Dec 8, 2004
Two prime Orchard Road plots to go on market
The choice sites near MRT stations will help bring new vibrancy to the shopping belt
By Tan Hui Yee

THE remaking of Orchard is taking shape, with two prime plots in the heart of the shopping belt to be released for commercial development next year. p> One plot is at the junction of Orchard and Paterson Roads, the other next to the Specialists' Shopping Centre.

Announced by the Ministry of National Development yesterday as part of the government's land sales programme for the first six months of next year, this comes hot on the heels of a plan to 'remake' Orchard Road so it retains its allure.

The 1.87ha plot next to Wisma Atria, above Orchard MRT station, is a green area the size of 2 1/2 football fields and is likely to fetch up to $660 million, analysts estimate.

The site can house a commercial complex of up to 1.35 million sq ft - more than two-thirds the size of Ngee Ann City - which will be linked to Orchard MRT.

Taken in the context of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's recent call for urban planners to transform Singapore's cityscape, this may be Orchard Road's chance to get its own X-factor.

At the other end of Orchard Road, the 0.67ha plot next to the Specialists' Shopping Centre covers a taxi stand and a carpark housing Gluttons Square, where hawker stalls operate in the evening.

A developer can build a 390,000 sq ft complex on this plot, which could fetch up to $210 million, say analysts. Like the Paterson Road site, any future development there will be linked to the MRT station, in this case Somerset.

The two 99-year leasehold plots are expected to be put on the reserve list in March, meaning the land will only be put up for tender if a developer agrees to bid a minimum acceptable price.

Analysts expect keen interest in both, as vacant plots along heavily built-up Orchard Road are rare. Still, Chesterton International director Nicholas Mak says it is not unusual for the Government to retain land around high-traffic areas for future development.

Knight Frank executive director Danny Yeo said about the Orchard MRT site: 'As far as Orchard Road is concerned, this is about one of the choicest plots you can find. It's an exciting opportunity to build something iconic.'

Singapore Tourism Board is also set to introduce new retail concepts next to Faber House as well as the carpark next to the Orchard Building in the shopping belt.

The projected developments at either end of the street will bring new energy to Orchard Road, said DTZ Debenham Tie Leung director Tang Wei Leng. But it will mean the stretch loses one of its few green lungs, lamented Chesterton's Mr Mak.

As a prelude to more changes in the area, Wheelock Properties (Singapore) yesterday announced that it was buying the 12-year-old freehold 24-unit apartment block Angullia View, near Orchard Road, for $43.8 million. The property will be redeveloped into new residences, it said.

Two other sites earmarked for residential development are also slated to be put on the reserve list in the first half of next year - a 2.2ha plot in Tanah Merah Kechil Avenue and a 0.93ha site in Tiong Bahru Road. Both are within walking distance of MRT stations.

Including the four new sites, the government reserve list for the first half of next year will include seven residential sites, three commercial ones, and five commercial and residential sites, plus three 'white' sites for any kind of development. They can yield about 3,300 private homes, about 3.4 million sq ft of commercial space and 350 hotel rooms.

Copyright © 2004 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Dec 16, 2004
Orchard site 'needs wow factor'
Analysts say building above MRT station must be 'stunning'

By Tan Hui Yee
DON'T turn Orchard Road's picnic ground above the MRT station - which will soon be available for sale - into yet another cookie-cutter shopping centre.

Instead, break the rules and build something stunning.

This was the call from property analysts, architects and mall owners who were asked what should be done with the lush 1.87ha plot on top of Orchard MRT station.

The prominent 99-year leasehold site, now a tree-lined grassy knoll known as a maids' Sunday picnic haunt, stands at Orchard Road's busiest junction and is considered one of the choicest undeveloped parcels of land in the country.

It is one of four plots along the stretch that will be made available for development in the first half of next year, as part of plans to spice up the shopping district.

The last time the plot was put up for sale - in 1992, mainly as a hotel site - there were no takers. This time round, it has been designated for commercial development, which means it could be an office, retail or convention complex.

Analysts expect a developer to build shopping space, to tap the sizeable crowds that pass by. And Orchard Road needs not just a fresh retail concept, but also an iconic building that can be an architectural attraction in itself, industry players said.

'It's about time something happened along Orchard Road, something new, something exciting,' said the general manager of investment properties at Centrepoint Properties, Mrs Vivienne Tan.

'We need to do something that would make people proud of Orchard Road, just like what Bullring did for Birmingham or the Guggenheim Museum did for Bilbao,' she added.

The titanium-clad Guggenheim Museum put the spotlight on the Spanish city of Bilbao, while the huge Bullring retail centre in the city of Birmingham in Britain, costing more than $1.6 billion, rejuvenated its city centre.

Those interviewed said the plot at the junction of Orchard and Paterson roads, which is expected to fetch up to $660 million, holds just as much promise. But what it needs is a creative developer and more flexible development rules.

Architects like Mr John Ting, a former president of the Singapore Institute of Architects, feels the future development should retain the character of the site, which is a green lung that also acts as a civic space for people to gather.

The Government can make it easier for the future developer to keep the greenery by lifting height restrictions, he said.

In this way, the developer would not need to clear the trees to fit the maximum allowable floor area of 1.35 million sq ft - more than two-thirds the size of Ngee Ann City - onto the plot.

If the second floor is higher than normal, he said, existing trees can fit into the ground level.

Mr Ting said: 'The greenery would definitely be lost... unless the Government lifts the development parameters.'

The move would be welcomed by shoppers like housewife Pansy Koh, 36.

She said: 'I see building after building in Orchard Road. At least when I come to this area, I can breathe.'

Another architect, Mr Khoo Peng Beng, suggested the building could have a more open design by, for example, having an atrium facing onto Orchard Road to increase the level of street activity.

In addition, the plot should not merely go to the highest bidder, said Mrs Tan and property consultancy Knight Frank's executive director Danny Yeo.

The site will go on the Government's reserve list in March. This means it will be put up for tender if a developer promises to bid a minimum acceptable sum.

To make sure the developer and future retailers there are of a high standard, the Government could consider accepting bids only from developers who can introduce good designs or retail concepts, said Mrs Tan and Mr Yeo.

Mr Yeo added: 'The visual impact of this building must be strong. It should make people go 'Wow'.'

Copyright © 2004 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Mr Yeo added: 'The visual impact of this building must be strong. It should make people go 'Wow'.'

i hope they do build a landmark structure at that busy junction and not just another mall

^
Oh I do hope they build something above Orchard MRT quickly.......the human traffic from Wisma to Taka is "unbearable" om weekends.......:eek:

Make it a landmark, taller than all the others, with a spire that lights up spectecularly at night. :cool:

^
Oh I do hope they build something above Orchard MRT quickly.......the human traffic from Wisma to Taka is "unbearable" om weekends.......:eek:

erm..maybe that might help, but it might also make it worse :D

i can still remember Christmas Eve last year at that place - you cannot walk cos its packed like sardines, and you get sprayed with what sticky confetti that was being distributed on the streets :eek:

erm..maybe that might help, but it might also make it worse :D

i can still remember Christmas Eve last year at that place - you cannot walk cos its packed like sardines, and you get sprayed with what sticky confetti that was being distributed on the streets :eek:

Muhahaha......I suspect the crowd is a mix of locals(trying to shop) and tourist ( we're hitting 8 millions next week right?? ) :lol:

YAY for more tourists! :banana:

the crowd there is a mix of locals, tourists and maids (on Sundays) :D

YAY for more tourists! :banana:

the crowd there is a mix of locals, tourists and maids (on Sundays) :D

It will be packed today as there are some festival or something.......but i suspect other suburban hotspots (such as tampines) will be equally packed given that christmas just next saturday(last min shopping)........(the gift wrapping counter at taka seems to be working non-stop)........

218m-tall landmark to boost shopping belt

Panel to study designs for iconic 40-storey skyscraper on top of Orchard MRT
The Straits Times

ORCHARD Road's tallest building is set to rise at the vacant site atop Orchard MRT station with a landmark design that will hopefully make the shopping belt instantly recognisable all over the world.

The skyscraper can be built up to 218m, or about 40 storeys, pushing the 152m-tall Mandarin Hotel into second spot.

This is possible because it has been designated a landmark site, allowing it to go higher than the current 30-storey ceiling for Orchard Road buildings.


The site, at the corner of Paterson and Orchard Road and called 'Orchard Turn' after an adjacent road, is the most important of four to be released in Orchard Road.

It is a gateway to the shopping belt and only an iconic design will do for the shopping and entertainment complex, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said yesterday when spelling out the development requirements.

It will also appoint a panel to look into design proposals for the site and a second one next to Specialist Shopping Centre, which it does only for special projects.

Design panels had a hand in the development of The Fullerton hotel and One Fullerton complex, as well as the design of the Marina Barrage that will form the Marina Reservoir.

The Orchard Turn complex - which will be lit at night - must have an observation deck on one of its top three floors, an art exhibition space of at least 500 sq m, and a 3,000 sq m space for public events on its ground floor, URA said yesterday.

This is to inject more cultural and civic spaces onto the shopping belt, it said.

Part of the greenery will be retained by allowing buildings to go no nearer than 7.6m of Orchard Boulevard, so that the mature roadside trees now there can thrive.

The complex must also include an underground link, which will be at least 6m wide and also include shops, to Wheelock Place just across the road. Its developer must also upgrade and expand the currently congested link between Orchard MRT station and Wisma Atria.

Up to about 126,000 sq m of space - over two-thirds the size of Ngee Ann City - can be built on the 99-year leasehold plot.

At least 40 per cent of the complex must be used for retail, food and beverage, and entertainment.

The plot is now on the reserve list, which means it will not be put up for tender until a developer commits to bidding a minimum price acceptable to the Government.

An executive director of property consultancy Knight Frank, Mr Danny Yeo, called it the 'mother of all shopping centre plots'.

Analysts expect the plot to fetch between $540 million and $800 million.

Wow, 218m, that's about as tall as the Swissotel isn't it ? With observation deck on top, that's really great news ^^ The underpass to Wheelock Place will also be a big improvement !

:eek2:

Just saw it in the papers today! WOW

imagine the views from there :eek:

At 218m it would be the same height as Millenia Tower and slightly shorter than Swissotel

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-03-30/300305_kror30_pg10.gif

Orchard Turn, Somerset sites up for developer applications

30 Mar 05

THE project that will come up on the site above Orchard MRT Station could be up to 40 storeys high - the tallest in Singapore's prime shopping district.


And to make sure that the public will get a chance to enjoy the panoramic views from a new project on the Orchard Turn site - dubbed the 'Crown Jewel' site of Orchard Road by Jones Lang LaSalle's head of investments sales, Lui Seng Fatt - the developer will have to include an observation deck on any of the project's top three floors.

It is one of two choice 99-year leasehold plots on Orchard Road being made available for application by developers from today. The site had been offered in 1992 but found no takers. The other plot being offered by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is the Glutton's Square carpark site - the Somerset site.

For the Orchard Turn site, the URA is stipulating that the developer must incorporate a 3,000 sq m public event space on street level and an art exhibition space of at least 500 sq m. The development will be integrated with the Orchard MRT Station. The station's present dome-shaped exterior will go, with the entrance incorporated into the new development.

The site comprises 1.8 hectares of land above the MRT Station and an adjoining underground area of 0.3 ha below Paterson Road to be developed into an underground pedestrian mall linked to Wheelock Place. This will complete the subterranean pedestrian network at the Orchard/Paterson Road junction.

The project will have a maximum gross floor area (GFA) of about 1.35 million sq ft, of which at least 40 per cent must be for retail, food and beverage, or entertainment uses. This will amount to the second largest mall on Orchard Road - after Ngee Ann City.

The rest can be used for serviced apartments, strata apartments (for sale), hotels or offices. The neighbouring building owners, including Ngee Ann Development, German insurer Ergo and Wheelock Properties, are expected to be keen on the site. Overseas real estate investors are also said to be eyeing the property. Mr Lui described the Orchard Turn site as one of the last sizeable plots within the prime shopping district, located at one of the most sought-after and popular Orchard Road cross-junctions. It boasts triple frontages, at Paterson Road, Orchard Boulevard and Orchard Road.

Colliers International estimated the site's value at $443 to $487 psf of potential GFA, or between $600 million and $660 million in total. The firm estimates a higher $515 to $541 psf per plot ratio - or an absolute land price of $200-$210 million - for the Somerset site, which can be developed into a 16-storey project with a maximum GFA of about 388,000 sq ft.

At least 60 per cent of this must be for retail, food and beverage or entertainment use. The plot comprises 0.6 ha of land, part of the Stamford Canal and a 0.2 ha underground stretch to be built as an underground pedestrian mall linking Centrepoint Shopping Centre to Somerset MRT Station.

Centrepoint Properties (owner of the namesake mall) and OCBC Properties (which owns Specialists' Shopping Centre next to the site) are expected to place strong bids for the site, said Mr Lui.

The two companies, both part of the OCBC stable, have been looking at the Somerset site for years for a comprehensive project incorporating a redevelopment of the ageing Specialists' Centre.

Great news! The best news I've heard since the Sail!!! I'll surely be an amazing building. Where is the picture of the building in the article?

I got the picture from the Business Times site. Its those massing models

Finally a taller building to break the plateau effect of Orchard's skyline and a new place to observe the city!

can they also touch up those decrepit obiang towers along the street? esp ck tangs, its so haw par villa. touch up not enough, need surgery. look at nanjing lu in shanghai, they have 290m tower now, and many many nice nice edifices. is raffles plaza there too now? and 50 events a year sounds nice. i say roll on mardi gras, nation parties and let gays storm chingay. i also say pedestrianise the road, manicure the foliage and build high end condo towers in between the shopping complexes so balconies and plant box shrubbery will hang over orchard road. i also say let the new landmark have significant advertising frontage. so we can have a billboard edifice over orchard road like times square and ginza and the junction of xi men ting.

Singapore's so lucky!

BTW, is it at this spot?

http://img216.exs.cx/img216/4963/orchmrt6xh.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

actually how to make orchard road placeable amongst such famous roads like champs elysee, ginza and ximenting requires the cultivation of a whole new reputation besides shopping.

champs elysee was born from a megalomaniacal scheme reinventing urban paris in the 1800s. megalomaniacal lavishing = from palais to musee to generous boulevard to landmarks like arc du triomphe on one end and musee du louvre on the other. her trump is no-hold-barred pomp and unbeatable paris chic.

ginza is staggering for her neon lights and urban corridor, her buildings so hemmed in like a canyon. her association with blade runner fame! therefore her emblematic representation of the tokyo urban experience. her legacy IS tokyo's legacy. they feed off each other.

ximenting, likewise, does not boast the most luxurious of brands nor the nicest of buildings but because she is so familiar with the taiwanese legacy of idol dramas and manga street gang comics she comes to mind immediately with the most iconic of taiwan's culture exports.

Times Square, because she is synonymous with Manhattan for her urban fabric and the congregation of radiocity and that billboard building and everything to do with the new york experience: broadway and hotdogs. plus the birthplace of neon billboards.

Meanwhile Orchard in SG and Causeway in HK don't incite the imagination because no doubt their premium on shopping but they don't offer very much else in terms of urban image and subtler but no less impactful things like lifestyle or cultural nuances.

Orchard's stumbling blocks:
1. mediocre urban image: some shabby trees and good but not great signature buildings. the only thing mythic about orchard is actually the preponderance of faded 80s condos that in their heaving mass (when viewed from the higher floors of elizabeth hospital) suggest a panorama unique to an esoteric audience. (not even mainstream wow).

2. unsensational stakes: the lack of signature stores like Prada edifices in Tokyo New York Paris. Gucci in HK. no complete lifestyle complexes catering to niche crowds like the ultra sophisticated or like for teenagers in Shibuya.

3.weak media representation. beyond your tourist promotion drives (which is ultimately cheap and debilitative to the brand name of any self deserving thoroughfare). i know a short story on orchard road appeared once waxing lyrical about her heady urban experience but that was written in the 80s, no one took notice anyway i forgot the author liao.

4.dunno how to hold a party. does anyone actually know what chingay is about outside of singapore? its not enough for it to be about the largest contingents of floats or the most eclectic of participants. something more raw and evisceral about its identity is necessary. like thousand lantern festivals in taipei. or brazil carnivals in tokyo - such an paradigm for quirky! even national day propaganda rallies would make for a more compelling parade to appreciate as an urbanist. gay parades also immediately put a locale on the map!

ok here i will stop.

Hope it'll have giant screens facing the junction. :cool:
WHat would it be?
Hotel? Office?

Singapore's so lucky!

BTW, is it at this spot?

http://img216.exs.cx/img216/4963/orchmrt6xh.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)
Yeap its there. Well what makes me excited is that there will be an observation deck on top as a requirement! :D

Btw, you guys got subscribe to ST online ah??

^
I only try for a month........see if it's worth it.....:yes:

the model of the 218 m buildign in this picture is hardly interesting, more like shanghai tacky. the artists impression of the shopping centre on the smaller site is a blatant rip off of selfridges in uhmm birmingham? i know both are nothing but artists impressions... but it still irks me.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-03-30/300305_kror30_pg10.gif

Shanghai tacky? That doesn't come close.

the model of the 218 m buildign in this picture is hardly interesting, more like shanghai tacky. the artists impression of the shopping centre on the smaller site is a blatant rip off of selfridges in uhmm birmingham? i know both are nothing but artists impressions... but it still irks me.
Yeah...and your reaction to massing models seems over the top.

I hope it'll look something like Wheelock Square (the Shanghai U/C one, not ours.)

It would be nice if it can somehow link the Ngee Ann City-Orchard serviced suites tower with Wheelock ^^

actually i think a will alsop skyscraper would be most fitting

Sad that a landmark tower couldnt breach the 280m limit.

Sad that a landmark tower couldnt breach the 280m limit.

It's above 200m! Good enough!

Must agree it's the best news since Sail. Now we need to wait for proper renders - and the design will be pretty good, I should think.

Landmark tower, after all. Above Orchard MRT - symbolically fitting, indeed. :)

You have a point. It'll still stand out. Now, reclad the other towers. Start a skyscraper boom in Orchard. Live up to the future of Nanjinglu.

29 MARCH 2005

URA RELEASES TWO SITES AT ORCHARD ROAD

FOR SALE ON RESERVE LIST

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) will release two sites at Orchard Road/Paterson Road (Orchard Turn) and Orchard Road/Killiney Road (Somerset) for sale tomorrow. The sites will be available on the Reserve List of the Government Land Sales Programme and from tomorrow onwards, developers interested in purchasing these sites will be able to apply to URA for them to be put up for tender.

ORCHARD ROAD – SINGAPORE’S PREMIER SHOPPING STREET

Orchard Road is Singapore’s premier shopping street and a popular destination for visitors. Stretching close to 2km, Orchard Road today has about 800,000sqm gross floor area (GFA) of shopping and entertainment attractions, complemented by hotels, offices and residences along wide shady boulevards. Coupled with a lively street culture, Orchard Road offers a unique shopping experience in a tropical setting.

The vision for Orchard Road is for it to be one of the greatest shopping streets in the world, a pulse for fashion and all things hip and happening. To bring this vision to reality , URA will make available two prime sites for sale under the Government’s Reserve List to encourage new developments along Orchard Road. The two sites at Orchard Road/Paterson Road and Orchard Road/Killiney Road are envisaged as new anchor retail developments that will expand the diverse range of shopping outlets available and also generate added vibrancy to activities along Orchard Road.

The release of the 2 sale sites will complement MND/URA’s recently announced initiatives to encourage developments along Orchard Road to support this vision:

the setting up of an Orchard Road Development Commission (ORDEC) to encourage quality, innovative projects that contribute to making Orchard Road a distinctive place. Projects supported by ORDEC could be granted incentives such as additional GFA, over and above the Master Plan, or approved GFA;

GFA incentives and relaxation of guidelines to encourage more dynamic pop-out façade on buildings along Scotts Road and;

GFA incentives and relaxation of guidelines to allow buildings to expand their shopping podium up to their boundaries.

SITE AT ORCHARD ROAD/ PATERSON ROAD (ORCHARD TURN SITE)

The Orchard Turn site, which marks the gateway to Orchard Road, is planned for a signature retail development that is integrated with the Orchard MRT Station and seamlessly connected to the surrounding developments.

The site, which comprises 1.8ha of land above the Orchard MRT Station and an adjoining 0.3ha of subterranean space below Paterson Road, is zoned for commercial use and will yield a total GFA of 125,726 sqm. In order to provide a major anchor retail development that will offer shoppers a wide range of retail outlets and diverse shopping experience, at least 40% of the total GFA has to be built for retail, food & beverage and/or entertainment use. The developer will be given the flexibility to use the remaining GFA for other commercial and complementary hotel and residential uses.

The Orchard Turn site also has an unsurpassed height limit of 218m AMSL along Orchard Road. This could cater for a commercial building of about 40 storeys, which would make the development the tallest along Orchard Road. The vantage point from the top of the development will offer spectacular views of the surroundings and to allow the public to enjoy these views, the development is required to incorporate an observation deck on any of its top three floors. This observation deck shall be open to the public.

One of URA’s planning objectives for Orchard Road is to enrich the experience of visitors to the area by injecting more cultural and civic uses. In line with this, the development on the Orchard Turn site will include an art exhibition space of at least 500 sqm GFA. This will provide a venue to showcase artworks and sculptures ranging from rare works by renowned artists to new works by the various art schools.

Given its prominent location and the fact that it is on top of the Orchard MRT Station, the Orchard Turn site is ideal for staging major events and national celebrations. The development will thus include a 3,000 sqm public event space on the first storey that will be seamlessly integrated with the Orchard Road pedestrian mall and allow activities to flow into Orchard Road when it is closed for major festive celebrations.

The development will also be integrated with Orchard MRT Station and connected to the surrounding developments. Direct access will be provided to the Orchard MRT Station below. A new underground pedestrian mall across Paterson Road to Wheelock Place will be built as part of the development. This will complete the underground pedestrian network at the Orchard Road/ Paterson Road junction. In addition, the existing underpass to Wisma Atria will also be widened to 6.0m and provisions will be made in the development for future direct connection to the 4th storey of Wisma Atria. These connections will facilitate and enhance the flow of commuters and shoppers between the Orchard MRT Station and the surrounding developments.

SITE AT ORCHARD ROAD/ KILLINEY ROAD (SOMERSET SITE)

Located at one of the main crossroads of pedestrian and commuter traffic along Orchard Road, the Somerset site is envisaged as another anchor retail development that will capitalise on its extensive frontage along Orchard Road.

Zoned for commercial use, the site, which comprises 0.6ha of land and part of the Stamford Canal as well as 0.2ha of subterranean space below Orchard Road, will yield a total GFA of 36,045 sqm. The developer can build over part of the canal to optimise the area available for development. Given the objective to develop the site into an anchor retail development that will offer a wide range of retail outlets, at least 60% of the GFA has to be built for retail, food & beverage and/or entertainment use. The remaining GFA can be developed for other commercial and complementary hotel and residential uses.

In keeping with the surrounding developments, the Somerset site can be developed for a commercial building of up to 16 storeys. The developer is required to provide an underground pedestrian mall that will connect Centrepoint Shopping Centre through the Somerset site to the Somerset MRT station. This will facilitate commuter and shopper flow between the Somerset MRT Station and the surrounding developments on both sides of Orchard Road.

DESIGN ADVISORY PANEL

Given their prominent locations, it is important to ensure that the Orchard Turn and Somerset sites are well-designed as landmark developments that will further enhance the skyline and quality of the physical environment along Orchard Road and also serve as icons of Singapore to the rest of the world. A Design Advisory Panel will thus be set up to review the development proposals of the sites.

The Orchard Turn and Somerset sites are offered on 99-year leases. Details of the two sites are provided in Annexes 1A & 1B and Annexes 2A & 2B.

ORCHARD TURN AND SOMERSET SITES AVAILABLE ON RESERVE LIST

The detailed tender conditions for the Orchard Turn and Somerset sites will be available in the URA website http://www.ura.gov.sg/sales/sales_main.html on 30 March 2005. Information on the Reserve List mechanism can be found in Annex 3. Under the government’s Reserve List System, a site in the Reserve List would only be put up for tender if the developer’s indicated minimum bid price in his application is acceptable to the government. When the sites are put up for tender, a tender period of 12 weeks will be allowed before tender closes.

http://www.ura.gov.sg/sales/OrchardSomerset/diagram500W.jpg

hierloom is right, it is just like selfridges in Birmingham! ... bad....

This could be a typical guy comment, but what on earth can go in this new shopping centre that doesn't exist already ... more g2000, guardian, delifrance ..... maybe a good camera shop .... another mobile phone shop and some wierd chinese thingy shop that only chinese teenager girls can understand.

A second borders bookstore? :D

i agree.. we need unique one-store buildings. i dont know what you call them. its always very ahrd to find the entire range of products offered by various shops.

You call them Sim Lim Square. :D

A second borders bookstore? :D

Yes! Yes! More is better! :D

Anyway, this Orchard Road Redevelopment is sure to have caught the attention of all the major retailers etc in Singapore, and I'm pretty sure international brands and labels would be interested too. So I think there'll be more new stuff, not to worry.

Well....I wont want another mega popular bookstore or a Starbucks mall thou. ;) So I would prefer that another major retailer from overseas comes in with a big flagship store there.

wow, the hollow top looks like Freedom Tower.

I dont think that is the final design, its just a massing model..anyway it doesnt seem that tacky to me :)

wow, the hollow top looks like Freedom Tower.

i like freedom tower. err wait i like foster's version. his top also very hollow. but at 218m they better not cut corner with any hollow tower.

i agree.. we need unique one-store buildings. i dont know what you call them. its always very ahrd to find the entire range of products offered by various shops.

I think you mean a department store ?
How about a Tower Records shop ? I mean, not like the stupid one at Suntec City, but like the OMG-F***ING-AWESOME one in London ^^

You call them Sim Lim Square.

nonono... i mean this.

http://homepage.mac.com/hayashu/tod/1.jpg

http://homepage.mac.com/hayashu/tod/2.jpg

http://homepage.mac.com/hayashu/tod/3.jpg


http://www.studio-international.co.uk/studio-images/dior_omotesando/dior1_b.jpg

http://www.studio-international.co.uk/studio-images/dior_omotesando/dior2_b.jpg


this one is the prada store

http://www.ronet.pl/herzog/002b.jpg

http://www.ronet.pl/herzog/002a.jpg


http://www.aokijun.com/00_main/2_work/02_fullsize/232-1.jpg

http://www.*************/architects/Jun_Aoki/vuitton/Photo-2.jpg


and of course

http://www.macitynet.it/artimgs/aA16083/img1.jpg

http://www.globalgraphica.com/img/0804/083104_osaka_apple_w498.jpg

of course, more shopping centres focusing on certain products would be good too :)

Do they sell metal apples in there? What an ugly metallic thing!

lol you're the first person i've ever come upon that says apples are ugly :)

but like the OMG-F***ING-AWESOME one in London ^^


whats the one in london like? i havent been too interested in cd stores ever since i discovered the esplanade library :D

YES!! YESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!! YEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stores like that would be nice. their openings are always so gala! like gucci in hongkong.

you know we should have roads lined with stores like that like omotesando perhaps behind cineleisure? destroy that stupid national youth council and youth park thing. so stupid and disgusting and useless. NYC@£$@£!@£!

You call them Sim Lim Square. :D

Ugh...Sim Lim square is a blight upon the face of Singapore. Its repulsive architecture is worse than that of the old HSC Building.

YES!! YESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!! YEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stores like that would be nice. their openings are always so gala! like gucci in hongkong.
I would like to point out I have absolutely no idea how gucci looks in Hong Kong. Speaks alot eh? :D

Speciality shop-buildings would be very nice, but having one or two sitting un the shadows of skyscrapers is just downright un-glam. Btw, I like TOD'S

Well....and when they lack business...muahahahahaa. Bye bye.

Conifers. They are the key. The absolute key.

@ cliff
no not just one or two... it should be a whole row like shophouses but only taller and perhaps more modern.

@huaiwei
yep unfortunately i think singaporeans are too poor and stingy for this type of shops. except the apple store.


what conifers?!!

@ cliff
no not just one or two... it should be a whole row like shophouses but only taller and perhaps more modern.



Then it won't happen, lol.

The only good place for somehting like that is maybe Chinatown, Arab Street, etc. but of course, no one will go.:)

it doesnt ahve to happen all at once... a possible place might be the bugis area - middle road. the govt wants to make bugis some crazy area and right now middle road is lined by ugly old useless buildings.

however that area is not likely to attract the rich and snobby so i guess its back to somewhere behind cineleisure - orchard road is already an established luxury shopping belt; it has plenty of 5 star hotels; you got a million expensive condominiums surrounding the area.

maybe the bugis area can ahve an apple building :D

I find the massing model of the tower nice! :okay:

And of course I am thrilled to know that this building is gonna have an observation deck! :banana: Hope the entrance ticket won't cost an arm and leg! :eek:

@ cliff
no not just one or two... it should be a whole row like shophouses but only taller and perhaps more modern.

@huaiwei
yep unfortunately i think singaporeans are too poor and stingy for this type of shops. except the apple store.


what conifers?!!
Thats good what. Finally Singaporeans are learning to go beyond consumerism (and superficial looks? Ah hem!) :D

I hope to get one tall tall observatory tower in singapore not the one in sentosa

218m for shopping centers ??!?!/1 :eek2:
quite talll good !! at leastthere are new shopping centers in ORCHAD ROAD cause right now i'm quite boring to go to orchard area as there are no new shoppin centre
the swissotel hotel is 226m

218m for shopping centers ??!?!/1 :eek2:
quite talll good !! at leastthere are new shopping centers in ORCHAD ROAD cause right now i'm quite boring to go to orchard area as there are no new shoppin centre
the swissotel hotel is 226m
Er...are you a local?

Er...are you a local?
no i'm indonesian study here for 7 years

An imaginery rendering for the Orchard MRT site......:yes:

http://www.ura.gov.sg/sales/OrchardSomerset/orchardturn_Header(2).gif

I think that has a great potential to better utilise that space, practically the most important junction at Orchard :yes:

I wonder how soon we can hear more from this project.

I wonder if theyre actually going to have 2 towers or if its just an idea.

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/370/orch218a9nr.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

http://tinypic.com/70gkrq.jpg

I'm wondering if they gonna keep the skyline pictured "mosaic wall" there or tear it down, I really love that wall :)

oh those old tiles!

yes theyre quite nice...I would hope they keep it, but got a feeling that wall might go...

The plan is to make the project welcoming to the street-level. :cool:

Which mosaic walls are you referring?
@RafflesCityWhere do you get these photos?
URA gallery?

:runaway:

oh those old tiles!

yes theyre quite nice...I would hope they keep it, but got a feeling that wall might go...

The plan is to make the project welcoming to the street-level. :cool:

^
If you're referring to the skyscrapers models......yeah....they are located at URA , Singapore City Gallery.....:)

there are going to tear down the park beside Wisma Atria???

I thought that 218m landmark located just across OG orchard
(now open carpark)

well I always stay there in Orchard when I'm in Singapore, near my mom's friend, and the skyline there is very lacklustre I can say that. But the shopping spots are top class.

Which mosaic walls are you referring?


You know when you walk from the traffic light (at Orchard Rd/Paterson Rd junction) towards Wisma Atria/Orchard MRT? There is a low wall on the right with tiles, depicting scenes of Singapore.

if they are going to develop that plot next to specialists' centre, why not do away with the Killiney Rd Post Office as well.. they can relocate the post office somewhere in the OG buliding or something. that's prime-prime-prime location there dude and it is being wasted on a single-storey post office of all things.

if they are going to develop that plot next to specialists' centre, why not do away with the Killiney Rd Post Office as well.. they can relocate the post office somewhere in the OG buliding or something. that's prime-prime-prime location there dude and it is being wasted on a single-storey post office of all things.

there is already board written for development

A letter from the ST.

Preserve open space at Orchard MRT station

25 Aug 05

IN HIS National Day Rally speech, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke at length about the development of the Orchard Road, Bras Basah Road and Bugis Junction areas.

In particular, he said that the development of the Bras Basah Road area with the relocation of Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and Singapore Management University there was to bring back students to re-create the buzz which he remembered as his old school was in that area.

However, what has happened to the old buildings there? They have become museums, and a landmark cathedral has been converted to serve as restaurants and pubs.

PM Lee presented a slide showing an imposing tower being built on the green hill behind Orchard MRT station. Would the prime minister in 40 years' time then decide that there is not enough open space in the Orchard Road area and have a few obsolete buildings torn down?

Take New York, one of the cities PM Lee mentioned. Smack in the centre of Manhattan Island is prime property, ideal for all sorts of buildings, yet the early town planners literally carved out a huge section of the city for Central Park. In the Singaporean context, it would be considered a waste.

But it is not. The open space that is now Ngee Ann City is lost. The open space that was behind Wisma Atria is lost. The open space between Bras Basah Road and Stamford Road is lost. The Botanic Gardens is too inaccessible from Orchard Road.

The Orchard MRT station's open space should be preserved. Must everything prime be built upon? Let us learn from the lessons of the evacuation of the Bras Basah Road area.

Michael Loh Yik Ming

huh i think the new botanic gardens are already more than enough green space.

yah, besides I dont think that relatively small area behind Orchard MRT is that well utilised...also, the park/fountain outside Istana could be better developed.

Anyway there's plenty of green space behind Ngee Ann City along Orchard Boulevard that can be developped into a park or something. And yes, no one is using that park near the MRT station.
The other side of the road in front of Lucky Plaza and the Marriot would probably need a little bit more open space and I also hope that the area around Specialists shopping centre is cleared up to give some extra space to pedestrians.

This being said, it's not that bad compared to the crossroad in front of Bugis Junction ^ ^

And yes, no one is using that park near the MRT station.

says who. it's a great picnic spot for the Filipina maids who work very hard Monday-Saturday. It is a great hangout for them, besides "little Manila" (Lucky Plaza).

I feel that one constraint of the Orchard area is that its long and narrow, with essentially one-block-wide developments fringing both sides, hence to have a park 'in the middle' may not be that applicable.

Fort Canning Park seems under utilised too, they should build escalators to give easy access.

Orchard Road's place in a vibrant, global city

2 Sep 05

I REFER to the letter, 'Preserve open space at Orchard MRT station' (ST, Aug 25), by Mr Michael Loh Yik Ming.

Singapore has its own unique assets which we can capitalise on to differentiate ourselves from other cities. We are a modern metropolis, but, at the same time, we are also a tropical island, surrounded by water and lush greenery.

Each district in Singapore's City Centre has its own unique character. As city planners, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) takes a holistic view and will try to capitalise on the unique characteristics of each district to make our city an exciting and vibrant one.

This is what URA has done in our plans for Orchard Road, Bras Basah and Bugis and Marina Bay. We envision Orchard Road to be one of the great shopping streets of the world. We therefore want to encourage new developments and retail concepts.

The piece of land above Orchard MRT station (Orchard Turn site) is strategically located and has always been intended for development. It has the potential to host a landmark building of up to about 40 storeys and, with an observation deck atop it, the building will be spectacular, the highest along Orchard Road.

The development will certainly be a strong attraction for visitors, allowing them a panoramic view of Orchard Road and its surroundings, not to mention the array of shops.

As part of the development of the Orchard Turn site, the successful tenderer is required to set aside a minimum 3,000 sq m of public space for shoppers and pedestrians to enjoy. It will be a focal point for various street activities, events and celebrations that will contribute to the buzz along Orchard Road.

Bras Basah and Bugis will be a district for the arts, culture, learning and entertainment. This has been realised. Three major campuses - Singapore Management University (SMU), Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and, soon, Lasalle-SIA College of the Arts - as well as numerous museums, arts facilities and arts groups in the area make this a delightful and lively district.

We appreciate Mr Loh's concern that we should ensure there is sufficient greenery and parks within the city. Hence, many of our roads and pedestrian malls are lined with trees, as can be seen along Orchard Road, Orchard Boulevard and Bras Basah Road.

The SMU campus has been designed to be freely accessible at street level, with courtyards and a common green which incorporated many of the original trees. The common green which frames the Singapore History Museum and the Singapore Art Museum at both ends is in the heart of the SMU complex, and is a place where visitors and students can mingle freely.

The city as a whole is also dotted with parks, gardens like the Istana Park along Orchard Road, the Fort Canning Hill Park next to the Bras Basah area, the Padang and the Esplanade Park within the Civic District. To further leverage on our unique waterfront assets, URA and National Parks Board plan to create three world-class gardens along the Marina Bay waterfront. These gardens will each feature a distinctive design and character.

Collectively, they will be linked to form a public waterfront loop interwoven with urban developments and offer a diversity of activities, recreational options and entertainment in a scenic setting that will provide a signature image of Singapore as a Garden City by the Bay.

These plans, when realised, will bring out the unique selling point of our City Centre as a vibrant, global garden city.

Fun Siew Leng (Mdm)
Deputy Director
(Urban Planning and Design)
Urban Redevelopment Authority

URA is counting money again: at least S$600m
Very savvy, buy cheap cheap sell high high.


URA to launch sale for Orchard Rd site after receiving S$600m bid
By Loh Kim Chin, Channel NewsAsia



A plot of land along Orchard Road will be put up for sale in two weeks, after a property developer placed a bid of more than S$600m for the commercial site.

It will be the very first sale of land in the prime district in 15 years.

The 1.8-hectare plot of land at Orchard Turn is to be developed into a signature retail development.

It will yield a total gross floor area of nearly 126,000 sq metres, at least 40% of which has to be set aside for retail, food & beverage and entertainment use.

The site could cater for a commercial building of about 40 storeys, which would make it the tallest along Orchard Road.

Market watchers are expecting to see strong interest for this site. - CNA/ir

Best news yet on this one!

From the URA site, the tender process is expected to last 12 weeks.

Best news yet on this one!

From the URA site, the tender process is expected to last 12 weeks.


great news :D more shopping in Orchard

those old mall make me boring :sleepy:

More eye popping in 3 to 5 months time when they award both IRs site to successful bidders. Could be easily another $2b

"WOW":

1. BFC site awarded for $1.8B
2. Orchard turn: at least S$600m
3. 2 IRs: $2b?

Timing so coincidental...or just positive market sentiment...

well...its makes for the "feel-good" factor! :happy:

@encon
I'm excited about this project for it will offer amazing views given its location.

At 40 storeys, it's unlikely that it's going to be 218m tall, or even 200m.
It sounds more like 160m or so.

A more detailed report....:yes:

Sept 15, 2005
Developer offers $600m for Orchard MRT site

By Fiona Chan

THE long-empty block of land above Orchard MRT station once dubbed 'the mother of all shopping centre plots' can finally be developed.

An unnamed property developer put in a bid of at least $600 million for the prime Orchard Turn site yesterday.

The bid has triggered a tender process to be run by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), which has had the 1.8ha site on its reserve list since March.

This means a bid such as the one received yesterday allows the URA to call for tenders, so the $600 million offer could be trumped by other contenders.

It will be the first land sale in the district since 1993, when the Wheelock Place site was sold to Marco Polo Properties, said the URA yesterday.

The site - it is the open land opposite Tangs - boasts frontages at Paterson Road, Orchard Boulevard and Orchard Road. The URA offered it for tender in 1992 with a reserve price of $436 million, but no bids were received.

Property consultants expect intense competition among developers for the 99-year leasehold site.

'Retail occupancy in Orchard Road is already high at 96.7 per cent, and there is limited new supply of retail space in the pipeline,' said Ms Soon Su Lin, executive director of property consultancy CB Richard Ellis.

'We expect the site would generate much interest.'

The winner of the tender is likely to be a consortium of developers, said Knight Frank director of research Nicholas Mak, who added that total investment for the site could reach $2 billion.

The Orchard Turn site includes an adjoining 0.3ha of space below Paterson Road. It is slated for commercial use and will yield a total gross floor area of 125,726 sq m - more than two-thirds the size of Ngee Ann City.

An underground mall will be built across Paterson Road to link Wheelock Place directly to the MRT station. The Orchard Turn development will also be linked directly to the fourth floor of Wisma Atria.

The URA has laid down guidelines for what can be built on the site - an iconic 40-storey skyscraper with a specific mix of facilities.

At least 40 per cent of the floor area must go towards retail, food and beverage, and entertainment. There must also be an observation deck on one of its top three floors, an art exhibition space and a public event space.

URA will launch the public tender in about two weeks, and a tender period of 12 weeks will be provided.

fiochan@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Will be even better if we can allow tourists to sky jump from this 218m tower.

Tourists are now able to sky jump from Macau Tower (223m):

http://www.rlenelive.com/Whats_happening/2005/08%20Aug/August%2027,%202005_%20MacauTower.htm

40 storey??

means there are office tower ?

An external full-glass (excluding top and bottom of course) capsule-like express lift to the observation floor will be nice. I remembered how the teenage girls react to the new library's express lift. They were so thrilled that they went up and down the lift a few times. :D

@encon
Buildings like Wisma Atria, Heeren and Takashimaya etc have offices too.

Most buildings on Orchard are office towers with a shopping mall podium, actually ^ ^

An external full-glass (excluding top and bottom of course) capsule-like express lift to the observation floor will be nice. I remembered how the teenage girls react to the new library's express lift. They were so thrilled that they went up and down the lift a few times. :D

@encon
Buildings like Wisma Atria, Heeren and Takashimaya etc have offices too.

yup i notice that too

so guess this will be the tallest in Orchard once it is finish?

btw currently what is the tallest??

He is encouraging all potential bidders to bid @ or below S$1billion so that he can win the site with his S$1 billion & 1 cent bid. :nocrook: :hilarious


Orchard Turn site winning bid could top $1b: Wheelock
By Matthias Chan, Channel NewsAsia



The winning bid for the Orchard Turn site could reach up to $1 billion, says the CEO of Wheelock Properties, David Lawrence.

One day after the URA announced that it was releasing the site for tender - after receiving a minimum bid of $600 million -the talk in the market is that a fierce bidding war will ensue.

The developer which triggered the bid remains a mystery but Channel NewsAsia can confirm that it is not Wheelock Properties.

In an exclusive interview, the Wheelock CEO revealed that his company had earlier put in a bid of $550 million but was rejected.

David Lawrence said: "We didn't make the bid. Last month, we did make a bid of $550m which was rejected by the URA, not quite high enough.

"We were thinking of making another bid but whoever this party is, was ahead of us at $600m and I think that was probably the URA's figure to release the site."

Now that the site has been released for tender, the competition is just about to hot up.

But with strong interest expected, bidders will have to come with deep pockets.

David Lawrence said: "I think it's an iconic site....I think because it is such a good site, there will so much interest in it. It would probably go for between $800m and $900m. If someone is really keen and puts together a strong syndicate, it could be up to $1b."

Wheelock says it prefers to go it alone.

But if it forms a consortium, it prefers financial partners to developers.

David Lawrence said: "We could form a consortium, if they were more financial partners rather than other developers, as long we were leading and designing the project. Like a lot of projects that we do, we're very design-focused. So we wouldn't want to be in a syndicate if we didn't have design and project management. We can get a couple of banks to come in with us or funds. That would probably work, but not other developers."

Nearly all property heavyweights - Far East and Wing Tai included - are expected to bid for the site which will be given a tender period of 12 weeks.

Market watchers say the unnamed bidder could also be Hong Kong Land or Hotel Properties or consortia featuring these companies.

Whatever the case, the Orchard Turn site looks set to lift capital values of the area.- CNA/ir

Business Times - 15 Sep 2005

Big boys poised to bid for plum Orchard Turn site

Tender for reserve plot with $600m minimum price to be launched soon

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

ALL the big property boys in Singapore and even some from the region are expected to bid for the plum Orchard Turn site, although there is no confirmation yet who had triggered the release of the reserve-list site with a minimum price of $600 million.

The 99-year leasehold site above Orchard MRT Station is earmarked for a 40-storey commercial project with at least 40 per cent of the 1.35 million sq ft gross floor area dedicated to retail, food and beverage, or entertainment uses. This will be the second largest mall on Orchard Road after Ngee Ann City.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-09-15/krorchard15-220058.jpg

The minimum $600 million price works out to about $443 per square foot of potential gross floor area. Bids during the actual state tender, which will close towards the end of the year, are expected to come in much higher, with some market watchers suggesting a range of $600 to $800 psf per plot ratio.

Assuming a bid at the top end of this range, break even cost could range from about $1,900 to $2,000 psf for the retail portion of the project to about $1,250 psf for a possible apartment component, say analysts. 'These breakeven levels are still viable, which suggest the more aggressive bidders have some room to bid even higher,' suggested an analyst.

Practically all those who were unsuccessful in their bids for the July tender of the mega Business and Financial Centre site in Singapore's New Downtown - from Malaysia's IOI Group to local heavyweights like City Developments and CapitaLand - are expected to tender for Orchard Turn.

Other natural contenders are owners of nearby Orchard Road properties. One would be German insurer Ergo, whose Prime Reit owns stakes in Wisma Atria and Ngee Ann City next to the Orchard Turn plot. Wheelock group (owner of Wheelock Place across the road from the latest parcel) and Far East Organization (which owns a string of properties in the prime shopping belt including Orchard Parksuites near the Orchard Turn plot) are also widely tipped to bid. Some observers also reckon Hotel Properties as a likely contender.

Most bidders are expected to rope in partners and form consortiums, given the high capital outlay. The entire project will cost well over $1 billion.

Indonesian tycoon James Riady's Lippo group is also keen, confirmed Lippo Realty Singapore executive director Thio Gim Hock. Lippo was the third highest bidder for the BFC site a few months ago. Wheelock Properties (Singapore) CEO David Lawrence said his group will 'certainly look seriously' to putting in a bid.

'The development will be linked by underground tunnel to Wheelock Place. It's a very prime site but not an easy one to develop because of the MRT station underneath,' he said.

Wing Tai Holdings, whose consortium was the second highest bidder for the BFC site, and GuocoLand (which reportedly triggered the release of the BFC site) are also expected to be keen on the site.

Analysts say Hongkong Land - part of the group that won the BFC site - will also make a very credible bidder for the Orchard Turn site given that its name is synonymous with top-end office and retail developments in Hong Kong.

The site comprises 1.8 hectares of land above the MRT Station and an adjoining underground area of 0.3 ha below Paterson Road to be developed into an underground pedestrian mall linked to Wheelock Place. This will complete the subterranean pedestrian network at the Orchard/Paterson Road junction.

The site being offered by the Urban Redevelopment Authority is part of the government's reserve list. Sites in this list are released for tender only upon successful application by a developer undertaking to offer a minimum price which is acceptable to the state.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

yup i notice that too

so guess this will be the tallest in Orchard once it is finish?

btw currently what is the tallest??

Yes, and I hope it stands head and shoulder above the rest. But it must really feel exciting at ground level too.

Currently the tallest should be Mandarin Hotel (and maybe the SingTel Building).

far east must not get it because far east pays no attention to detail, resulting in crap developments.

Chinese Proverb:

Small snake eat BIG elephant?
URA must buy him Ya Kun coffee for starting the Great Orchard Sales party.


SINGAPORE PRESS: SC Global Behind Bid For Orchard Site
SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--SC Global Developments Ltd. (S72.SG) was the mystery company that triggered the release of a 1.8 hectare commercial site along Singapore's prime Orchard Road shopping belt with its bid of S$600 million, the Business Times reports.

The paper didn't cite its sources but said SC Global, despite having a market capitalization of only around S$150 million, had the ability to develop the Orchard Turn site, which was on the government's reserve list.

That was because its key shareholders and management, led by Chairman Simon Cheong, comprised former real estate investment bankers with structuring and corporate finance experience.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority, the city-state's real estate planning agency, releases land from its reserve list and offers it for sale by tender whenever a developer makes a bid that the authority deems is acceptable.

The Orchard Turn site is designated for a signature 40-story commercial project with 1.35 million square feet of gross floor area, at least 40% of which must be set aside for retail, food and beverage or entertainment use.

omg, the govt should have just awarded to sc global immediately

Sept 17, 2005
Orchard Turn could boast some of Singapore's priciest condos
Site has potential to set new benchmark for 99-year leasehold homes

By Joyce Teo
Property Correspondent

THE race is hotting up over the prime Orchard Turn site as blue-chip developers vie for the chance to build a landmark project that could have some of Singapore's priciest condos.

Industry heavyweights City Developments (CDL) and Wing Tai are both keen to develop the 1.8ha site, which has the potential to set a new benchmark for 99-year leasehold homes.

Experts are tipping prices of up to $1,600 per sq ft (psf) - a whopping 40 per cent above the highest sub-sale leasehold prices fetched at The Sail @ Marina Bay.

It is also equivalent to top-end freehold properties like The Light at Cairnhill, which sells at $1,300 psf on average, or Grange Residences at more than $1,400 psf.

'It has fantastic potential to be a landmark, a postcard representation of Orchard Road. It will be hotly contested,' said Jones Lang LaSalle managing director Yu Lai Boon.

A developer said: 'When Orchard Turn is awarded, the benchmark for Orchard Road will be set.'

The site's huge potential has also attracted interest from SC Global, Pontiac Land and Wheelock Properties. So crucial has the block become to the industry that some projects are holding off on pricing until they see what levels could be set at Orchard Turn.

The 40-storey project must contain at least 40 per cent retail space, with the rest for commercial, hotel or residential, and it is this that holds the key for developers.

Hotel returns are unattractive but residential promises a huge payoff and the fact that developers can exit via a real estate investment trust makes it even more attractive.

The sale process started this week when a $600 million bid - said to be from SC Global - was submitted. That will trigger a general tender round in about two weeks' time, and the sky's the limit.

Bids could reach $900 million or $1 billion, and the total development cost would probably add up to $1.75 billion, said Wheelock Properties (Singapore) chief executive David Lawrence.

Wheelock submitted a $550 million bid last month that was rejected by the Urban Redevelopment Authority. While it could tie up with a partner, it is likely do it alone, said Mr Lawrence.

Bids of $600 million to $1 billion work out to $443 to $729 psf per plot ratio.

'As with the recent bid for the Business and Financial Centre, pricing could set benchmarks for valuing nearby real estate,' said a JP Morgan report on Thursday.

JP Morgan expects the successful developer to opt for a retail and residential mix.

'The combination is quite fluid but if the bid comes in at $1 billion, and there is a residential component, it could cost $1,600 psf, or at least not less than $1,500 psf,' said property consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle's regional director, Mr Lui Seng Fatt.

Other consultants put it around $1,300 psf or more. Even so, the price would probably set a benchmark for leasehold luxury properties.

Sources said Far East Organization would likely delay launching its leasehold Orchard Scotts condominium until it sees how much Orchard Turn gets.

The selective recovery in the luxury homes market has already resulted in transaction prices not seen since 1997. SC Global has sold units at BLVD and The Ladyhill at prices of up to $1,900 psf and $2,000 psf respectively.

Hong Leong's St Regis Residences could fetch over $2,000 psf - a benchmark for freehold prime properties.

Wheelock's Ardmore Park has the costliest condos in the Orchard area with the most expensive units at above $2,000 psf in 1996 to 1997.

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

omg, the govt should have just awarded to sc global immediately

Cannot Lah, is against the rule of the game:

Rule:

"The Orchard Turn site was made available for sale through the Reserve List on 30 March 2005. Under the government’s Reserve List system, the government will put up a reserve site for public tender if it receives an application from a developer who commits, by signing an agreement and paying a deposit of 5% of the bid price, to bid for the site at a price which is acceptable to the government.


URA has received an application from a developer who has committed to bid a price of not less than $600,000,000.00 for the Orchard Turn site. In accordance with the procedures of the Reserve List system, URA is making public this price. However, the identity of the applicant will not be released. URA will launch the public tender for the site in about two weeks time. The launch date will be announced later and a tender period of 12 weeks will be provided for this site"

My guess is successful winner will need to pay around $1.1b (or even more)for this site.

Winner will also become DOG, no meat left for them to eat only bone after minus the development and land cost.

Let's get Trump here! :cool:

Ah Li also want to chip in $1b.
Kong Xi Fa Cai to the authority, more New New Singapore share please.....


SINGAPORE, Sept 22 - Hong Kong property firm Cheung
Kong wants to bid for a plot of land on Singapore's top shopping
street Orchard Road and is looking for partners to fund the deal
which could be worth up to S$1 billion ($596 million).
"We are interested and we will look for some partners. I like
the piece of land. I've been looking at it for the last three or
four years. I think it could fetch up to S$1 billion," Cheung
Kong (Holdings) Ltd. <0001.HK> Executive Director Justin Chiu
told Reuters in an interview.
Singapore announced the planned sale of the 1.8 hectare site
close to the Orchard Road subway station in a public tender last
week, after a developer triggered the sale with a bid of more
than S$600 million.
"We have yet to see the tender documents. We don't know what
will be allowed there," Chiu said. "The potential is great. But
don't just give me an office building. One use could be retail
and entertainment to make it the place in Singapore."
Cheung Kong, controlled by Hong Kong's richest man Li
Ka-shing, has not decided on possible partners for the deal.

sounds promising! :okay:

Sept 23, 2005
Li Ka Shing keen on Orchard Turn site
His firm, Cheung Kong, has visions of building a Tokyo-style high-rise retail centre

By Joyce Teo
Property Correspondent

THE huge Orchard Turn site could offer Singapore its first taste of Tokyo-style shopping if Hong Kong property giant Cheung Kong Holdings gets its way.

Cheung Kong, controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka Shing, is keen to bid for the 1.8ha plot by the Orchard MRT station.

Executive director Justin Chiu yesterday said: 'I've been looking at it for the past three years.

'If I have my way, I'll put a Ginza type of building there,' he said, referring to the high-rise retail complexes in Tokyo's Ginza.

That would mean a mall focusing purely on retail, entertainment and eateries, as opposed to a retail podium with office or residential space on top, he said.

Knight Frank executive director Danny Yeo is all for the high-rise idea on what is arguably the last prime site on Orchard Road.

'It will be the first in Singapore,' he said. 'The question is, will we accept it?'

Mr Chiu believes Singaporeans are open to new ideas and will embrace the concept. 'When you do something like this, you need to have a vision. You need to look 10 years and beyond,' he said.

Still, the final plan would hinge on the criteria for the site, and its partners, he said. It was triggered for tender last week and the tender is expected to be called soon.

Cheung Kong has not sought a partner, but Mr Chiu mentioned Hongkong Land - one of its partners for the One Raffles Quay and Business and Financial Centre projects - as a possible candidate. He said the winning bid could reach $1 billion.

The tender bids for the Orchard Turn site are likely to be aggressive as Wheelock Properties, which owns Wheelock Place just across the road from the Turn site, has indicated keen interest.

Mr Chiu also said a possible exit strategy would be through a real estate investment trust (Reit), be it Suntec Reit, Prime Reit or others.

Ginza, which has the most expensive retail space in Japan, has malls that rise up to 10 storeys, said the president and chief executive officer of CB Richard Ellis (Japan), Mr Christopher Fossick.

'Tokyo does not have a lot of space so retail has been forced upstairs,' he said.

While the Orchard site can go to 40 storeys, a developer building a pure retail mall would want as large a floor place on each storey as possible, said Mr Yeo.

'It has to have a very smart design to attract shoppers to the upper floors,' he added. 'In North Asia, including Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, shopping centres of around 10 storeys are common.'

There is nothing to stop Singapore from having the same as the land cost here is very high, he said. 'It just depends on how deep a pocket you have.'

Possible retail rents on upper floors - level five and above, for example - could be around $5 to $6 per sq ft (psf) on average, compared with office rents of around $4 to $5 psf on average, he said.

Meanwhile, Cheung Kong will start marketing its Cairnhill Crest condominium in Indonesia and Hong Kong before launching it in Singapore in about a month, said Mr Chiu. The freehold 248-unit condo was first released for sale in 2003 and so far, 52 units has been sold at an average of $1,500 psf.

Mr Chiu, who is chairman of Suntec Reit's manager, also said talks over the $788 million purchase of 11 properties from City Developments are ongoing. He believes the deal could be settled soon. 'We're not walking away.'

joyceteo@sph.com.sg
Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Where's Trump? :(

hmmm i still feel the height restriction of this tower is still there :( if only hte building/tower can be taller :( perhaps 50 levels ?

uhm... why would trump come all the wa to orchard road?

Singapore launches tender for Orchard Turn plot


URA LAUNCHES TENDER FOR LAND PARCEL AT ORCHARD ROAD / PATERSON ROAD (ORCHARD TURN)
1. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) launched the Land Parcel at Orchard Road/Paterson Road (Orchard Turn) for sale by public tender today.

ORCHARD ROAD - SINGAPORE'S PREMIER SHOPPING STREET

2. The Orchard Turn site was made available for sale through the Reserve List on 30 March 2005 as part of MND/URA's initiatives to encourage new developments along Orchard Road. Orchard Road is Singapore's premier shopping street and a popular destination for visitors. The vision for Orchard Road is for it to be one of the greatest shopping streets in the world. To support this vision, the Orchard Turn site was released for sale to provide a new anchor retail development that will expand diverse range of shopping outlets available and also generate added vibrancy activities along Orchard Road.

3. On 14 September 2005, URA announced that it had accepted an application from a developer to put up the site for public tender. The developer has committed to bid least $600,000,000 for the site in the public tender.

ORCHARD ROAD/ PATERSON ROAD (ORCHARD TURN)

4. The Orchard Turn site, which marks the gateway to Orchard Road, is planned for a signature retail development that is integrated with the Orchard MRT Station and seamlessly connected to the surrounding developments.

5. The site, which comprises 1.8ha of land above the Orchard MRT Station and an adjoining 0.3ha of subterranean space below Paterson Road, is zoned for commercial use and will yield a total Gross Floor Area (GFA) of 125,726 sqm. In order to provide a major anchor retail development that will offer shoppers a wide range of retail outlets and diverse shopping experience, at least 40% of the total GFA has to be built for retail, food & beverage and/or entertainment use. The developer will be given the flexibility to use the remaining GFA for other commercial and complementary hotel and residential uses.

6. The Orchard Turn site also has an unsurpassed height limit of 218m AMSL along Orchard Road. This would allow the development to be the tallest along Orchard Road. The vantage point from the top of the development will offer spectacular views of the surroundings and to allow the public to enjoy these views, the development is required to incorporate an observation deck on any of its top three floors. This observation deck shall be open to the public.

7. Given its prominent location and the fact that it is on top of the Orchard MRT Station, the Orchard Turn site is ideal for staging major events and national celebrations. The development will thus include a 3,000 sqm public event space on the first storey that will be seamlessly integrated with the Orchard Road pedestrian mall and allow activities to flow into Orchard Road when it is closed for major festive celebrations.

8. The development will also be integrated with Orchard MRT Station and connected to the surrounding developments. Direct access will be provided to the Orchard MRT Station below. A new underground pedestrian mall across Paterson Road to Wheelock Place will be built as part of the development. This will complete the underground pedestrian network at the Orchard Road/ Paterson Road junction. In addition, the existing underpass to Wisma Atria will also be widened to 6.0m. These connections will facilitate and enhance the flow of commuters and shoppers between the Orchard MRT Station and the surrounding developments.

9. The details of the site are at Annex A-1 and the location plan at Annex A-2. More details of the site are available on URA website at http://www.ura.gov.sg/sales/OrchardSomerset/orchardturn.htm.

Details of Tender

10. The tender for the Orchard Turn site will close at 12 noon on 8 December 2005. Selection of the successful tenderer will be based on the tendered land price only. Any tender below the accepted minimum bid price of $600,000,000 will not be considered.

11. Developer's Packets are available at S$105 each (inclusive of GST) for the site. These can be purchased from the Customer Service Counter on the 1st storey of The URA Centre, 45 Maxwell Road, Singapore 069118. The developer's packets can also be purchased via URA-Online at http://www.ura.gov.sg/sales/sales_main.html at a cost of S$105 (excluding delivery charges) for local and overseas purchasers

The vantage point from the top of the development will offer spectacular views of the surroundings and to allow the public to enjoy these views, the development is required to incorporate an observation deck on any of its top three floors. This observation deck shall be open to the public.

yay! :banana:

Would they charge?

Would they charge?

maybe?

btw, is there a thread for this in World Forum? Or need to wait till the construction starts?

The 17 floor FE21 Mega Shopping Center in Kaohsiung is awesome. Singapore definitely needs something like this. Bubble lifts on the exterior bring you from ground floor to the 17th floor in seconds. An excellent tourist attraction cum people mover device. The one at the new National Library pales in comparison.

Its good to sort different types of shops into different floors. People won't have to walk from end to end of a mall just to visit different zones. All they need is to take a comfy lift ride up or down.

The 17 floor FE21 Mega Shopping Center in Kaohsiung is awesome. Singapore definitely needs something like this. Bubble lifts on the exterior bring you from ground floor to the 17th floor in seconds. An excellent tourist attraction cum people mover device. The one at the new National Library pales in comparison.

Its good to sort different types of shops into different floors. People won't have to walk from end to end of a mall just to visit different zones. All they need is to take a comfy lift ride up or down.

Sounds excellent......I rather they have a new concept mega mall compared to conventional ones.....:yes:

The 17 floor FE21 Mega Shopping Center in Kaohsiung is awesome. Singapore definitely needs something like this. Bubble lifts on the exterior bring you from ground floor to the 17th floor in seconds. An excellent tourist attraction cum people mover device. The one at the new National Library pales in comparison.

Its good to sort different types of shops into different floors. People won't have to walk from end to end of a mall just to visit different zones. All they need is to take a comfy lift ride up or down.

Sounds awesome ^ ^ Do you have pics ?

The vantage point from the top of the development will offer spectacular views of the surroundings and to allow the public to enjoy these views, the development is required to incorporate an observation deck on any of its top three floors. This observation deck shall be open to the public.

yay! :banana:

Yes..YAY! :D

I think the views will be similar to those you took from Shaw Tower...but probably better as you can see all the way to Raffles Place :yes:

It's much taller than Shaw, right?

^^

Definitely...speaking of height...I found some info from URA in reply to this:

At 40 storeys, it's unlikely that it's going to be 218m tall, or even 200m.
It sounds more like 160m or so.

Q: Given the technical height limit of 218m AMSL and an average building platform level of RL 105.612m, wouldn’t it be very difficult to accommodate a 40 storey development, with an average floor to floor height of 4.5m, on the site?

A: The average building platform level of the site is 5.612m AMSL. Based on the technical height limit of 218m AMSL, we have simulated that it is possible for a 40 storey development, with an average floor to floor height of 4.5m, to be accommodated within the height allowance for the site.

http://www.ura.gov.sg/sales/OrchardSomerset/OrchardTurnLaunch/orchardturnmain26sep05.htm

More info:

Q: Condition 4.1.6 of the Technical Conditions of Tender specifies that a publicly accessible observation deck shall be located at any of the top three floors, which shall be at least 164m AMSL. Does this imply that the building height of the development shall be at least 164m AMSL?

A: The observation deck shall be located on any of the top three floors, which shall be at least 164m AMSL. This minimum building height control of 164m AMSL applies only to the tower containing the observation deck and not to other building structures within the development site. The developer can thus choose to build another tower i.e. not the tower containing the observation deck, at a height lower than 164m AMSL, if desired.

We would also like to add that the observation deck shall be located at the periphery of the top three floors to provide unobstructed panoramic 360-degree views of the surroundings.

360-degree views of the surroundings!!! :banana:

I think I am a pano-addict. :p

360-degree views of the surroundings!!! :banana:

I think I am a pano-addict. :p

Can tell....:lol:

^^
Q: Given the technical height limit of 218m AMSL and an average building platform level of RL 105.612m, wouldn’t it be very difficult to accommodate a 40 storey development, with an average floor to floor height of 4.5m, on the site?[/b]

A: The average building platform level of the site is 5.612m AMSL. Based on the technical height limit of 218m AMSL, we have simulated that it is possible for a 40 storey development, with an average floor to floor height of 4.5m, to be accommodated within the height allowance for the site.

Huh...
What is AMSL ? What is the average building platform level ? What is RL 105.612m ?

I understand it's really going to be 218m... OK, that's good news ^ ^
But it has to look better than Tang, then !

AMSL = above mean sea level

RL = reduced level...i have no idea what this means...

well...its going to be taller than its neighbours for sure...but i read through the specifications carefully...i doubt the obs deck will be 218m...in fact a requirement for this building is that it must have a distinctive roof feature...so maybe that will add the extra height....

Actually, 4.5m floor height and 40 storeys make it 180m, so we're left with a 38m roof feature... And still an observation deck at a good height... Fixed and unblocked by neighbours... Better than Singapore flyer, huhuhu ^ ^

Additional income for the building owner.
I guess they will charge $10 (similar as skytower) for admission.

I have an idea. Make the centre like a rotating ring on a higher platform with a static lower platform and turn the place into a bar like Equinox (no smoking and no kids please). However, visitors can choose to patronise or not.

I have an idea. Make the centre like a rotating ring on a higher platform with a static lower platform and turn the place into a bar like Equinox (no smoking and no kids please). However, visitors can choose to patronise or not.

if that happens , Top Of the M will have no more business :p :p anyway thats a nice idea ...revolving platform :)

Give it an open-air observation deck with large flat railings where I can put the camera, let it open till say 9pm and I'll be happy ;-)

Give it an open-air observation deck with large flat railings where I can put the camera, let it open till say 9pm and I'll be happy ;-)

Flat rooftop 360 degrees observation deck!!! :cool:
Like Suntec, but more 'professional'. :D

Its view seems similar to that from Top of the M on 39th floor. hmmm...

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/4058/dscn05948ab.jpg

observation deck cum lounge/wine bar sounds hot! like the Bangkok banyan tree rooftop... or even the suntec guild house's outdoor rooftop area....

Oct 5, 2005
Interest in Orchard Road properties and stocks soar
Bullish developers and investors zoom in for a share of the shopping belt

By Joyce Teo
Property Correspondent

SINGAPORE'S coolest shopping belt has become a hot investment zone as property developers and share traders elbow tourists aside to get a slice of Orchard Road.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong lit the spark when he said in his National Day Rally that the Orchard Turn site could be a springboard into making the strip 'one of the great streets in the world'.

The developments since those remarks in August have been dramatic.

Big-gun developers are bidding for the Orchard Turn site on top of Orchard MRT, property stocks have soared and investors are eyeing real estate investment trusts (Reits) with growing interest.

'We're looking at the best prospects in real estate, including office and retail, since the early to mid-1990s,' said Mr Charles Neo, an analyst with investment bank UBS.

Another analyst described the recent buying in property shares as 'euphoria'.

Many stocks with an 'Orchard' link have prospered, including Wheelock Properties, which owns Wheelock Place; Bonvests Holdings, which owns Liat Towers; and Hong Fok, owner of International Building, which has strong redevelopment potential.

Shares of Wheelock Properties rose to $4.04 yesterday, from $3.82 on Monday, and Bonvests was up 6.5 cents at 81 cents. The listed unit of Far East Organization, Orchard Parade Holdings, rose from 74 cents to 83.5 cents.

The recent listing of Prime Reit, the first trust with assets entirely in Orchard Road, also added more excitement as buyers hunted for stocks with perceived potential.

Even retail stocks Isetan and CK Tang have risen on speculation their properties may be targets for Reits. CK Tang, for example, rose 2.5 cents to 52 cents. 'A lot of the small caps are greatly undervalued,' said one expert.

There has been market talk that Prime Reit, which owns 74.23 per cent of Wisma Atria and 27.23 per cent of Ngee Ann City, was eyeing Isetan's 25.77 per cent stake in Wisma Atria. The interest - real or otherwise - sent Isetan and other stocks with an Orchard Road link soaring.

'There was renewed interest, particularly in small-time laggards. It's a thematic play on the revival of Orchard Road,' said Mr Winston Liew, an analyst at OCBC Securities.

The housing market's general recovery, particularly in high-end homes, and anticipation over the integrated resorts have also fuelled interest, said analysts.

Wheelock Properties, in particular, is well positioned. Its Wheelock Place is directly opposite Orchard Turn and will benefit from its development; it will also prosper from recovery in high-end homes.

Growth for Prime Reit will come largely from acquisitions and punters have bought into it in anticipation of this.

While technically all properties on Orchard Road appear a potential buy, Mr Liew said Phoenix Hotel and Tangs could be possible ones.

'Prime Reit will be able to unlock the value of a lot of property owners on Orchard Road,' said an analyst who declined to be named.

Mr Neo said developers were bullish on the Orchard Turn site because the economic recovery is driving the demand for space and Singapore is ideally positioned to participate in Asia's growth. Rising visitor arrivals and the development of the Reit market have also helped, he added.

An analyst who declined to be named said: 'The key is the integrated resorts. People are expecting that to bring waves of foreign buying.'

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

BEST PROSPECTS

'We're looking at the best prospects in real estate, including office and retail, since the early to mid-1990s.'
\-- MR CHARLES NEO, an analyst with investment bank UBS

RENEWED INTEREST

'There was renewed interest, particularly in small-time laggards. It's a thematic play on the revival of Orchard Road.'
\-- MR WINSTON LIEW, an analyst at OCBC Securities

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Oct 11, 2005
Orchard Rd buzz shifts to big boys on the local bourse
Focus now on F&N, SPH and OCBC which all own properties near Glutton's Square site

By Goh Eng Yeow
Markets Correspondent

THE property buzz on Orchard Road is proving infectious as traders yesterday engaged in more frenzied buying of stocks with prominent frontage on Singapore's premier shopping street.

While traders had been busily snapping up smallish and mid-sized companies last week, interest yesterday shifted to stocks with big market capitalisation, as fund managers belatedly hopped onto the 'Orchard Road' bandwagon.

'The big buyers today are the foreign houses. This is usually an indication the big funds are in town,' said an institutional dealer.

What attracted them back in a big way was the robust 6 per cent economic growth in the third quarter. This convinced fund managers that the rally in the property market is sustainable, he said.

Interest yesterday narrowed to a handful of stocks whose properties would benefit from the development of the Glutton's Square site, put up for tender last week.

These included biggies such as Fraser & Neave (F&N), which rose 40 cents to a record high of $17.70, Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) which gained 18 cents to a 3 1/2-year high of $4.90, and OCBC Bank, which closed at a 5 1/2-year high of $6.45 after rising 15 cents.

All three firms have properties located near Glutton's Square, which is next to the Somerset MRT station. Such properties are likely to benefit from more pedestrians if a new development is built there.

F&N owns Centrepoint Shopping Centre directly opposite the site; OCBC's Specialists' Shopping Centre and Phoenix Hotel both adjoin the site; and SPH's Paragon is a stone's throw down the road.

Anticipation of higher rental yields along Orchard Road is also keeping interest on the boil.

Kim Eng Research, for example, expects SPH to report a 9 per cent increase in rental income from Paragon to $90 million, giving it a gross rental yield of 6.5 per cent.

By contrast, Prime Reit, which owns stakes in neighbouring Ngee Ann City and Wisma Atria, has a forecast yield of about 5 per cent due to the distribution of the bulk of its rental income as dividends.

Still, some analysts have been expressing reservations about the sharp gains made by some of the smaller property counters, in the wake of keen interest in the Orchard Turn site last month.

'We will not be surprised if the property sector pulls back in the near term, as many of the stocks are currently trading at a premium over their revalued net asset value,' said DBS Vickers last week.

Kim Eng Securities' online research arm, Kelive, agreed, saying last week that 'some of the recent Orchard Turn asset plays may have overextended themselves'.

engyeow@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Business Times - 07 Dec 2005

Tender for Orchard Turn site: a billion dollar question

Price expectations escalate as bidders line up for close of tender tomorrow

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

(SINGAPORE) Thirteen years ago, when the Urban Redevelopment Authority offered a plum site above Orchard MRT Station, there was not a single bidder. This time around, the outcome is likely to be markedly different.

The latest Orchard Turn tender is expected to attract 10 bids, or even more, market watchers say. Local players like CapitaLand, City Developments, Wing Tai, Far East Organization, GuocoLand, Wheelock Properties (Singapore), SC Global Developments, as well as foreign parties like Indonesia's Lippo Group and even some companies which have never before bid for a government site here, could turn up at the tender, the observers say.

Japanese groups Mitsubishi Estate and Kajima, Shui On group from Hong Kong and China Resources are also said to be looking at participating in the tender, most likely in partnership with other bidders.

The big question is: what will be the top bid?

When the reserve-list site was launched for tender in September, the minimum price was revealed as being $600 million or $443 per square foot per plot ratio.

Within days, as developer after developer declared its interest in the plot, market watchers upped their price expectations for the site to about $1 billion, or about $740 psf per plot ratio.

On the back of strong investment sentiment in the Singapore property market especially among foreign investors, price expectations for the site have continued to escalate.

Most market watchers now expect the top bids for the 99-year leasehold site to come in above $1 billion. It's just a matter of how much above $1 billion.

A few weeks ago, a price tag of $1.5 billion, which works out to $1,111 psf per plot ratio, was being suggested. At this price, the breakeven cost for the retail mall component on this site could be about $2,900 psf.

Some analysts could argue this is still viable, considering that Macquarie MEAG Prime Reit has valued its retail space at Wisma Atria next to Orchard Turn at $4,810 psf. However, seasoned retail players say the two sites are not quite comparable. For one, the retail component at Orchard Turn will be much larger. It has to be at least 40 per cent of the 1.35 million sq ft maximum gross floor area. This works out to net lettable retail space of about 350,000 sq ft - almost three times Macquarie MEAG Prime Reit's 121,181 sq ft retail space at Wisma.

As well, the Reit's Wisma property does not include Isetan's department store in the building, and this exclusion has also boosted the average per square foot monthly retail rent from the property for the Reit. Anchor tenants like department stores usually pay lower per square foot rents than smaller specialty shop units.

The $25-27 psf gross monthly average retail rent from Wisma indicated in the Reit's prospectus issued earlier this year works out to a net yield of at least 5 per cent based on the $4,810 psf valuation.

But a new investor in the Orchard Turn is likely to demand at least 8 per cent net yield for the retail space, factoring in its profit, according to seasoned retail players. Using the $2,900 psf retail breakeven cost for Orchard Turn based on a $1,111 psf ppr or $1.5 billion land bid, the gross monthly rent will have to be about $22 psf. On an entire-mall basis, especially for a much bigger mall, this may be too high even after factoring in steady rental increases in the next few years, say observers.

Of course, developers bidding for the Orchard Turn site are eyeing not only the retail component, but also what they intend to do with the rest of the space - which can be put to office, hotel or residential uses.

Most of the bidders are looking at residential use besides the mandatory retail component, given the resilience of the luxury residential sector, fuelled by strong foreign interest.

Indeed those waiting to launch upmarket condos in the Orchard belt, most notably CityDev for St Regis Residences, will clearly be looking at the top bid for tomorrow's tender. The higher the top bid for Orchard Turn, the higher the price at which they can peg values for their own condo projects.

The same applies to other big property owners in the area. That should give them some comfort if they bid but fail to clinch the Orchard Turn plot.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Business Times - 08 Dec 2005

Orchard Turn site gets at least 7 bids

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

SINGAPORE - THE tender for the plum Orchard Turn site has attracted at least seven bidders when the exercise closed at noon today.

The bidders include local property players such as Capitaland, City Developments, Wheelock, SC Global and Far East Organisation. Foreign bidders include Malaysia's IOI group and Indonesia's Lippo group.

The price tag for the prime site above the Orchard MRT station is expected to surpass $1 billion, or about $740 psf per plot ratio.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

08 December 2005

CapitaLand submits top bid of S$1.38b for Orchard Road site

SINGAPORE : Property developer CapitaLand has placed the top bid for a prime site along Orchard Road, Singapore's main shopping and hotels stretch.

CapitaLand and a partner offered S$1.38 billion (US$816 million) for the 1.8-hectare site.

There were a total of eight bids.

The sale of the plot is the first land sale in Orchard Road since 1993.

A final decision on the award of the tender will be made after the bids have been evaluated. - CNA /ls

Copyright © 2005 MCN International Pte Ltd

http://sg.yimg.com/i/sg/providers/reuters.gif

December 8 2005
CapitaLand, Sun Hung Kai in top Orchard land bid
By Sebastian Tong

SINGAPORE, Dec 8 (Reuters) - CapitaLand Ltd , Southeast Asia's biggest developer, and Hong Kong's Sun Hung Kai Properties have put in the highest bid for a plot of land on Singapore's Orchard Road shopping street.

The government said on Thursday that CapitaLand and its partner entered a S$1.38 billion ($816 million) bid, the largest of eight submitted, for the 1.8-hectare plot opposite Wheelock Place and above the Orchard subway station.

CapitaLand told Reuters it submitted a joint bid with a private firm controlled by Hong Kong developer Sun Hung Kai.

Other bidders included Malaysia's IOI Corp and Indonesian investment group Lippo Ltd . Analysts said that bids for the sale -- the first on Orchard Road since 1993 -- were higher than expected.

"It's amazing. Six of the bidders put in more than a billion dollars. That's nearly double the bid of S$600 million that triggered the tender," said DTZ Debenham Tie Leung analyst Ong Choon Fah.

She added that the winners of the Orchard Road site could develop residential apartments along with a mall.

CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai teamed up unsuccessfully in July to bid for Singapore's new waterfront financial district -- a contest that was eventually won by a consortium of Hong Kong's Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd. , Hongkong Land and Keppel Land Ltd. .

The government will announce the winning bid in a week.

A smaller 0.6-hectare plot of land along Orchard Road is also up for sale, with the tender closing on Jan. 18.

Copyright © 2005Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.

No joke, S$1.38B

This same piece of land cannot find a single buyer @S$400 million in the early 90s.
Congratulation to URA for making developers happily paying S$1b more for the same land.

Well done, keep up the good work.

So how much psf will the residential part be? $2000 ?

UPDATE:Singapore Orchard Rd Site Gets Top Bid Of S$1.38B
(Updates with comments from CapitaLand CEO, analysts.)

By Kevin Lim

Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--A 50:50 joint venture comprising CapitaLand Ltd. (C31.SG) and Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd. (0016.HK) Thursday submitted the highest bid of S$1.38 billion (US$816 million) for a prime 1.8 hectare piece of land along Singapore's Orchard Road.

According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the bid works out to S$10,976.25 per square meter of built-up area space, or around S$1,025 per square feet, reflecting improved confidence in Singapore's real estate market.

URA said the 99-year leasehold Orchard Turn site can be developed into a commercial development with an underground shopping mall that has a maximum permissible gross floor area of 125,726 square meters. The site also has a height limit of 218 meters above sea level, which will allow the development to be the tallest along Singapore's main shopping area.

At least 40% of the space must be used for retail, food and beverage and/or entertainment, while the developer has the flexibility to use the remaining built-up area for other commercial and complementary hotel and residential uses, the government agency added.

CapitaLand chief executive Liew Mun Leong said in an e-mail that the Singapore property giant and its Hong Kong partner will develop a mixed retail and residential development on the site, which is located above the Orchard Road subway station in the most popular part of Singapore's main shopping area.

"As the last prime site along Orchard Road, the partners are committed to building an iconic retail mall that will drastically change the retail scene in this major shopping belt," he said.

Soon Su Lin, executive director at CB Richard Ellis, estimates the break-even price for the residential component of the development will be around S$1,350 per square foot. As luxury apartment prices rose 11.5% quarter-on-quarter to average S$1,500 per square foot in July-September, the developer should be able to profit from the sale of residential units.

The Orchard Turn site at the junction of Orchard Road and Paterson Road was put on the market in September after an unnamed developer, believed to be SC Global Developments Ltd. (S72.SG), triggered its release with a bid of S$600 million, or about S$445 per square foot of potential gross floor area.

Under Singapore's "reserve list" system, land is offered for tender only after a developer offers to pay what authorities consider to be a minimum acceptable price.

The CapitaLand-Sun Hung Kai bid was 8.8% above the second-highest tender of S$1.27 billion submitted by IOI Land Singapore Pte. Ltd., a unit of Malaysia's IOI Corp. Bhd.

08 December 2005

CapitaLand, Sun Hung Kai set new benchmark with Orchard Turn bid
By Matthias Chan, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE : CapitaLand has placed the highest bid for the site at Orchard Turn.

Together with its 50-50 partner Sun Hung Kai Properties, the property developer offered S$1.38 billion for the 1.86 hectare site.

The tender attracted eight bids in all. The winning bid will be announced later.

In a statement out on Thursday, CapitaLand said it was committed to building an iconic retail mall that will drastically change the retail scene in this major shopping belt.

The list of eight bidders for the prime site at Orchard Turn include some of the top names in the local property scene.

The site also attracted bids from two prominent foreign developers - Malaysia's IOI Properties and Indonesia's Lippo Group.

Analysts say the CapitaLand-Sun Hung Kai offer, about 9% higher than the next bid, is priced to win.

"The bids were very aggressive. Out of the eight bids, six of them were at a billion and above. I think market was expecting maybe four or five bids which are in excess of a billion. We are looking at about one billion to 1.2 billion," said Donald Han, managing director of Cushman & Wakefield.

Because of the aggressive bids, analysts say they will have to rework their numbers for the Orchard Road area.

"This will set a new benchmark in Orchard Road. On property valuation, we will use this as the benchmark of properties, retail properties in the market place as well," said Han.

Under the terms of the tender, the successful bidder is required to set aside 40% of floor area for retail.

But Channel NewsAsia understands that the CapitaLand-Sun Hung Kai partnership will plan for an even higher retail component.

In its statement, CapitaLand says it plans to build a mixed retail and residential development that maximises the potential of the site.

It promises an iconic retail mall that will drastically change the retail scene in the Orchard Road shopping belt.

This plot is the first site along Orchard Road to be sold since 1993.

All eyes will now be on the two Somerset sites that have been placed for sale.

Analysts expect developers to eye the amalgamation of the two sites and the possible redevelopment of the Specialists' Shopping Centre when placing their bids.

These three sites put together will be similar in land area to the Orchard Turn site.

The Orchard Turn tender sets the tone for the Somerset bid.

Analysts believe that this next tender would likely attract the other seven Orchard Turn bidders. And they say the Somerset site is expected to set another benchmark. - CNA /ls

Copyright © 2005 MCN International Pte Ltd

Business Times - 09 Dec 2005

Top Orchard Turn bidder to go heavy on retail component

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

(SINGAPORE) The partnership that put in the bullish top bid of $1.38 billion for the plum Orchard Turn site yesterday is planning to go big on the retail component of its project.

CapitaLand group, Singapore's biggest mall owner, and Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), Hong Kong's premier developer, are planning to set aside 70 per cent or more of the gross floor area (GFA) in their project for retail use.

This is much more than the mandatory minimum 40 per cent retail component in the project stipulated by the authorities. This probably also explains how the partnership is supporting its bid.

Analysts say retail is the best use of space on the 99-year leasehold site above the Orchard MRT Station, and dedicating a higher percentage of GFA to a mall will allow the developers to maximise land value.

A maximum GFA of 1.35 million sq ft can be built on the site, which comprises 1.8 hectares of land above the MRT station and an adjoining underground area of 0.3 ha below Paterson Road to be developed into an underground pedestrian mall linked to Wheelock Place.

The CapitaLand bid, which works out to $1,020 psf of potential gross floor area, is considered bullish by most market watchers and could spark an upward revaluation of property in the area.

The bid was also 8.8 per cent higher than the next highest offer of $1.27 billion by Malaysia's IOI group. In all, yesterday's tender by the Urban Redevelopment Authority drew eight bids.

CapitaLand Group president & CEO Liew Mun Leong said that his group and SHKP have dedicated 'substantial effort to design a mixed retail and residential development that maximises the potential of the site and delivers our target level of return'.

The partners are committed to building an iconic mall on the last prime site on Orchard Road that will will drastically change the local retail scene, he said.

And as to how the future mall on the site will fare against new attractions from the integrated resorts at Marina Bay - which will have a significant retail component - and at Sentosa, Mr Liew has this to say: 'The Orchard Turn project will complement the two IRs and together, they will contribute significantly to the growth of tourist arrivals and tourism receipts to Singapore'.

CapitaLand is vying for both IR sites.

CapitaLand Retail CEO Pua Seck Guan told BT that the plan is to set aside 70 per cent or more of GFA at the Orchard Turn project for retail use. The efficiency ratio - the ratio of net lettable area to GFA - will also be high at about 68-70 per cent. This will result in net lettable retail area of about 660,000 sq ft, making it the second biggest mall on Orchard Road after Ngee Ann City. 'To maximise on its prime location, a mall on the Orchard Turn site must have significant size. In addition, we'll have good layout. All the shops will be prime units,' he said.

There will be exits for pedestrians on three levels - at basement two connected to Orchard MRT station, and on levels one and two on Orchard Road and Orchard Boulevard, respectively. This will boost space with high shopper traffic.

The mall could be spread over six to eight levels, while the residential component will have a separate private entrance, most likely on Orchard Boulevard. The project is expected to be over 50 storeys - the tallest in the location.

Property consultants estimate a breakeven cost of about $1,400 psf for the residential component. Developer sales of luxury freehold condos like The Grange, The Boulevard Residences and The Arc @ Draycott have lately been at above $1,600 psf, said CB Richard Ellis executive director Soon Su Lin.

Overall prices in the luxury market have risen 11.5 per cent quarter on quarter to average $1,500 psf in Q3, Ms Soon noted.

As for Orchard Turn's retail component, BT understands that the breakeven cost could be $2,500-$2,800 psf and CapitaLand and SHKP could be planning for net yields of 7 to 8 per cent. This translates to a gross monthly average rent of about $17 to $22 psf for the entire mall. This is considered high, as some swanky shopping centres in the area are achieving $10-12 psf in average rent.

But Mr Pua of CapitaLand Retail is confident of achieving the desired yields at the Orchard Turn mall through efficient layout and by having mini-anchor tenants instead of big anchors.

Generally, bigger shop units pay a lower psf rent. 'Between us and SHKP, we have the retail tenancy base and network to get the required tenants,' he said.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-12-09/BT3192408_09_12_2005.jpg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

I wonder who will be the tenants. :)

I wonder who will be the tenants. :)

Who's on your wish lists?? :D

09 December 2005 2319 hrs

Somerset bid could be 8% higher than Orchard Turn: analysts
By Matthias Chan, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE : Property analysts say the first plot of land at Somerset which is up for tender could fetch at least $1,050 to $1,100 per square foot.

They gave this estimate following news that the site at Orchard Turn had attracted a top bid of $1.38 billion.

And they say the benchmarks set by these bids could encourage owners of older retail malls in the Orchard area to redevelop their properties.

Property watchers will be following closely the tender for the two sites at Somerset.

Bids for the first site will close on January 18 next year while the second plot will be released for sale in March via the reserve list.

The two sites are adjacent to the Specialists' Shopping Centre.

Analysts say they expect the bids to be as aggressive, if not more, than those for Orchard Turn.

"Bidding for the Somerset site is going to be aggressive. Orchard Turn has already set the benchmark. We saw the top bid coming in at $1,020 per square foot. I think we're going to see at least $1,050 to $1,100 per square foot. That will work at to around $400m to $420m for the whole plot," said Pratik Burman Ray, property analyst at UOB KayHian Research.

Property watchers say the rising property values in Orchard Road might motivate developers to redevelop the older retail properties.

Meantime, analysts are starting to work out the impact of the Orchard Turn development on CapitaLand's valuations.

They say that despite the aggressive bid, the impact will be limited.

"Due to the large equity base of CapitaLand, the impact from this is not going to be much. We are looking for an impact of about 4 to 5 cents on MAV (Maximum Assessed Value). Our MAV is $3.19, so that is less than 2%. But I think the wider implications are on other Orchard Road properties around the area," said Pratik Burman Ray.

CapitaLand is likely to set aside about 70% of gross floor area at Orchard Turn for retail and the remaining to be developed into residential units.

Copyright © 2005 MCN International Pte Ltd

no one in mind yet. Probably, none of the brands already available in Singapore.

I am more interested what they will do on the observation floor. Restaurant with high ceiling?

^ Isn't that the same as Mandarin Hotel?? :?

dunno. Wait and see.

Hopefully they come up with something new and exciting.....:yes:

moved all recent posts here as they pertain to this specific development.

Bullish Orchard Turn bid leaves market divided

10 Dec 05

Some see revaluation of nearby assets, others less sure

(SINGAPORE) Property analysts and consultants are divided in their views on the impact of Thursday's bullish top bid for the coveted Orchard Turn site.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-12-10/BT_3197029_10_12_2005.jpg

The question being asked is whether the price endorsement of $1.38 billion for the site will lead to a revaluation of properties in the area. And whether it will do anything for the share price of listed property companies with assets having prime Orchard Road frontage.

Their conflicting assessments also pretty much mirror the performance of stocks with direct exposure to Orchard Road real estate on the stock market yesterday. The star performer yesterday was City Developments, which owns properties like Orchard Hotel, Palais Renaissance and Delfi Orchard and which is getting ready to launch St Regis Residences condo on Cuscaden Road. CityDev gained 20 cents to close at $8.75 yesterday, on top of a 25-cent rise on Thursday.

CK Tang, which owns its prime store at the corner of Orchard and Scotts roads just opposite the Orchard Turn plot, held on to its intra-day high to close five cents higher at 57 cents.

Likewise, fellow retailer Isetan, which owns its prime department store space at Wisma Atria, finished six cents higher at $4.76.

Hotel Properties - whose property interests include the Hilton and Four Seasons hotels, HPL House and Forum shopping mall - saw its stock price inch up just one cent to close at $1.54.

The performance was even more lacklustre for most other companies with exposure to prime Orchard Road properties. They either closed flat or just a shade higher, after spiking up briefly in some cases. These include Hong Fok (owner of International Building), Bonvests (Liat Towers), and Wheelock Properties Singapore (Wheelock Place and Scotts Shopping Centre/The Ascott service residences).

On Thursday, CapitaLand and its partner Sun Hung Kai Properties put in the top bid for the Orchard site. At $1.38 billion, or $1,020 psf per plot ratio, the price was more than what the market had expected and sent stockbroking houses scrambling to issue research notes yesterday.

'We believe that companies with properties in the vicinity will benefit from the record pricing. These include CK Tang, Hong Fok, Bonvests and Hotel Properties,' wrote DMG & Partners.

Said Citigroup Investment Research: 'The strong interest in the Orchard Turn site underpins our reflation theme and confirms our view of the improving trends in residential and commercial property . . . Our top picks for the reflation theme include DBS, Wing Tai, CapitaLand and SPH.'

The CapitaLand-SHKP bid works out to a breakeven cost of $2,500 to $2,800 psf for the retail component, which will take up at least 70 per cent of gross floor area of their planned project on Orchard Turn. The rest of the GFA will be for a condo.

Assuming net yields of 7-8 per cent that the partners are reportedly planning from the mall, this translates to a gross monthly average rent of about $17 to $22 psf for the entire mall. This is considered high, as most swanky shopping centres in the area are achieving $10-12 psf in average rent on an entire-shopping-centre basis.

CIMB-GK Research said that the bullish Orchard Turn bid will raise comparable transaction values, and raise expectations for higher rentals. 'We believe the market will revalue the properties up, though not to the full extent of the bid.'

A seasoned property valuer acknowledged that there would be pressure for an upward revaluation of surrounding properties.

'We can't ignore the bid. But it will take some time. It's unlikely we'll immediately revalue every property on Orchard Road to the same level as the $2,800 psf breakeven cost for Orchard Turn's mall.

'The reality is that currently, there's no rental evidence on Orchard Road to support the top bid for Orchard Turn. CapitaLand and SHKP's price builds in future rental expectations. So I don't expect to see valuers overnight raising their valuations of surrounding properties to match the Orchard Turn bid.'

As for property counters, an analyst described some of yesterday's reports predicting upward revaluations of nearby properties, and hence of the worth of the listed companies that own them, as nothing more than a 'knee-jerk reaction'.

'When you think about it more rationally, one has to factor in the underlying cashflow from the asset. Will CK Tang's underlying cashflow from its store change because of the Orchard Turn bid? Is there any fundamental change in the value of the property?'.

Putting things in perspective, he added: 'What the Orchard Turn top bid does change is people's perception of Orchard Road property and the fair value of some property counters.

'But we've already seen these stocks doing very well. It may be a case of buy on anticipation, sell on the fact. I'd rather sell into strength, rather than be an incremental buyer at current levels.'

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

ORCHARD TURN SITE AWARDED TO CapitaLand & Sun Hung Kai!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://sg.yimg.com/i/sg/providers/reuters.gif

December 14 2005
Singapore CapitaLand, Sun Hung Kai gets prime site

SINGAPORE, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Singapore's Urban Redevelopment Authority said on Wednesday it has awarded a prime Orchard Road site to a group led by CapitaLand Ltd which submitted the top bid of S$1.38 billion.

A URA press statement said Capitaland Retail Singapore Investments, a unit of CapitaLand, and Gresward Pte Ltd, a unit of Hong Kong developer Sun Hung Kai Developers planned a commercial development with an underground shopping mall at the site.

The 99-year leasehold site, located above the Orchard Road subway station, attracted eight bids when the tender closed on December 8.

Copyright © 2005Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.

14 DECEMBER 2005

AWARD OF TENDER FOR LAND PARCEL AT ORCHARD ROAD/PATERSON ROAD (ORCHARD TURN)

1.The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has awarded the tender for the land parcel at Orchard Road/Paterson Road (Orchard Turn) to the highest tenderer.

2.The tender was launched on 26 September 2005 and closed on 8 December 2005. The site was offered for sale on a 99-year lease.

3.The particulars of the land parcel and successful tenderer are as follows:

http://www.ura.gov.sg/pr/text/pr05-65.html

Dec 15, 2005
50-storey building on $1.38b Orchard plot

By Joyce Teo

ORCHARD Road's tallest building is set to soar about 50 storeys, or up to 218m, above Orchard MRT station on a hotly-contested vacant site which has just been awarded to property giant CapitaLand and a Hong Kong partner.

CapitaLand and its partner beat seven rivals with a top bid of $1.38 billion to build a retail and residential project on the 1.8ha site, with a 99-year lease, known as Orchard Turn, the Urban Redevelopment Authority said yesterday.

As part of the push to add buzz to Singapore's premier shopping strip, the URA has designated it a landmark site, which means the Orchard Turn project can exceed the 30-storey limit that usually applies in Orchard Road.

And it will rise well above some of Orchard Road's current tallest buildings, such as the Meritus Mandarin Hotel at 40 storeys, or 152m.

CapitaLand and Gresward, a unit of one of Hong Kong's largest property developers Sun Hung Kai Properties, plan to devote six to eight storeys of the new project to a state-of-the-art shopping mall.

Mr Pua Seck Guan, chief executive of CapitaLand Retail, a unit of CapitaLand, said: 'We have to create the best shopping mall in Orchard Road. That's our vision.'

The rest of the project, which will include an observation deck on at least one of its top three floors, will largely be residential units.

The project will be integrated with Orchard MRT station and connected to surrounding developments via a new underground pedestrian mall across Paterson Road to Wheelock Place. An existing underpass from Orchard MRT to Wisma Atria will also be widened.

The retail space will be mostly located in the basement and at the bottom of the project, which will be wider than the residential tower. About 70 per cent of the project's gross floor area of 125,726 sq m or 1.35 million sq ft will be retail.

An industry source warned that devoting more than the required minimum 40 per cent portion to retail space would mean higher risks for the developers, who have a 50:50 share in the project.

Knight Frank executive director Danny Yeo said average retail rents at the new project would have to be above $20 psf, which would set a new benchmark for a mall of this size. Ngee Ann City retail rents average $15-$17 psf.

High-rise homes in the project could sell for as high as $1,900-$2,000 psf, said market watchers.

More details on the project are expected tomorrow.

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Exciting :D

It would be even more exciting to see how the other malls react to the challenge.......:yes:

15 December 2005

Top retail names could be eyeing shop space at new Orchard sites
By Matthias Chan, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE : The aggressive bids for the Orchard Turn site is creating a buzz among retailers in Singapore.

With CapitaLand saying it will build an iconic retail mall at Orchard Turn, some retailers may already be eyeing shop space there - and also on the Somerset sites that are up for tender.

And analysts say the mega-malls will provide big retail players the scope to grow further.

The development of the Orchard Turn site is part of overall plans to rejuvenate Orchard Road and turn it into one of the top retail shopping areas in the world.

The Orchard Turn site was awarded to CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties - and they are planning to build an iconic retail mall.

Although construction is expected to be completed only nearer to 2010, market watchers are already speculating that retailers may be already eyeing for a presence there - and on the two sites at Somerset which are up for tender.

James Tan, Equity Research, DBS Vickers, said, "We know that there is room for the big boys to grow and to move in to the Orchard Turn or Somerset site. Definitely big boys will want to position themselves, definitely try to work things with the developers and try to see how they can anchor and position themselves to garner that position."

The sheer size of these malls would mean that if top retail names want to leap into the next phase of growth, locating themselves in the Orchard Turn or Somerset developments will be strategic.

When completed in about 2010, the Orchard Turn mall and possible amalgamation of the Somerset sites will equate to roughly two Ngee Ann Citys.

Being landmark destination malls, analysts believe that top retail players will vie for anchor spots in at least one of them.

For some years now, retailers have been dogged by tepid sales and declining profit margins.

But many have turned the corner in recent quarters.

And analysts believe next year looks even brighter.

Mr Tan said, "If we talk about the other retailers...Tangs...Isetan...Takashimaya, definitely they should grow in line with Robinsons, in the high single digits as well. Definitely all of them are in niches targeting consumer segments in the market."

CK Tang, Isetan and Robinsons are listed on the Singapore bourse. - CNA/ms

Copyright © 2005 MCN International Pte Ltd

it would be more exciting for me to see how they manage to build up to 218m, if they are going to use the maximum height ^^

it would be more exciting for me to see how they manage to build up to 218m, if they are going to use the maximum height ^^

I'm sure more surprises are on the way.....:D

Yes, it's interesting to see how they are going to arrange an observation deck on top of a 50 stories residential - which is unlikely to be taller than about 175m... Unless it has a big and impressive crown ^ ^

I am looking forward to more 24-hour or late night shopping / cafes / entertainment! :happy:

Hmm... then thats like 3/4 of the development? omg
more than i had expected



CapitaLand to devote 70-75% of Orchard Turn site to retail
By Matthias Chan, Channel NewsAsia



SINGAPORE : Developer CapitaLand has revealed details of its plans for the Orchard Turn site, saying it plans to dedicate 70 to 75 percent of project for retail space and the remaining for a luxury residential development.

CapitaLand is bullish about the retail sector and says there is plenty of room for the sector to grow.

According to a feasibility study it conducted before embarking on its bid with Sun Hung Kai, Singapore is grossly "under-shopped" when compared to other global cities.

Said Liew Mun Leong, president and CEO of CapitaLand, "We are something like 0.5 square metre per capita and places like Hong Kong is something like three times; Australia is more than three times; and USA is multiple times of us. And so of all the cities out there, we are most under-shopped. So there is enormous potential for us to leverage up."

Another consideration for its bid is the connectivity to the Orchard MRT station.

CapitaLand says the experience at Changi Airport shows that passenger pass-through is critical.

Said Mr Liew, "The Changi Airport terminal has retail space of only 300,00 square feet but because it has a throughput of 30 million passengers per year, we are going to hit a billion dollars of sales this year, which is the highest retail mall in all of Singapore. Nobody can guess the highest revenue is Changi Airport."

CapitaLand plans to allocate 70 to 75 percent of total space at its Orchard Turn development to retail and the remaining to a 100-odd unit luxury residential project.

The retail mall is scheduled to open in time for Christmas 2008, and CapitaLand hopes to launch the residential units in the second quarter of 2007.

As for the high price it paid for the site, CapitaLand says that the retail potential will more than justify its bid price.

CapitaLand forecasts that rental growth of 10 percent per year for the medium term is achievable on the back of an estimated 4 percent GDP growth.

Based on that assumption and its plan for a 70:30 residential, retail mix, CapitaLand estimates the land should be worth S$1.58 billon, S$200 million higher than its successful bid. - CNA /ct

Changi Airport has 30,000 square meters of retail space.....:yes:

Business Times - 16 Dec 2005

'Iconic' development set for Orchard Road

SINGAPORE - An 'iconic' retail development with a towering observation deck and a showcase for brand name retailers is planned for upmarket Orchard Road, the developer said on Friday.

Singapore-listed CapitaLand, Southeast Asia's largest property developer, and partner Gresward Pte Ltd, a unit of Sun Hung Kai Properties in Hong Kong, won a tender for the site this week as part of a government blueprint announced earlier this year to turn the city-state's prime shopping and tourist belt into one of the best retail strips in the world.

CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai's development of the 1.8 ha site at the corner of Orchard and Paterson roads will be the first significant retail development along the core stretch of Orchard Road since 1993, company documents said.

Liew Mun Leong, CapitaLand group's president and chief executive officer, said in a statement: 'As the last prime site along Orchard Road, the partners are committed to building an iconic retail mall that will drastically change the retail scene in this major shopping belt.' He said that in addition to the retail component, the development will include residential units that will be 'much sought after'.

The site will be directly connected to a subway station and will be a 'showcase of choice for international brand name retailers', the developers said. They promise 'iconic architecture and design' including an atrium space for staging 'high profile events and celebrations' and a viewing deck at least 164 m above ground. Construction is to begin in the third quarter of 2006, they added. -- AFP

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Construction is to begin in the third quarter of 2006, they added.

Yay \o/

Yay \o/

And "The retail mall is scheduled to open in time for Christmas 2008, and CapitaLand hopes to launch the residential units in the second quarter of 2007."

:banana: :cucumber:

Dec 17, 2005
$4m up for apartment at mega mall
Orchard Turn mall opens end-2008, with apartments ready in 5 years

By Joyce Teo
Property Correspondent

SUPER shopping is in store come Christmas 2008 - that is when Orchard Road's newest mega mall, Orchard Turn, will open for business, said its developers yesterday as they unwrapped more details on the project.

As for the eagerly-awaited question of size, it will actually be smaller than current Orchard Road kingpin, Ngee Ann City.

Still, up to 75 per cent of the project's maximum 1.35 million sq ft of gross floor space will be used for shopping.

While the mall won't be the biggest, it has other superlatives lined up to call its own.

As already reported, it will be Orchard Road's tallest building, but co-developer CapitaLand revealed yesterday at a press briefing that Orchard Turn's residential component could be the most expensive ever.

Above the mall, which will stand on a prime site over Orchard MRT station, will rise a thin residential tower of about 100 spacious 99-year leasehold luxury apartments, possibly retailing at a record-busting $1,800-$2,000 a sq ft.

At that price, the homes will cost around $4 million to over $5 million.

Currently, the priciest 99-year leasehold condominium units can be found in the second tower of The Sail@Marina Bay, where a 5,834 sq ft penthouse was sold at $1,508 psf in October. The homes will be 2,000 to 3,000 sq ft in size, said the chief executive of CapitaLand Residential Singapore, Ms Patricia Chia.

They will be ready in about five years' time. The entire 218m project, with up to 53 storeys, will tower over nearby buildings such as the 152m Meritus Mandarin Hotel and the 89m Singapore Marriott Hotel.

The construction cost of Orchard Turn, which may have three basements of retail space, is estimated at $510 million.

Its retail floor area works out to a net area for let of 644,000 to 690,000 sq ft, spread over six to eight storeys.

There will also be observation decks, likely on the 52nd and 53rd floors, an art exhibition space, and a 32,000 sq ft public event space on the ground floor fronting Orchard Road.

The mall is part of Singapore's plan to remake Orchard Road into one of the world's greatest shopping streets, as the Republic aims to double visitor arrivals to 17 million and triple tourism spending to $30 billion in the next decade.

At yesterday's briefing, CapitaLand's president and chief executive officer, Mr Liew Mun Leong, said Orchard Turn was the 'centre of gravity' in Orchard Road and would be the showcase mall of choice for international brand names.

Singapore is 'under-shopped' in terms of retail property supply per capita, said Mr Liew. 'We think the retail sector in the real estate industry will be the fastest growing in Asia.'

Property giant CapitaLand and its equal share Hong Kong partner Sun Hung Kai Properties was awarded the Orchard Turn site on Wednesday, after putting in the highest bid of $1.38 billion.

There are plans to have mini 'anchor' tenants instead of a major anchor such as a department store, which typically pays a lower rent. As a result, CapitaLand is looking at average rents of $18 to $19 psf. At the upmarket Paragon mall further along Orchard Road, average rents are $13.80 psf.

But CapitaLand Retail chief executive Mr Pua Seck Guan said: 'If the economy continues to grow at 4 per cent per annum... to achieve a 10 per cent increase in rent is not unreasonable in three to four years.'

The joint venture expects to start construction in the third quarter of next year and to market homes in the second quarter of 2007.

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

sounds a lot like the mori towers at roppongi hills?

75% of the GFA will be used for the shopping mall, that works out to be about 1 million sq ft. But the nett retail space is about 690,000 sq ft, 32,000 sq ft is used for public event space. I wonder what will they do with the rest of the 278,000 sq ft?? :? The art gallery plus carpark?? :?

Business Times - 17 Dec 2005

CapitaLand, partner to sink $2b into Orchard Turn project

Ambition is to open mall component by Christmas 2008

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

(SINGAPORE) CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) will, in all, invest about $2 billion developing a mall and luxury condo on the Orchard Turn site.

The outlay will include land and construction costs.

'My ambition is to open the mall by Christmas 2008,' CapitaLand Group president and CEO Liew Mun Leong said at a briefing yesterday.

'It should not be a big challenge' achieving average prices of $1,800 to $2,000 per square foot for the 100-odd luxury apartments of about 2,000-3,000 sq ft each when the group is ready to market them in Q2 2007, he said.

Market watchers say the residential component could be launch-ready as early as Q3 next year.

The apartments will rise up to 51 storeys. CapitaLand officials refuted market talk that CapitaLand and SHKP overpaid by forking out $1.38 billion or $1,020 psf per plot ratio for the 99-year leasehold site above Orchard MRT Station.

They said the land will be worth $200 million more than this if the $18-19 psf gross average monthly rental they assumed for the mall in their model is surpassed by 10 per cent. The $18-19 psf rental range is deemed conservative since it is already being achieved at some Orchard Road malls if anchor spaces are excluded.

Using this rental figure, the net yield for the Orchard Turn mall would work out to 7 to 7.5 per cent based on its estimated breakeven cost of $2,500 to $2,550 psf of net lettable area.

Mr Liew sees huge upside for the mall. 'Asia is growing. The cities are pulsating. The travel industry is growing,' he said. 'The theme is very much about global consumption. And one of the main branches is retail. We think the retail sector in the real estate industry will be the fastest growing in Asia.'

Singapore has less retail space per head of population than Hong Kong, Japan, the UK, Australia and the US, Mr Liew said. And this leaves room for more retail space here. He reckons Hong Kong and Singapore - for their prevalent use of English and Mandarin - and Shanghai will be Asia's major shopping cities in the next 10 years.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2005-12-17/BT3237545_17_12_2005.jpg

He also believes the Singapore Tourism Board's projection that annual visitor arrivals will double to 17 million by 2015 will be surpassed with the pulling power of two integrated resorts and the revamp of Orchard Road.

International tourists coming to Singapore will gravitate towards Orchard Road, and the strategically located Orchard Turn site will be the 'centre of gravity', Mr Liew said.

Pointing out that Orchard Road rents are now only 19 per cent of those in New York's 5th Avenue, he said there is plenty of room for growth.

CapitaLand Retail CEO Pua Seck Guan said gross monthly rentals of $18-19 psf are already being comfortably achieved at Paragon and Ngee Ann City excluding anchor spaces. Bigger shop units generally pay less rent psf, and Mr Pua does not plan to have anchor size tenants at the Orchard Turn mall. Instead, there will be several mini-anchor tenants occupying 3,000 to 5,000 sq ft each. Most of the units in the mall will be 800 to 1,000 sq ft, with the smallest just 200-300 sq ft each.

The mall will be spread across six to eight levels, including three basement levels.

The mall will take up 70-75 per cent of the Orchard Turn project's 1.35 million sq ft gross floor area. It will be linked to Orchard MRT Station at Basement 2. And there will be connections to Wisma Atria next door at B2 and Level 4.

'The void of the mall will be big, like Raffles City. And the layout will allow you to see every shop from the ground floor atrium,' Mr Pua said. 'We could also put a long escalator from the ground level to the fourth floor to improve the accessibility of shops on the upper floors.'

As for tenants, he said the mall will be pitched as the showcase of choice for big international brands, but CapitaLand and SHKP also want high-energy tenants to draw shoppers and create high foot-traffic. Second-tier international brands, local brands and family restaurants will be among the other tenants. There will also be a branded restaurant on the fourth level, at the lift entrance to an observation deck on the top two levels, on the 52nd and 53rd floors.

Mr Pua also revealed that the group is exploring the possibility of building a direct underground link running diagonally from the Orchard Turn site to Shaw House across the road.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hmmm.... will you have to pay to access the observation decks? zzz i have a feelin yes :X

I dun think it's free.....:yes:

hmm.... what is the purpose of such comparison? In terms of population size, we are the smallest and don't have the demand unless we have lots of tourists, isn't it.

Overall, the project is indeed exciting to watch. :)

I supposed they are building because they want to attract more tourist here......:yes:

I think most likely got to pay....

hmm.... what is the purpose of such comparison? In terms of population size, we are the smallest and don't have the demand unless we have lots of tourists, isn't it.

Yeah, this chart doesn't make much sense. Unsurprisingly, the countries with smaller population density have more retail space per capita.

Singapore is actually performing quite well comparing with shopping-retarded countries such as France and Germany ;-)

i dont really care about space, but i dont think singapore shopping is very exciting compared with most countries :(

i dont know how to put this 'correctly', but i think the goods offered in sg are in general lousier than most other developed countries. it's probably got something to do with the lack of adventurous-ness i guess?

It probably didn't meet your wants. :D

What, do you think, would make Singapore a great shopping city... for you? ;)

^Give Heirloom a shopping mall with only Muji and Apple......:D

more importantly, rendering now please.

I'd also like to know what is 'exciting shopping' for you :-)
I almost never go shopping in France because I always find it's soooo boring ^ ^
It would be cool if we can get a Virgin Megastore or a FNAC in Singapore, though. Or alternatively, a serious Tower Records, not like that ridiculous wanabee at Suntec.

1. convenience - singapore's probably quite convenient - most places have ample supermarkets and staple clothing. oot, but the public transport really hampers convenience.

2. interesting malls - noooooo singapore's malls are really quite mediocre-looking compared with other major cities. i hope i dont have to list examples :p

3. diversity of goods - many good labels/manufacturers have very weak presence or are totally absent here.

ok, my mall would have a good & cavernous furniture store, bigger better stocked kinokuniya, a very cool looking department store with less mainstream labels, truckloads of scandinavian and japanese design products, and a supermarket stocked with the most exotic foods. i went to marketplace and asked for microwaveable eggnog and there wasn't any. well perhaps there really isn't anything like that i dunno.

to put it simply, i want *much* greater range.

^^ How about better service attitude? It makes the entire shopping experience a lot bettter. Not only for foreigners but it should also be the case when serving their local customers.

With discerning consumers such as Heirloom, our shopping malls have no choice but to get better.......:yes:

2. interesting malls - noooooo singapore's malls are really quite mediocre-looking compared with other major cities. i hope i dont have to list examples :p

Sorry... Can you list some ? ;-)

I realize I quite agree with you :-) But it would be nice if you can give some examples or even better, find some pics of spectacular looking shopping malls :-)

hrmmm i'm sure paris has some very spectacular looking malls. i just saw something very grand in some other thread in ssc. but i really can't remember details :( was it galeries lafayette? and that glass roofed / domed place in milan - sort of like bugis but muchhhh huger and grander glass roof.

langham place is impressive by the number of levels alone. taking the 4 level escalator is quite an experience.

avenue k in malaysia is much more stylish than any mall i've seen in singapore - doesnt have to be big at all.

uhmmmm i can't think of anything else for now...

langham place is impressive by the number of levels alone. taking the 4 level escalator is quite an experience.



You mean the escalator take you from level 1 to level 4?? :?

I think they also plan to build that for the Orchard Turn project.....:yes:

The FE21 Shopping Centre in Kaohsiung City.

17 floors of shopping & entertainment facilities
- A cineplex larger than even the one at VivoCity, for a population of 1.5 million, I think.
- A bookstore at the top with much more variety and stylish classy yet undaunting store design than Kinokuniya or Borders.
- A bubble lift that goes from ground floor to 17, like the one at the New National Library.
- Easy to navigate because unlike traveling from one end of Suntec City to the other to visit shops, one only has to take the lift here.
- Lots of brands not seen in Singapore.

However, stuff there is very expensive and the place was not very crowded when I went there. Maybe because Kaohsiung citizens don't shop as much as we Singaporeans do or maybe because of the approaching typhoon. haha.

I don't understand why Singaporeans love walking long distances to get to what they want when the Japanese and Taiwanese just board a lift.

Or maybe its because property developers here are crazy and think that we love to walk.

^ Actually the vertical mall is very popular in Japan.......:yes:

actually the escalator takes you from the 4th to 8th floor i think... but i'm not sure.

@Heirloom: Galeries Lafayette does have some amazing 19th century architecture and I'd say it's a cool department store to visit. I'll try to remember posting some pics later. I agree that it would be cool to have one in Singapore ;-) Although I never buy anything there 'cause it's too damn expensive ^ ^

As for vertical shopping... I don't know ^ ^ I don't mind walking and taking lifts in Singapore malls has sooo long waits.

As for vertical shopping... I don't know ^ ^ I don't mind walking and taking lifts in Singapore malls has sooo long waits.

Yeah especially at Plaza Singapura......:(

Yes, it's interesting to see how they are going to arrange an observation deck on top of a 50 stories residential - which is unlikely to be taller than about 175m... Unless it has a big and impressive crown ^ ^

I guess from the article it will be 218m :-)

cant wait for the rendering :yes:

Dec 20, 2005
CapitaLand can make $272m from Orchard Turn: Merrill

By Joyce Teo
Property Correspondent

WHEN CapitaLand and Hong Kong's Sun Hung Kai Properties offered an eye-catching $1.38 billion for the Orchard Turn site, there was a fairly common reaction: 'They've overpaid.'

But now that the dust has settled, the number-crunchers have emerged with a different story: It could turn a profit.

Take Merrill Lynch. It said CapitaLand would reap a $272 million gain from the development from its 50 per cent interest.

That assumes a shopping mall of 680,000 sq ft and about 127 high-end homes with an average size of 2,500 sq ft. The mall's average capital values could then work out to $3,250 per sq ft (psf) of net lettable area, or $2,209 million.

The same values for the residential portion could be $2,050 psf, or $652 million. If costs are an average of $1,680 million for the mall and $500 million for the homes, the project would make a gain of $545 million after tax, it said.

CapitaMall Trust could potentially be used as the vehicle to own the mall in 2009, the report added.

Not everyone is convinced. One industry source commented: 'They are extremely aggressive in pushing their assumptions. It leaves little margin for error.'

Mr Christopher Gee of JPMorgan Securities Singapore, said: 'It is clearly not the cheapest project in the world so there are risks involved. If you swing the retail assumption by a little bit, say if your average assumption is for retail rents at $18 psf and that misses by 50 cents to a dollar, that changes the returns by quite a fair bit.'

CapitaLand said it is assuming rents of $18 to $19 psf, which have already been achieved here, if major anchors are not accounted for. It wants mini-anchors, not large ones such as department stores, which typically pay less rent and so drag down a mall's average rental.

DBS Vickers analyst Kok Kenji said estimates are difficult as there is no comparable mall though the project certainly has a unique site.

'It would depend on whether they can execute their plans as intended and whether the traffic flow can compensate for the lack of an anchor,' he said.

As for the homes, CapitaLand said it hopes to sell them at $1,800 to $2,000 psf. 'Wishful thinking,' said another industry source.

A lot will hinge on whether the luxury St Regis in Cuscaden Road will be launched successfully at similar levels or higher, said Mr Kok.

Mr Soong Tuck Yin, Macquarie Securities' head of Singapore research, said: 'What was interesting was that CapitaLand had detailed plans. It shows they had made very careful planning. It refutes market concerns that they paid a high price.'

Doing the sums

CAPITALAND stands to reap a $272 million gain from the development from its 50 per cent share in the Orchard Turn site, says Merrill Lynch in a report.

That assumes a shopping mall of 680,000 sq ft and 127 homes with an average size of 2,500 sq ft. The mall's average capital values could then work out to $3,250 psf of net lettable area, or $2,209 million. The same values for the residential portion could be $2,050 psf, or $652 million.

If costs are an average of $1,680 million for the mall and $500 million for the homes, the project would make a gain of $545 million after tax, it said.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Dec 22, 2005
Orchard Turn's top pricing may rub off on nearby condo

By Joyce Teo
Property Correspondent

FIRST it was Orchard Turn.

And now, Hong Leong Group is rubbing its hands over its turn - in record-busting price tags for luxury apartments, that is.

The company said yesterday that the bullish price tag of $1.38 billion for the Orchard Turn site above Orchard MRT station is positive for its upcoming St Regis Residences, at nearby Tomlinson Road.

This comes as Hong Leong emerged the top seller of private homes this year, thanks to the red-hot interest in another of its luxury properties, The Sail @ Marina Bay, where the two 70- and 63-storey towers are shaped like two sails of a boat.

Orchard Turn 'has certainly set a new benchmark for real estate in this premium dist- rict', said group executive chairman Kwek Leng Beng in a statement.

'With the exciting new additions and transformation of the Orchard Road belt, this will further enhance the value of the premium St Regis Residences. Moreover, the difference here is that St Regis is a 999-year leasehold site.'

Orchard Turn has a 99-year lease. CapitaLand, which won the site with Hong Kong partner Sun Hung Kai Properties, wants to sell its large condominium units there at a record $1,800 to $2,000 per sq ft (psf).

So units at St Regis could go on sale above $2,000 psf.

The 173-unit project could be launched as early as next month and is expected to be completed by 2007. It will have many large units of 4,200 sq ft in size.

The Hong Leong group said it has sold about 2,300 homes this year, taking top spot with about 30 per cent of the total market share here.

Most came from two developments - the nearly sold-out 1,111-unit The Sail and the 910-unit City Square Residences at Kitchener Road, which is more than 85 per cent sold.

Plans are also under way for listed arm City Developments (CDL) to develop the site of Garden Hotel in Balmoral Road, which it bought in 1999, the Kim Lin Mansions site in Grange Road also acquired in the same year, the Boulevard Hotel site that it purchased in 1997, and one in the Balmoral area.

'We built up a presence in this luxury sub-sector during the economic downturn and this is now paying off with the strong sales achieved this year,' said Mr Kwek.

He expects another good year ahead.

A project on a plot opposite King's Centre and Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel in Havelock Road is expected to be launched in the first quarter of next year, while its Sentosa Cove condo will be launched before June.

Plans are also being finalised to redevelop CDL's office block, 1 Shenton Way, formerly known as Robina House, into an upscale residential development.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Business Times - 28 Dec 2005

CapitaLand seeks financing proposals for $1.9b project

CAPITALAND, Singapore's biggest property developer, has asked lenders to propose financing for a S$1.89 billion project in the nation's main shopping area, bankers involved in the bid said.

The money will help pay for the prime property - at Orchard Turn - that CapitaLand and Hong Kong-based Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd jointly bought from the government for S$1.38 billion.

Remaining funds will cover S$510 million to build a shopping mall and apartments in the retail district, where there had been no development in the past decade. CapitaLand asked banks to propose the financing amount and tenor, said the bankers, who declined to be identified.

Developers such as CapitaLand are likely to push new loans to a record next year as they borrow more for government-proposed projects. These developers have borrowed 40 per cent more this year than last year, according to data complied by Bloomberg.

'Over the next two to three years, we'll see more foreign developers and Singapore developers taking a more active role in the Singapore property market,' said Pratik Burman Ray, property analyst with UOB-Kay Hian. 'Government initiatives definitely have a part to play.'

Singapore sold 3.55 hectares of property in July for S$1.8 billion to Hongkong Land Holdings Ltd, Li Ka-shing's Cheung Kong Holdings Ltd and Singapore's Keppel Land Ltd to develop a business and financial centre.

The government is also selling a separate plot for S$1.2 billion to casino developers after lifting a four-decade ban on gambling in April. The government asked for bids on Nov 15, 2005, which will be closed on March 26, 2006.

Developers in Singapore have borrowed US$1.378 billion in syndicated loans this year, 40 per cent more than in 2004. About 50 per cent of the loans is for refinancing, according to data complied by Bloomberg.

CapitaLand, a unit of investment company Temasek Holdings Ltd, has hired three banks to arrange a A$362 million loan to refinance debt, cutting borrowing costs by at least 30 per cent, a banker arranging the deal said.

The five-year loan, which CapitaLand will guarantee for its unit CapitaLand Treasury Ltd, will refinance syndicated loans of A$132 million signed on Oct 31, 2003, and A$180 million from Dec 3, 2001, the banker said, asking not to be identified. The rest of the funds will refinance A$50 million the company took out from a single lender, the banker said.

CapitaLand will pay 40 basis points, or 0.4 percentage point, over the Australian dollar London interbank offered rate, a benchmark for borrowing. The three-month interest rate was fixed on Monday at 5.57 per cent, the banker said. The margin is narrower than the 60 basis points over Australian dollar Libor that the company is paying for its A$180 million loan.

The three banks arranging the loan are BNP Paribas SA, Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc and Standard Chartered plc. They are inviting other lenders to join and will pay an additional fee of 10 to 20 basis points, depending on the loan's size, the banker said.

CapitaLand's rival, City Developments, the city-state's second-largest developer, hired DBS Group Holdings Ltd and HSBC Holdings plc to help arrange a S$300 million five-year loan to refinance debt. The two banks are selling the loan to other banks.

City Developments is paying interest of 43 basis points over the Singapore dollar swap offer rate, the rate at which banks lend to one another, said a banker who is arranging the deal and asked not to be identified. The three-month rate was fixed on Monday at 3.3 per cent. - Bloomberg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

13 March 2006

Second Somerset Road site to be launched this month
By Matthias Chan, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE : The second Somerset Road site - situated above the Somerset MRT station - will be launched for sale this month.

The move comes after the successful sale of the Orchard Turn site in December 2005 and the first Somerset site in January this year.

This latest parcel is the last of three prime Orchard Road sites that the government has earmarked for sale.

It has a site area of 0.72 hectares and is slightly larger than the first Somerset parcel, which hosts the popular Glutton's Square hawker area.

The third and largest parcel is the Orchard Turn plot measuring 1.86 hectares.

The first Somerset site and the Orchard Turn plot attracted active participation and strong bids from developers.

Analysts say the second Somerset site is likely to be hotly contested, and developers need not wait too long to bid for it.

"The site at Orchard Road/Killiney Road was recently sold. URA will be releasing another site above the Somerset MRT station via the Reserve List this month. The Singapore Tourism Board will also be launching its short-term lease site at Orchard Road/Cairnhill Road shortly," announced Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan.

Analysts that Channel NewsAsia spoke to say the Somerset MRT site is likely to fetch prices that are comparable to those garnered by the first Somerset parcel.

The first Somerset site attracted six bids.

It was finally awarded to Far East Organisation which placed a winning bid of $421.1 million or $1,085 per square foot of gross floor area.

Eight bids were submitted for the Orchard Turn site.

It was finally awarded to the 50-50 joint venture between CapitaLand and Hong Kong's Sun Hung Kai Properties.

They offered $1.38 billion for the 1.86 hectare prime site, translating to $1,020 per square foot of buildable area.

The Orchard Turn site will likely chalk up development costs, including land costs of about $2 billion, according to CapitaLand. - CNA /ls

Copyright © 2006 MCN International Pte Ltd

March 14, 2006
Architects behind these icons to develop Orchard Turn site

By Grace Ng

THE architects behind Malaysia's Petronas Towers, Hong Kong's International Finance Centre and London's Canary Wharf have something even more ambitious in store for Orchard Turn - a translucent 'glowing lantern'.

The $2 billion project will 'glow with light from the inside - a contrast to other buildings on Orchard Road which are rather dark', said Fred Clarke, senior principal at Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects.

The United States-based company was revealed yesterday as the master architect for what has been dubbed the crown jewel of Orchard Road and one of the most anticipated projects here for many years.

Mr Clarke vowed to create a 'modern, 21st century' iconic building to house the mall and luxury residential units being co-developed by CapitaLand and Hong Kong property giant Sun Hung Kai Properties.

The design, which will 'bring light, air, shade and coolness to the very dense area' of Orchard Road, is likely to be ready by the middle of the year, said Mr Clarke.

Expectations for the site above Orchard MRT are high.

The developers envisage the mall as akin to Japan's Ginza plaza - 'a high energy, high pulse' arena filled with top international retailers opening in Singapore for the first time, said Mr Pua Seck Guan, chief executive of CapitaLand Retail.

Mr Pua was speaking yesterday, after CapitaLand and SHK Properties signed a $1.38 billion land purchase agreement for Orchard Turn with the Government.

Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan told the 60 or so guests at the signing: 'Orchard Turn is the crown jewel of Orchard Road... we want it to be spectacular and a new focal point of activity.'

The 53-storey building will feature a public events arena, an art exhibition space, and an observation deck on the top levels.

The one million sq ft retail mall on three basement levels will be completed by Christmas 2008. Sales of the residential units are likely to kick off by the second quarter next year.

The developers are in talks with the Government to build an underground link from Orchard Turn to Shaw Centre. They will also build links to Orchard MRT, Wisma Atria and Wheelock Place.

graceng@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

This certainly sounds exciting...hope for a stunning design!

Orchard Turn developers to team up for more big projects

14 Mar 06

CapitaLand, SHKP sign accord to buy mall site for $1.38b from government

CAPITALAND and Hong Kong's Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), which are developing a $2 billion mall and luxury apartment project at Orchard Turn, will look for opportunities to team up for more big projects - not only in Singapore but also in Hong Kong and China.

http://business-times.asia1.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2006-03-14/BT_3693886_13_03_2006.jpg

'Putting resources together is certainly the way forward on the global scene' where multibillion-dollar projects are not uncommon, CapitaLand Group president and CEO Liew Mun Leong said at a news conference yesterday after he and SHKP vice-chairman and managing director Raymond Kwok signed a building agreement to buy the 99-year-leasehold Orchard Turn site for $1.38 billion from the Singapore government.

The project is expected to comprise an eight-level mall and apartments in a 53-storey tower. CapitaLand and SHKP are shortlisting banking consortiums to finance about 70 per cent of the project cost on a 'very competitive' basis. And they are finalising a list of contractors they will invite to bid soon.

The architects and retail consultant for the project's mall component were named yesterday. The concept architect for the overall project is Connecticut-based Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, which designed the Canary Wharf Tower (One Canada Square) and other buildings in London's new financial district of Canary Wharf and Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) Phase 1 in the Malaysian capital. The US firm will work with Singapore-based RSP Architects Planners and Engineers, the submission and project architect for Orchard Turn.

The retail consultant for the mall component is Benoy of the UK, which worked on the famous Bluewater shopping centre in Kent and the Bullring in the English Midlands city of Birmingham.

The Orchard Turn project will have an observation deck on one of the top three floors so the public can enjoy panoramic views of the city, and a public event space at street level at the corner of Orchard and Paterson roads.

The consultants did not show any concept designs for the mall, but Pelli Clarke Pelli's senior principal Fred Clarke said: 'We're envisioning a light, transparent building. We like a building that appears to be full of light in the evening and glows like a very beautiful lantern. It will be a civic piece of architecture as well as commercial.'

The mall, which will have about 600,000-700,000 sq ft net lettable area, will be a 'fast-track project' as Mr Liew put it, with opening slated by Christmas 2008.

The mall is expected to generate a pre-tax profit of about $10 million a month, or $120 million a year.

'It will offer not just high-end brands but almost something for everybody,' said Mr Liew.

CapitaLand Retail CEO Pua Seck Guan says developing a new mall provides a 'clean sheet' to incorporate requirements of some international retailers who have yet to enter Singapore.

The project's residential component is expected to comprise 120-150 mostly large apartments, slated for launch next year.

Mr Liew said the group is bullish on the Singapore residential market this year. 'You can see the en bloc sales are doing very well. Obviously, developers are very optimistic about pricing.'

CapitaLand Residential Singapore's CEO Patricia Chia said: 'We reckon that this year we'll see at least a 10 per cent increase in pricing for the high end.'

Agreeing on the positive outlook for residential market, Sun Hung Kai Real Estate Agency's executive director Eric Tung went so far as to say that Ms Chia's forecast was 'quite moderate'.

In his speech at yesterday's signing ceremony, Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan highlighted the various initiatives announced by Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) to rejuvenate Orchard Road and urged existing building owners to accelerate major refurbishment or redevelopment plans.

In January, URA sold the former Glutton's Square site above Somerset MRT Station and next to Specialists' Shopping Centre. Later this month, URA will make available for application another reserve-list site, on the other side of Specialists' Centre. And Mr Mah said yesterday the Singapore Tourism Board will soon launch its short-term lease site at the corner of Orchard and Cairnhill roads, next to Faber House.

Errrrrrrr..... the developer's name is my english name.... :runaway:

At least the name, as opposed to the surname. ^_^


But in chinese are worlds apart. :lol:

Good for Orchard Road.

Pelli? Expect a nice pinnacle/spire or crown atop this building:D

Pelli? Expect a nice pinnacle/spire or crown atop this building:D

Thats his style?? :? hmm....he got any master pieces??

pelli did petronas right?

He did Petronas Towers and 2IFC:)
I guess it'll add to the spires of Orchard, can't think of a more suitable architect.:yes:

actually i'm worried that pelli has always been too corporate and too colourless. i'd love a zaha, or even libeskind, in orchard because their architecture is much more expressive.

I'd love a Zaha, just not there, or anywhere for that matter, it'll look wierd in Singapore. Pelli is fine for me, cos the building won't stand out like a sore thumb, given the height. I expect it to compliment wheelock and orchard parksuites.

i dont know, in my eyes, a zaha hadid building would stick out here as much as anywhere else. maybe a very gorgeous sore thumb would be better than a gorgeous blend-in?

I dont like a Petronas. We never really had spires in Orchard (except for that spire beside Orchard Station which never really looked good). IT WONT FIT IN. WE NEED A GENERALLY FLAT TOP BUILDING BUT at least with a better exterior body design. & spires are generally unattractive IMO. I dont find a IFC. Huge, prominent, sleek.

a iconic spire for this plot will be ok considering it will be much taller than the rest of the buildings in Orchard Road...so the spire will be prominent, Unlike say in Marina bay having a Spire e.g in the BFC will be YUCKS! you see a spire going no taller then UOB which makes the spire a joke rather then an icon.

St Regis is a 999-year leasehold site.'

This defineitly cought my huge attention...:D

Frankly...Im extremely dissapointed. The project costs a mere 510 million when we exclude the land cost. 510 million for a mega mall, 218m skyscraper, observation deck, star architects and underground links...

I doubt much can be done with those pennies. I mean, look, Vivocity costs close to a billion, and the IR is gonna cost up to 5 billion.

A 510 million project is a real pity for our "signature crown of orchard"...

any update on this project?

Orchard has always been known for its caps, like Dynasty Hotel(now marriot), Ngee Ann City, Wheelock Place, Orchard Parksuites. I'm not saying that it should have a spire, I just find that it can have a spire, despite the un-attractiveness of one(Singapore has never been big on spires). Orchard is one of the only places in Singapore that can accept a tapering top.

Anyways, 510 million for a building is quite expensive, ngee ann city is 497 million, for two granite-clad towers. Capital Tower is 286 million. OUB Centre is 300 million. This would actually be one of the, if not the most expensive single building in Singapore in terms of monetary figure.

Soil-testing is going on at the site.

CapitaLand Names Head Of Orchard Turn Devt

2 May 06

The following is a press release from CapitaLand Ltd.:

Singapore, 2 May 2006 - CapitaLand Limited ("CapitaLand") and Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited ("Sun Hung Kai Properties") have jointly appointed Ms Soon Su Lin as the Chief Executive Officer of Orchard Turn Developments Pte. Ltd. ("Orchard Turn Developments"). Orchard Turn Developments is 50% owned by CapitaLand Retail Singapore Investments Pte. Ltd, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of CapitaLand, and 50% owned by Gresward Pte. Ltd., an indirect whollyowned subsidiary of Sun Hung Kai Properties.

Her extensive real estate experience, particularly in retail, residential and investments, puts her in good stead to lead the strong team comprising representatives from CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties. She will be working closely with the renowned architect, Pelli Clarke Pelli, and outstanding retail layout consultant, Benoy for this landmark Orchard Turn project.

Ms Soon, who will assume her new appointment in May 2006, is a well-known and highly respected veteran in the Asia real estate industry. She is currently the Executive Director, Investment Properties, Asia at CB Richard Ellis Singapore ("CBRE") and heads the CBRE Investment Properties Business Line in Asia, including Singapore, Greater China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and India. Concurrently, she heads the CBRE Research department in Singapore.

In her 16-year stint at CBRE, Ms Soon had earlier held appointments as Director (Retail Agency & International Marketing) and Executive Director (Investments, Consultancy and Research). Ms Soon has brokered several high profile real estate transactions in Singapore. Some of the major retail, residential and commercial investments which she had successfully transacted include Lot 1 Shoppers' Mall, Parkway Parade, Scotts Shopping Centre, Capital Square, Orchard Point, 78 Shenton Way and Eng Lok Mansions.

Ms Soon holds a Honours degree in Estate Management and a Masters of Business Administration degree, specialising in Marketing and International Business, from the National University of Singapore. She is also member of the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers.



Orchard Turn developers to borrow $1.56b

6 May 06

CAPITALAND and Sun Hung Kai Properties will borrow up to $1.56 billion for the financing of its Orchard Turn retail-cum-residential project.


The borrowing is through Orchard Turn Holding Pte Ltd, the two companies' 50:50 joint-venture firm for the project.

The mandated lead arrangers for the $1.56 billion syndicated credit facilities are Calyon, Citigroup Global Markets Singapore, Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, United Overseas Bank (UOB), Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, DBS Bank and Mizuho Corporate Bank. UOB will act as facility agent and SCB will be security agent.

'The proceeds of the facilities will be used to partially refinance the acquisition costs of the property as well as to finance the development of the property, a landmark retail-cum-residential development,' said CapitaLand.

CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties jointly secured the prime Orchard Turn site late last year for $1.38 billion.

^ It'll be exciting to see the eventual design of the project.....:D

I expect something conventionally gorgeous from Pelli :cheers:

No more mention has been made of the final height though so not sure if it goes right up to 218m, but we know its 53-storeys. Anyway it should rise much higher than its neighbours.

At 53 storeys and with a crown I'd say it's quite likely to reach 218m :-)

Here are some photographs of the site... It will change Orchard Road's landscape for sure ^ ^;

http://membres.lycos.fr/pengssc/img/060522_orchard_turn01.jpg

http://membres.lycos.fr/pengssc/img/060522_orchard_turn02.jpg

http://membres.lycos.fr/pengssc/img/060522_orchard_turn03.jpg

hopefully, the developer starts to hoard up the place after the GSS. :)

Let it rise!

Feel sorry for the trees...hope they try to preserve some of them....but there is already a signboard that says "private property" on site, however, it doesnt seem to keep the picnicking-crowd away.

We should suggest that the trees be plantered somewhere else. It is such a waste to discard those big ole trees. Should better be transplanted to the botanic gardens or Fort canning Park or even the new SMU.

maybe orchard turn could be recreated in one of the new botanic gardens :)

so fun - theme park of previously existing plots of land. well actually not really, but maybe 10% novel.

was there last nite, sounds interesting any ETA on the project?

well, replanting tree is not a cheap an easy job.
jsut imagine how are we going to transport the trees along the orchard rd?

and its going to cost abt 200k! similar to some other projects where they conserve trees

200k per tree or for the whole job? 200k sounds like a pittance compared to Xbillion.

Orchard Turn construction contract awarded to Japanese firm for $478m

19 Jul 06

SINGAPORE: The construction contract for the mixed development at Orchard Turn has been awarded to Japanese construction company, Penta-Ocean.

The contract is worth $478m.

Penta-Ocean was involved in the construction of The Esplanade and retail complex VivoCity, slated to be opened by October this year.

The retail portion of Orchard Turn is expected to be opened by December 2008, followed by the residential portion by end-2009.

The Orchard Turn site was awarded to the 50:50 consortium of CapitaLand and Hong Kong's Sun Hung Kai in December last year. - CNA

By Matthias Chan

When would it start?

end 2008! thats unexpectedly soon :D

Hmm.....hopefully they show the rendering on the newspaper soon.....:yes:

wah coming soon :D:D

If they want the mall opened by end 2008, it probably means that the concrete structure for the tower would be already finished, so I suppose it should start by beginning 2007, no later...

The construction will affect the underground link to Wisma Atria

Wisma Atria faces body blow from 1-yr closure of MRT link

18 Aug 06

Passage to be sealed to facilitate piling for Orchard Turn: sources

(SINGAPORE) The heat is on Wisma Atria and its 74-per-cent owner, listed Macquarie MEAG Prime Reit (MMP Reit).

http://business-times.asiaone.com/mnt/media/image/launched/2006-08-18/BT_4619940_17_08_2006.jpg

BT understands the mall next to Orchard MRT Station could soon lose - at least for a year or so - its default captive-shopper base from MRT commuters exiting Orchard MRT Station, who tend to flow into Wisma Atria's Basement 2 on the same level.

The reason: The CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) joint venture developing the Orchard Turn site will soon have to seal the crucial underground walkway between Orchard MRT Station and Wisma Atria at Basement 2, as piling begins for their new mall-and-apartment project that will go down to Basement 4 and rise 53 storeys above ground, BT understands.

The Basement 2 link between Orchard MRT and Wisma Atria is vital to attracting shoppers to the mall, many of whom then continue to walk along the passageway to Ngee Ann City next door. The impending closure is therefore expected to have negative implications for MMP Reit, which owns 74 per cent of Wisma Atria and 27 per cent of Ngee Ann City.

'The basement walkway between Orchard MRT Station and Wisma Atria is of critical importance,' said an analyst. 'If they shut down the walkway it will have a serious impact in terms of business for the shops there. Most of the shops in Wisma Atria's Basement 2 are paying gross monthly rents of $50-65 per square foot - among the highest in Singapore.

'This is likely to have an adverse impact on revenues that MMP Reit can collect from its tenants.'

The Basement 2 walkway between Orchard MRT Station and Wisma Atria, about 20 metres long, is currently lined with posters promoting shops there.

A site visit by BT yesterday showed that at street level, hoarding has already gone up at the section of the site that adjoins Wisma Atria - signalling that construction work is imminent. These usually start with excavation and piling.

An inspection of tender documents issued by Urban Redevelopment Authority for the Orchard Turn site shows the site's boundary abuts Wisma Atria and includes the passageway at Basement 2 that links the mall to the MRT station.

The passage area used to belong to the state but was sold by URA as part of the Orchard Turn site clinched by CapitaLand-SHKP in a state tender in December last year.

Under the tender conditions, the joint-venture company, Orchard Turn Developments Pte Ltd, will have to ensure it continues to provide an exit for MRT commuters to Orchard Road during construction work.

The existing street-level entrances to the MRT Station along Orchard Road and Orchard Boulevard will remain open.

And the area at Basement 2 leading to the Orchard underpass and CK Tang, Shaw House and Wheelock Place will also remain open.

As the boundary of the Orchard Turn site abuts Wisma Atria and includes the link to the MRT station, and given the new project will have four basement levels, industry experts envisage that the Basement 2 link to Wisma Atria will likely soon have to be shut off by a diaphragm wall, one that will have to be built to enclose the entire section where piling works are to be carried out for the Orchard Turn project, BT understands. Piling could begin as soon as September or October to meet the stringent deadline for the Orchard Turn mall's opening by Christmas 2008, as previously announced.

Based on the extensive scope of works, industry observers reckon the Basement 2 link may be shut for at least a year.

Indeed, the area around both Orchard and Somerset MRT stations will be abuzz with construction activity for the next three years. In the Somerset area, Far East Organization will redevelop the former Glutton's Square site it clinched at a state tender in January and in which OCBC, owner of the next-door Specialists' Shopping Centre, has taken a 10 per cent stake.

Specialists' Centre is also expected to be revamped - either a total redevelopment or a massive retrofitting. And next to it, the Somerset Central site tender which closed on Wednesday drew a top bid from Australia's Lend Lease group, which is planing an all-retail project.

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

^ Wow....so exciting.....hopefully they put up the rendering of the project soon....;)

Great I am so excited to see the renderings. Since piling works are beginning, why haven they revealed the renderings? It is the most anticipated project so far other than IRs.

What?!?! what if it rains :bash: :bash: Orchard road will come to a stand still?

Yeah i think there will be some inconvenience.

Kaoz.....no walkway use umbrella lah....:lol:

Anyway, I think they might just have a temporary link on ground level to wisma.....dun think we need to worry about it.....:yes:

Sounds bad for the basement tenants...

Aug 19, 2006
Orchard MRT link to Wisma to close
Shops near basement linkway worry about business

By Lim Wei Chean & Joyce Teo

THE 1.8 million pedestrians who use the passageway linking Orchard MRT station and Wisma Atria every month will have to take an alternative route to the mall when construction work begins.

And stores located in the basement area near the linkway are concerned that business will suffer.

The 20m-long tunnel may be sealed as early as next month so that piling work can begin for the Orchard Turn development.

This project was clinched by CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties last December.

A check with 12 stores in the basement area showed that most of the shop staff were unaware of the closure.

Ms Kelly Chin, a supervisor at clothing store Osmose, heard about the imminent closure of the linkway on Thursday.

She said in Mandarin: 'If they close the linkway, people will walk out of the MRT station onto the street outside. They will not bother to walk to the shops here.'

The thoroughfare is used by many shoppers to walk to Ngee Ann City next door.

Mr Graham Sugden, deputy chief executive officer of Macquarie Pacific Star Prime Real Estate Investment Trust Management, which owns 74 per cent of the mall, said they have taken measures to ensure that business is unaffected.

Two new escalators have been ordered and will be installed by early December alongside the Gap flagship store, which will take over some space from Indochine on level one.

He added: 'It might take a while for shoppers to get used to the new route, but I do not think that will affect shopper traffic too much. Shoppers will come visit their favourite shops regardless.'

As part of the tender document, the Orchard Turn developers have to provide an alternative sheltered pedestrian walkway between Orchard MRT and Wisma Atria before the linkway is sealed off.

A CapitaLand spokesman said the covered walkway will extend around the Orchard Turn site, for the convenience of those heading towards Orchard Boulevard and vice versa. The existing street-level entrances to the MRT station along Orchard Road and Orchard Boulevard will remain open.

He assured the public that they will be given advance notice of the linkway's closure once the authorities give approval to start work.

Still, some shops are already considering moving at the end of their lease. A manager who refused to be identified said they want to close their shop sooner if possible, after they get an announcement on the closure.

Rentals in the vicinity are among the highest in Singapore, with most shops paying gross monthly rents of $50 to $65 per sq ft.

'Our sales can't justify the overheads. The rents go up every time we renew the lease,' he said.

weichean@sph.com.sg

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2006 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Business Times - 22 Aug 2006

Benoy replaces Pelli as Orchard Turn's concept architect

Libeskind may be facing a brick wall with his design for condo at Keppel Bay

By KALPANA RASHIWALA
AND ARTHUR SIM

(SINGAPORE) Some big-name architects much touted here for upcoming landmark projects may not see their designs built after all.

Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects - the firm founded by Argentine-born Cesar Pelli which designed the Canary Wharf Tower and the Petronas Twin Towers - was earlier named overall concept or form architect for the entire Orchard Turn project, which will have an eight-level retail podium and a residential tower rising over 50 storeys.

But the firm may not end up leaving its mark on the site after all. It appears that Pelli's design may be dropped in favour of another by Benoy of the UK, which designed the Bluewater mall in Kent and the Bullring in Birmingham.

Benoy's proposals, which include mounting LCD screens on the mall's facade, are understood to have wowed Orchard Turn Developments, a joint venture between CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties which bagged the landmark site in December last year. Another internationally renowned architect, Daniel Libeskind, may also be facing a brick wall with his design for Keppel Group's condominium at Keppel Bay.

In an interview with the International Herald Tribune in May, Mr Libeskind released artist's impressions for the project dubbed Emerald Bay, showing swaying towers. A check with Keppel revealed that the project is still a 'work-in-progress'.

Sources that BT spoke to, however, say that the planning authority, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), was sufficiently impressed with the initial design to extend certain waivers, but that subsequent designs or works-in-progress have not met with the same response.

A spokesman for the URA did say that the architect for the development had shared some preliminary ideas with the authority, 'but we have not yet received any formal planning application to URA to date'.

Whether these famous architects have had constraints placed on their designs is not clear, but Aamer Taher, a council member of the Singapore Institute of Architects, believes that developers in Singapore do make decisions 'based on tried and tested formulas'.

One aspect of design in Singapore that is often a point of contention between architects and developers is having to achieve building efficiencies of up to 95 per cent. The result is that common spaces like corridors and lift lobbies are reduced to the minimum while bay windows, which are exempt from development charge calculations, are exploited to the maximum.

'Architects are reduced to juggling numbers,' said Mr Aamer.

For important landmark sites, the URA does intervene by way of its Design Advisory Panel (DAP). It is understood that the Emerald Bay does not require a DAP review but that the Orchard Turn site does. URA said: 'Throughout the DAP evaluation process, the developer is given the opportunity to clarify or propose alternatives to address DAP's concerns, if any.'

Orchard Turn Developments Pte Ltd initially appointed Benoy as the retail concept/architectural consultant for only the mall component of Orchard Turn while Pelli was to be the form architect responsible for the overall concept of the entire project - both the retail and residential components. However, when contacted by BT, Orchard Turn Developments CEO Soon Su Lin yesterday confirmed that the partners have decided to appoint Benoy as the form architect for the entire project, suggesting it has taken over the role initially performed by Pelli.

'In developing the retail concept, Benoy has conceived various exciting proposals which included mounting of LCD screens on the facade of the building, significant shop-front visibility opportunities facing Orchard Road, and an outstanding exterior design for the retail component. These proposals are befitting the status of a world-class retail mall which we are committed to create.

'It was thus deemed most appropriate by the partners to appoint Benoy as the form architect so that the overall retail design concept can be extended to, and seamlessly integrated with, the residential component, ensuring that the entire Orchard Turn development conforms to a common architectural language. This approach establishes the Orchard Turn's retail component as the centre of gravity along Orchard Road,' Ms Soon told BT yesterday.

She added that Singapore-based RSP Architects Planners and Engineers remains design architect for the project's residential component as well as overall submission and project architect for the entire project.

The Orchard Turn mall, which will have four basement levels and four levels above ground, is on track to open by Christmas 2008.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sounds exciting:cool:

Sep 1, 2006
Development charge for Orchard Rd area jumps
Big increases, of up to 38%, reflect the rising value of properties in the area

By Joyce Teo

THE Orchard Road area is hot whether it's for homes or shopping centres.

Just how hot the area has become lately is clear from the big increases unveiled yesterday in a government charge which closely mirrors property values.

There was a jump of up to 38 per cent in the charge imposed on developers when they build a new bigger condominium or an extension of one.

This so-called development charge is what developers pay the Government when they enhance the value of a site.

The charge for commercial sites in the same area when, for instance, a shopping centre is expanded, rose 22 to 26.7 per cent. A key factor was a record $617 million bid for the Somerset Central shopping centre site.

Property consultants worry that these sharp increases could cool some property sales.

This is how it works: This year, there has been a dramatic rise in the number of collective sales, where the owners of old condominiums agree to sell to a developer.

Some of these sites have fetched record prices - especially around Orchard Road, such as the Ardmore Park area.

The developers involved want to build bigger, more profitable condominiums. But as part of the cost of enhancing the value of a site for a new condominium, they must pay the development charge - designed to reflect property values in a given area.

With prices rising so fast around Orchard Road, the charge was bound to jump.

Take this example: the estimated charge for the 36-unit Horizon View in Cairnhill Road will rise from $1.1 million to $1.23 million, a jump of 11.8 per cent.

Other areas have also seen increases. Yesterday, the Goverment raised the development charges by an average of 8.8 per cent for non-landed homes and 1.1 per cent for landed homes. This compares with the average rise of 9.3 per cent and 4.7 per cent respectively six months ago.

Sentosa - on which Sentosa Cove homes have continued to break price records - saw a 17.5 per cent increase for landed homes, though this was down from the 29 per cent rise previously.

The level of the charges is reviewed every six months by the Ministry of National Development, in consultation with the Chief Valuer, after taking into account current market values.

Said an industry source: 'Collective sale projects in those areas with the 30 over per cent rise in the development charge will definitely be affected. This is because prices there have risen too much and owners may have to accept less proceeds.''

Higher rates are set to affect the owners of developments which have not been launched for collective sale.

'Developers would have to set aside an additional amount for the higher development charge, even though their eventual selling price may stay the same,'' said another source. 'If not, they may cut the proceeds meant for the owners.''

Still, other property experts remain optimistic that the collective sale market will be ruled by strong demand and supply. 'When developers bid, they would have already worked in the higher DC rates,'' said Mr Li Hiaw Ho of property consultancy CB Richard Ellis.

In the commercial sector, the average rise in the charge was about 2.3 per cent, with most of the rises in Raffles Place, Shenton Way and the City Hall areas.

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

Copyright © 2006 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Sep 2, 2006
Retailers want link closure postponed
Wisma's property manager requesting walkway to be kept open until new street-level escalators are installed

By Property Correspondent, Joyce Teo

RETAILERS in the basement of Wisma Atria are seeking a delay in the closure of the link between Orchard MRT Station and the shopping centre set for later this month.

They are unhappy that the planned closure on Sept 21 comes right before their peak shopping season leading up to Christmas.

Instead, they want the basement-level link - that sees about 1.8 million pedestrians a month - to be closed after the Christmas season.

The link is being blocked off to facilitate construction works for the nearby mega Orchard Turn development, due to open in late 2008. The walkway will be re-opened at a date yet to be announced.

The delay being sought by retailers would tie in with the installation of new escalators in early December.

The mall's property manager, Macquarie Pacific Star, is installing the escalators to provide access to the basement from a street level covered walkway that the developer of Orchard Turn is required to build from Orchard MRT Station to Wisma Atria.

The mall manager is taking up the retailers' request for a delay with agencies including the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Land Transport Authority. CapitaLand, which is developing the Orchard Turn site jointly with Sun Hung Kai Properties, has also been approached.

Mr Kenny Chong, regional operations controller of one of the affected stores, City Chain, said: 'Year-end sales are easily 100 per cent better than normal months. If they can't wait until the end of the year, business will be hit.'

'The traffic flow from the basement linkway brings in the most customers to the mall,'' said Ms Helen Khoo, executive director of WingTai Asia, distributor of labels such as U2 and Fox. 'The November-December period can account for 40 to 45 per cent of the year's sales.'

Orchard Turn Developments chief executive Soon Su Lin said construction is expected to start soon, upon approval from the relevant authorities.

Besides providing an alternative sheltered pedestrian walkway, they are also working with the relevant authorities to give early notice to commuters of the new sheltered walkway, she said.

The tenants in Wisma Atria's basement - which are paying relatively high retail rents of between $50 and $65 per sq ft a month - were informed of the linkway closure only in the past week or so.

Tenants are letting the mall manager take the lead in requesting the delay, and said they hope the manager can hammer out a deal with the authorities.

A spokesman for Macquarie Pacific Star Prime Reit Management said it will be implementing aggressive marketing and promotional activities to drive shopper traffic back to the basement.

'At the same time, we are in discussions with various government agencies and the Orchard Turn developer to seek a solution to coincide the timing of the closure with that of our escalator installation,'' he said. 'It is, however, not appropriate for us to comment on these discussions at this stage.'

A URA spokesman said it is facilitating talks between the various parties.

Still, the short notice given has upset some tenants.

'My men's brand Pedro is targeted to open in the basement on Sept 15 so I was quite shocked to learn the linkway will be closed in September-October,'' said Mr Charles Wong, director of shoes retailer Charles and Keith. 'But if the new escalators are there, that will minimise our loss.''

Other tenants are preparing for the worst. Said a retailer who declined to be named: 'If there's a huge drop in traffic and sales we will have to do something. Right now there are figures to support a rent rebate. If the traffic is really bad, there is not much point asking for a rent rebate.''

joyceteo@sph.com.sg

'Year-end sales are easily 100 per cent better than normal months. If they can't wait until the end of the year, business will be hit.''

MR KENNY CHONG, regional operations controller of City Chain

Copyright © 2006 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.

Yeah read that on papers today,hopefully it's revoked,we do want orchard turn up fast eh?

Orchard turn is boarded up already. they are cutting down the trees now. Why still no renderings?

^ There's news on Business times that the underground link to Wisma will close by Sept 30....:yes:

^ There's news on Business times that the underground link to Wisma will close by Sept 30....:yes:


yay!up up and away!

poor trees. all have to be cut down. they said something before about retaining the trees at orchard turn and build the building above them. but they didnt keep their promise.

Business Times - 05 Sep 2006

Wisma-MRT tunnel link to close Sept 30

By UMA SHANKARI

THE licence agreement for an underground pedestrian walkway that links Wisma Atria and Orchard MRT Station will be terminated on Sept 30, Wisma's largest shareholder said yesterday.

Macquarie Pacific Star Prime Reit Management - manager of Macquarie MEAG Prime Real Estate Investment Trust, which owns 74 per cent of Wisma Atria - also said it is trying to delay the closure of the tunnel. It said it is seeking talks with government agencies and Orchard Turn Developments, which is developing the Orchard Turn site next to Wisma, to try to coincide the closure with the installation of new escalators linking Wisma to the street. These are expected to be operating by early December.

BT reported on Aug 18 that Wisma Atria could temporarily lose its captive shopper base - commuters going to and from Orchard station, who tend to flow into Wisma's basement 2 level - because of the pending closure of the tunnel.

The tunnel has to close because the CapitaLand and Sun Hung Kai Properties joint venture developing the Orchard Turn site must seal it before piling begins for their new mall-and-apartment project. On the same day the BT report was published, Macquarie Pacific Star moved to allay tenants' fears, saying it was preparing for the closure of the tunnel. Plans include escalators from street level to the basement, to improve direct access to Wisma.

Retailers in the basement are upset that the tunnel will close just before the busy lead-up to the Christmas shopping period.

Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

CapitaLand gets nod to close Orchard MRT-Wisma Atria tunnel link by end Sep
By Jeana Wong, Channel NewsAsia

It is confirmed. The tunnel link between Orchard MRT and Wisma Atria will be closed by the end of this month.

CapitaLand says it has received the green light from the authorities to shut the tunnel for its construction work.

The developer says the link will have to stay closed for about two years because of the complex excavation work its Orchard Turn project requires.

The project entails digging four storeys underground and four above ground plus two basement floors right under the existing tunnel link.

A major retailer estimates it will lose up to 30 percent of yearly sales revenue due to the shutdown. - CNA/ir

08 September 2006
CapitaLand explains closure of Orchard MRT-Wisma link
By Jeana Wong, Channel NewsAsia

Developer CapitaLand has explained why it will go ahead with plans to close the Wisma link to the Orchard MRT at the end of this month.

Retailers at Ngee Ann City had appealed for the link to be closed only after Christmas, but CapitaLand said that any delay is costly and will affect the progress of construction works at Orchard Turn.

CapitaLand already has the green light from the Urban Redevelopment Authority to proceed with the development of the Orchard Turn site.

The development will have eight storeys of shopping space, including basement levels.

The developer says work will be extensive.

Pua Seck Guan, CEO of CapitaMall Trust, said: "The link currently straddles between the Orchard MRT to Wisma, which is about 18 metres long and that is part of our land. And we have our space, we need to dig two more basements below the current link and then do a lot of retaining wall, piling. So it's a very extensive construction work."

The link between Wisma and Orchard MRT station will be closed for about two years while development takes place.

Pua Seck Guan said: "We target to complete this project by December 2008, which is a very aggressive timing. But it's doable. In that respect, we need to start the construction of this place very quickly. And we've got the approval from URA to close the deal."

CapitaLand has contracted the mixed commercial-residential project to Japanese construction firm, Penta-Ocean for some $480 million.

Penta-Ocean helped built The Esplanade and it is building retail complex VivoCity which is slated to be opened by this October.

A major retailer with an outlet at the Wisma linkway estimates that it will lose up to 30 percent of sales revenue for each year that the tunnel is closed.

But CapitaLand says it too has an incentive to complete the project as soon as possible.

Pua Seck Guan said: "It's a very significant investment on our part. We paid $1.38 billion just for the land and with the construction cost, this project will cost us about $2 billion. Just interest alone will cost us at least $200,000 a day. So it's in our interest to finish the construction of this project quicker.

"Also, by appointing a contractor to do it on a design-and-build basis, we're able to shorten the construction period by paying a premium. Otherwise, a project of this size, I would think, would take easily 3 years to do it. It's also on our part to minimise the disruption to the MRT train station."

The retail portion of Orchard Turn is expected to be opened by December 2008, followed by the residential portion by end-2009.

The Orchard Turn site was awarded to the 50:50 consortium of CapitaLand and Hong Kong's Sun Hung Kai in December last year. - CNA/ir