in Toa Payoh, Alexandra for sale

TWO prime state sites – an Alexandra Road residential plot and a commercial one in Toa Payoh – are now available for sale.

The Alexandra site is a 99-year leasehold plot near Tanglin View, Tanglin Regency and the upcoming Metropolitan just a stone’s throw away from the Redhill MRT station.

The site area is 0.86ha and has a maximum gross floor area of 451,428 sq ft. With these dimensions, a condominium 40 storeys high with 360 to 400 homes can be developed on the site.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority is marketing the site, which is on the Government’s reserve list.

It will go to tender once a developer commits to an acceptable bid.

Analysts agree that the site is a prime one but have given wide-ranging estimates on how much it will fetch.

Mr Nicholas Mak, director of consultancy and research at Knight Frank, expects a top bid of $375 to $400 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr).

CB Richard Ellis executive director Li Hiaw Ho, however, tips it at $650 to $750 psf ppr, while Jones Lang LaSalle’s regional director and head of investments, Mr Lui Seng Fatt, forecasts a bullish $1,000 psf ppr or more. That values the plot at $451 million.

Mr Li likened the condo that could be built on the site to the one going up next door – the 99-year leasehold Metropolitan, which drew long queues when it was launched.

‘We expect the new project to be popular among prospective home buyers. Investors will be attracted to this project, too, as apartments in the locality are popular among tenants,’ he said.

Mr Li expects the condo units to each sell for an average price of $1,200 psf to $1,300 psf.

The Toa Payoh commercial land, meanwhile, is a 99-year leasehold site in Lorong 6 with an area of about 0.14ha.

It can take up to 45,105 sq ft of built-up space comprising retail, food and beverage, office and entertainment outlets.

The tender, which is being handled by the Housing Board, closes on Oct 16.

Mr Lui of Jones Lang LaSalle estimated that the site could yield about 30,000 sq ft of lettable space and would fetch at least $70 million in the tender.

The small site near the bustling HDB Hub can accommodate a three- to four-storey development suitable for retail or food outlets serving the mature housing estate and offices nearby, he said.

Source : Straits Times – 30 Aug 2007

LaSalle makes top bid for Anson Road site

LASALLE Investment Management (LIM) was the top bidder yesterday for a 99-year leasehold commercial plot next to International Plaza, with a bid of $237.2 million or $941 psf of potential gross floor area.
 
 LIM, which bid on behalf of its LaSalle Asia Opportunity III Fund, is planning a 20-storey office development with about 200,000 sq ft net lettable area. ‘It’ll be a Grade A, ‘Gold Standard’ building,’ said LIM regional director Andrew Heithersay.
 
 LIM managing director (Asia Pacific) Ian Mackie said: ‘We may or may not take a joint venture partner for the development.’ The office development, near Tanjong Pagar MRT station, will target occupiers looking for cheaper accommodation close to downtown, he added. The project may be completed around late 2009.
 
 LIM’s top bid for the 27,281 sq ft plot was 7.8 per cent lower than the $1,021 psf per plot ratio that Mapletree Investments paid for a bigger site across the road last month. The price was lower as the latest site is ‘inferior in shape and size, resulting in an office development with a much smaller floor plate of around 12,000 sq ft – compared with 22,000 sq ft for the earlier site – as well as lower efficiency’, said an analyst.
 
 A Mapletree unit was the second highest bidder at yesterday’s tender, at $800 psf ppr – 15 per cent below LIM’s price. The only other bidder, Wing Tai, offered $634 psf ppr.
 
 CB Richard Ellis estimates that LIM’s bid reflects a break-even cost of $1,700-1,800 psf. ‘This would provide the successful bidder with a stabilised yield of around 4.5 to 5.0 per cent, based on a gross monthly rent of $9 to $10 psf,’ it said.
 
 However, industry sources suggest LIM is looking at a $13 psf average monthly rent. The Anson Road site will be the maiden Singapore investment for the LaSalle Asia Opportunity III Fund, which is planning to make about US$12 billion worth of acquisitions over the next three to four years. ‘Singapore remains one of our primary target markets. We’re interested in all sectors – office, retail, industrial, residential and hotel,’ Mr Heithersay said.
 
 Earlier acquisitions here by LIM for its other funds include the collective sale of Rainbow Gardens at Toh Tuck Road, and Swissotel Merchant Court hotel, as well as stakes in two hotels opening next year – Crowne Plaza Changi Airport and Ibis Bencoolen Street.
 
 LIM, part of the Jones Lang LaSalle group and a leading real estate money management firm, yesterday also announced an A$738 million (S$926 million) acquisition, on behalf of Asia Property Fund, of a 50 per cent stake in the Westfield Doncaster mall development in Melbourne.
 
 Source : Business Times – 29 Aug 2007

URA to auction 12 Sembawang sites for landed homes

FOR the first time in six years, the Urban Redevelopment Authority is offering small sub-divided landed housing plots for sale. It will auction 12 on 99-year leasehold tenure at Sembawang Road/Andrews Avenue on Oct 30.
 
 The plots, in Phase 1 of a new landed housing estate called Sembawang Green, can be developed into a total of 57 homes – 42 terrace houses, 14 semi-detached homes and a bungalow. The sale is aimed at encouraging wider participation by smaller developers and even individuals wanting to build dream homes opposite Sembawang Park and near Sembawang Beach. The approach is similar to that taken by URA for Kew Drive in 1993-1994 and Eastwood Park in 1995-1996, both in the Bedok area, and Chuan Green in 1997-2001. The Sembawang plots range in area from 4,243 sq ft (for a two semi-detached house development), to 43,694 sq ft (for a 23 terrace-home project). All 12 plots can be developed up to three storeys.
 
 Knight Frank director Nicholas Mak expects the terrace plots to fetch $220-250 psf of land area and the semi-detached and bungalow plots around $180-200 psf. These reflect breakeven costs of $870,000 to $930,000 per terrace house, $1.025 million to $1.1 million per semi-D and $1.5-1.6 million per bungalow.
 
 CB Richard Ellis executive director (residential) Joseph Tan expects the terrace plots to fetch $220 to $250 psf of land area, the semi-D plots $240 to $270 psf and the sole bungalow site $260-$300 psf. Based on these bid ranges, the terrace houses could sell for about $1.0-1.1 million, the semi-Ds for $1.4-1.5 million and the bungalow for $2.6-2.8 million, according to Mr Tan.
 
 The plots are next to the established landed housing estates of Straits Garden and Sembawang Straits Estate. URA has already put in infrastructure. A URA spokeswoman said the authority will decide on the number of phases for Sembawang Green and the number of homes in each phase after the auction of the Phase 1 plots.
 
 Source : Business Times – 29 Aug 2007

Record $72 psf ppr bid for a 30-year leasehold industrial site

AN URBAN Redevelopment Authority tender at Kaki Bukit Road 3 yesterday drew seven bids, with a top offer of $72 per square foot (psf) of potential gross floor area – the highest-ever unit land price for a 30-year leasehold industrial site, according to CB Richard Ellis.

And this top bid, made by Eastpoint Development Pte Ltd, was a whopping 58 per cent more than the second-highest bid of $46 psf per plot ratio (ppr), which came from EL Development, a unit of Evan Lim & Co.

The top bid at yesterday’s tender worked out to nearly $5.7 million in absolute terms and the bidder, Eastpoint Development, is controlled by Lim Kim Hong and Lim Huixing.

The Lims also took part in Wednesday’s tender for the maiden transitional office site next to Newton MRT Station, bidding under MV Land Pte Ltd, which entered the fourth-highest bid at that tender.

The Kaki Bukit site is zoned for Business 1 use, which means it can be developed for a range of clean and light industrial, and warehouse use.

Colliers International director (industrial) Tan Boon Leong reckons the 131,917-sq-ft plot, which has a plot ratio of just 0.6 and a triangular shape with a narrow pointed tip at one end, is optimally suited for development into single-storey (with mezzanine floor) terrace factories or two/three-storey terrace factories. ‘The plot can be built into about 23 single-storey (with mezzanine floor) units with an average saleable area of 3,500 sq ft per unit,’ he added.

‘The break-even cost to the developer could be around $150-$180 psf of saleable area and it could sell the units for about $220-230 psf. It should be able to command a premium for such factories, despite the 30-year leasehold tenure, because there’s a dearth right now for single-storey terrace factories in the Paya Lebar, MacPherson and Kaki Bukit areas,’ Mr Tan added.

CB Richard Ellis executive director Li Hiaw Ho said the Kaki Bukit site can be developed into a high-tech industrial building.

Yesterday’s tender also drew bids from KNG Development, Sin Hong Hwa Pte Ltd, Union Contractors (Singapore), Eng Seng Lee Construction Co and Soilbuild Group. Soilbuild was the lowest bidder at $2.44 million or $31 psf ppr. It was also the lowest tenderer at Wednesday’s tender for the 15-year leasehold transitional office site next to Newton MRT Station.

CBRE’s Mr Li noted that the high number of bids received as well as the robust prices for the industrial site indicate continued strong demand among developers and manufacturers.

‘It is not surprising as occupancy rates for industrial space are still on an upward trend. Industrial rents are also on a healthy growth path, driven by a buoyant manufacturing sector,’ he added.

Source : Business Times – 24 Aug 2007

Three Sentosa bungalow plots released for sale

SENTOSA Cove Pte Ltd (SCPL) yesterday released another three 99-year leasehold bungalow plots for sale, after reporting new benchmarks being set for waterway and fairway facing plots in the upscale locale.

After the latest offer, the only sites the master developer will have left for sale are two more individual bungalow plots, a man-made island (which can be developed for 19 bungalows) and a plum condo plot at the mouth of the marina.

In all, the developer will have sold plots for a total of about 2,500 homes since October 2003.

SCPL said yesterday that an expression of interest (EOI) for four bungalow parcels that closed in July saw a new benchmark price of $1,233 per square foot of land area being achieved for a waterway bungalow lot, surpassing the $960 psf previous record for such land set earlier this year.

The other two waterway plots offered in the July EOI were also sold at above $960 psf. The sole fairway bungalow site in that EOI fetched $1,065 psf, surpassing the previous high of $910 psf for such sites achieved earlier this year.

The last seafront bungalow plot at Sentosa Cove was sold for a record $1,473 psf during an EOI in May, surpassing the top price of $1,308 psf previously for such plots seen at an EOI late last year.

SCPL’s latest EOI, which is being launched tomorrow, is for three bungalow sites – all waterway-fronting plots, one of which also boasts nearby views of, but is not directly fronting, the Tanjong Golf Course and the sea.

This plot has a land area of 6,941 sq ft. The other two plots are 7,414 sq ft and 10,663 sq ft.

The EOI closes on Sept 4, with the award being based solely on price.

Credo Real Estate managing director Karamjit Singh predicts that the three latest waterway plots could fetch prices ranging from $1,100 to $1,300 psf, with scarcity value raising the price.

Following this EOI sale, the last two individual bungalow plots at Sentosa Cove – both of which face fairways – will be sold by private treaty.

Pearl Island and a coveted high-rise condo plot (dubbed C-13) at the entrance to Sentosa Cove’s marina basin will be offered for sale before the year runs out.

Source : Business Times – 22 Aug 2007