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Golden Mile Complex

39K views 94 replies 30 participants last post by  Mith252 
#1 ·
I know most forumers find it revolting. But, would you consider buying Golden Mile Complex? Whatever it is, can you share your thoughts about it here? The resale price for this LH property is about S$160 - 320 psf depending on its condition and size.

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Built in 1972 by Design Partnership, the Golden Mile Complex at Beach Road was originally known as the Woh Hup Complex. This "city" of layers is a sloping 16-storey mixed-use complex. I370 shops, 500 parking spaces and offices, come together in an agglomeration that is interspersed with naturally ventilated interstitial spaces connecting the various parts together.





The complex was the first here to adopt stepped terracing in order to cut down noise pollution and to reduce the impact of its scale from the busy Nicoll Highway. It affords the apartments and offices an unobstructed panorama of sky and sea and adequate terraces for developing small sun-lit gardens. On the northwest side, the stepped form allows the floor above to shield those below from the high temperatures of midday sun. Passing through the Nicoll Highway, right after the Merdeka Bridge, it is hard to miss the stepped terrace; it looks like a hill cut out diagonally to harness the energies of the sun. A closer look reveals that indeed, each floor does achieve equal amount of sunlight. The original open balconies however, have been altered considerably. A certain sense of chaos now seems to explode from the balconies with an array of ad hoc, add-on roofs of different materials. A place for plants inside an open balcony is reduced to potted shrubs dotting a narrow space, like some outcasts outside the windows.



A totally different scene awaits one at the corridors of the residential units from the 16th storey downwards. Time seems to pause, observing port-hole windows, sauntering along deserted corridors and descending stairways. Entrances of some units can be seen to have 'implanted' figments of their idiosyncratic taste in the form of granite, lion statuettes, and gold trimmings, totally ignoring the original port-hole windows and unpretentious ceramic tile flooring.



Descending the diagonal stairways at northwest side reveals the intentions of the architect. Each descend, which is aligned to shade the floor above from the sunlight, leads to the roof of the podium block - a very wide multi-purpose space bounded with chain-link fencing. Originally designed as a space for recreational and communal use (it still has markings of a badminton court) that allowed mutual surveillance from the apartments above, thus surpassing sense of community/communicability in Corbusier's roof terrace at the Unite d'Habitation. Now this space is desolate. Its ancestry however is traced not to the Unite but to the "vast corridor", a semi-public space of the Japanese Metabolist movement, which were assigned the role of connectors between public and private areas. These experiments included those of Kurokawa and Kikutake on the problems of group dwellings or mass housing in treelike, slablike and layered mass housing were known to the designers of the Golden Mile. Obviously, some form of importation of ideas from Singapore's outside has occurred.





Just below of this vast corridor are offices ranging from law firms to import/export traders. They are set against criss-crossing staircases and corridors. Like a sundial, tall columns and stepped staircases cast shadows during the day in this interconnected space.

The void that penetrates through the building was designed to bring sunlight from the 'vast corridor' to the shopping area below. Because of fire safety requirements, the void is covered by a lightweight angled metal roof, cutting off all natural light to the hustle and bustle of the shopping below. Penetrating this separator, one is in the shopping zone. Once in the shopping arcade, the atmosphere changes drastically. This is now yet another site of importation. The amazing shopping area teems with a life that makes one think one were in Thailand. For the grocery shops, hawker stalls, coffee bars, barbers, to even a supermarket, are largely patronised by the transient Thai workers in Singapore. Even the signages are in Thai. Passing through grocery stores that sell all kinds of meat, vegetables and preserved food and the ever-present smell of lemongrass becomes quite a feast to the senses. Restaurants offering authentic Thai food (probably prepared by Thai cooks) are located right at the front next to travel agents and moneychangers. There are also several major bus companies offering a wide range of bus routes to all parts of Peninsular Malaysia up to northern Thailand. As a site of embarkation to the lands up north, it is also a site of disembarkation for foreign incursions into Singapore from the north. What is foreign serves to disrupt the boundaries of the resident. Identities, cultures in the broader sense are negotiated and sometimes threatened.

But for all the incessant strains of Thai music, and the continuous hum of native Thai; it takes just one ride up the lift through that thin metal layer, to change all that. It is remarkable that, this single architectural element separating the otherwise continuous atrium space potently sets up an acute sense of duality; functionally, experientially and ideologically between the above and the below, the north and the south. Ironically, this segregation of the upper areas from the shopping areas also ensures that the Metabolist dream remains unfulfilled.


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Here's how Golden Mile Complex look like


Here's the current resale prices
Area(Sqm), Price($), Price per sqf, Date of Option
86 300000 $324.08 Oct-05
86 245000 $264.66 Jul-05
204 360000 $163.95 Jun-05
807 1630000 $187.65 Apr-05
204 520000 $236.81 Apr-05
 
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#3 ·
hyacinthus said:
204 360000 $163.95 Jun-05
807 1630000 $187.65 Apr-05
The top one is insanely cheap, and the bottom one is insanely huge!

807SQM?????????YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING!

Any idea how long till its tenure expires?

btw, for prices like those, GMC will be my future home!:D
 
#4 ·
The price is indeed amazing for the larger units, but I suppose there must be a lot of refurbishment needed...
Frankly speaking, International Plaza and Riverwalk have really appealing locations, but I don't find Golden Mile Complex' location very attractive... I can't even think of a decent supermarket nearby (but maybe it's just me :) ).
 
#6 ·
Pengui said:
Frankly speaking, International Plaza and Riverwalk have really appealing locations, but I don't find Golden Mile Complex' location very attractive... I can't even think of a decent supermarket nearby (but maybe it's just me :) ).
I guess its okay, better than the much more expensive Pebble bay across the basin.:yes:

btw, I also want to see the huge unit's plan.
 
#8 ·
I guess it would really depend on what you intend to do with it.

I know a church organisation has a unit (rented though) about 5000 sq feet used as a library for theology students. It was economical and practical for them.

With the image it projects, I am not sure if it is attractive as a office if you intend it to be an investment.

:) :)

P/S: Sorry I presume you are considering commercial units rather than residential ones. Has to be right - as some of these are too large to be homes?
 
#9 ·
I managed to go up to Golden Mile Complex. :)

- The views were great! Unfortunately limited at the common areas... :( Can see Kallang Bay and good sea views (level 16) as well as the construction of the CCL station infront :p
- The penthouse units had large doors (can't see inside) and had security cameras installed.
- Lifts were relatively new but not cold enough. :D Clean and has marble flooring.
- Units on lower floors aren't as impressive on the outside as 16th floor.
- Doorkeeper is right. There are many offices but on lower floors - e.g. 12th/13th didn't explore lower floors than that.
- The lift to apartments are on the left and right columns of the building separated from the shopping area.
- There are supermarkets/stalls selling grocery items in the same building. Or nearest hypermart is at Carrefour Suntec ;) For wet market, walk opposite to the Beach Road flats' side.
- To see what kind of views it enjoys, go to www.riveredge.com.sg and select location to view the day/night pano which is similar (but you have to imagine it from lower viewpoint)

had some images taken yesterday. But, imagehost is giving me problems today. I don't have Penthouse floor plan. But, I guess they were really huge 2-flr units and their windows are "normal" i.e. not sloped like the rest. Huge and heavy doors.


Since, it's built in 1972, I guess its lease is around 60 years left.

Some info from CPF website for those who are considering buying old properties
Buying old property (Source: http://www.cpf.gov.sg/CPFHSG/ARTICLE_SUNDAYTIMES.PDF)

FANCY that old apartment in bustling Chinatown?

Prior to July 19 2005, you could not use your CPF savings to buy a private residential
property whose remaining lease was less than 60 years. Now you can.

Beware: To begin with, you can use CPF savings only if the property has a
remaining lease of at least 30 years.

Even then, you cannot just buy any old property. The remaining lease must be at
least enough to cover you until you reach 80 years old.

So if you are 35 years old, the property must have a remaining lease of at least
45 years at the point of purchase, says Mr Ng of Leverage Holdings.

In joint purchases, the age of the youngest owner using CPF savings for the
mortgage repayment will be used to determine the minimum lease required.
Note that banks still do not give financing for the purchase of properties with a
remaining lease that is less than 60 years, says Mr Lim Kok Guan, managing
director of Home Advantage, a mortgage broker. Only Hong Leong Finance does,
he adds.

Beware: Unlike normal property purchases, you will be more restricted in how
much you can use your CPF savings to pay for private residential properties with
remaining leases of between 30 and 59 years.

The percentage is calculated according to this formula: Remaining lease when
the CPF member is 55 years old divided by lease at the point of purchase
multiplied by 100.

So if you are aged 35 and buy a property with a remaining lease of 45 years, the
maximum CPF savings you can use is only 56 per cent of the valuation limit, says
Mr Ng.
 
#11 ·
If I had a few hundred million to spare I'd buy the whole building, knock it down and bulild something awesome there, it's such a great site! Yeah I'd love to buy Golden Mile Complex, if only it were possible... Now where can I get a few hundred million bucks? I guess it's probably quite nice inside though.
 
#12 ·
Andrew said:
If I had a few hundred million to spare I'd buy the whole building, knock it down and bulild something awesome there, it's such a great site! Yeah I'd love to buy Golden Mile Complex, if only it were possible... Now where can I get a few hundred million bucks? I guess it's probably quite nice inside though.
I hope you would be able to do that one day :)

Similar to Eng Cheong tower in the vicinity, it's 99 years LH. I see the potential to top up the lease and redevelop it. Furthermore, Nicoll Highway station is just nearby at Concourse.
 
#13 ·
Though I won't touch the properties in this building (as an investor), I must say two things really good about it:

(1) Fantastic views from the higher floors

(2) The cascading architecture (more obvious when viewed from the Nicoll Highway side) which is so rare in Singapore. There is a cascading private apartment block near Haw Par Villa but I cannot remember the name now.
 
#17 ·
hyacinthus said:
I know most forumers find it revolting. But, would you consider buying Golden Mile Complex? Whatever it is, can you share your thoughts about it here? The resale price for this LH property is about S$160 - 320 psf depending on its condition and size.
Personally, i am quite comfortable with stepped designed building and its neighbourhood. the only concern i have might be the proximity of these buildings from the accident which took place not too long ago! I am just skeptical abt the structure despite all the promises given from a certain authority!

BTW, did anyone take note of this City Loft stood quietly next to Golden Mile cinema? Any info to share? thx.
 
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