JTC sells a hotel project in Punggol Digital district
A NEW 200-room hospitality project expected to be completed in 2024 within the planned Punggol Digital District (PDD) is up for sale.
The project, which is currently under construction in a huge new business campus of 50 hectares, will come with a 60-year lease. JTC announced on Monday, April 29 that the development would be integrated into a new business park in Singapore’s intelligent and sustainable district.
The project is located on an area of 8,140 square metres site. The project is being advertised as a vacant possession property as part of a core-and shell model where the building owner designs and constructs the base building, including its exterior elements. The tenants are responsible for the fitting-out of the building prior to when it can be used as a serviced dwelling or hotel.
It will be situated between the Serangoon Reservoir and Coney Island, and is the first hospitality venture planned in PDD to date.
“With no plans to provide future supply for (the) north-east region in Singapore, this represents an opportunity for investors to capture the huge demand potential of a developing Punggol Digital District,” said Julien Naouri, senior vice-president of investment sales in JLL, which is marketing the property.
Naouri said that bidders can “develop their own financial analysis” to determine the minimum price, and submit an expression of interest.
The shell-and-core model “offers numerous opportunities for prospective investors to customize the property to meet their own specific needs and brand preferences” the spokesman said.
JTC is accepting requests for expressions of interest to purchase the leasehold property for 60 years to renovate it, and manage the hotel or serviced residence. The exercise closes on Tuesday (Apr 30) at 1pm.
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JTC responded to The Business Times‘s query that the building should obtain its Temporary occupancy permit in the fourth quarter of 2024.
PDD is expected to open in phases beginning in the second half of 2024 and will include the retail, dining and lifestyle amenities .
It will house over 2 million square feet of commercial park and office space, in addition to the Singapore Institute of Technology’s new campus. It is expected to create 28,000 jobs and bring in up to 12,000 students.
It is also within the proximity to the Seletar Aerospace Park and the Tampines regional hub.
UOB is the biggest commercial investor in the district to date and is investing S$500 million to construct a 300,000 sq ft centre which will house up to 3,000 people in the fields of innovation, technology and other digital positions. The facility will be completed in 2026.
JTC used a similar approach at Changi Business Park 15 years ago.
In 2008, JTC awarded a 60-year leasehold land parcel in Changi Business Park to Frasers Centrepoint and Ascendas Land (Singapore) for S$150.8 million or S$119 per square foot, per plot ratio. The land was to be used for an integrated hotel, retail and business park project.
The hotel with 313 rooms, Capri by Fraser, Changi City, opened in 2012, and an outlet mall, Changi City Point, also came up in the business park estate.
Frasers Property Ltd purchased the 313 rooms in the joint venture in the year 2015 for S$203.4 Million. The business park was sold to Ascendas Reit and the mall to Frasers Centrepoint Trust.
In 2023, FCT sold Changi City Point for S$338 million reportedly to a Chinese investor.
BT was announced in January 2024 that Frasers was selling the Capri Hotel property. Joint ventures (JVs) comprised of entities that are part of two Hong Kong parties – Far East Consortium International and Atelier Captial Partners – are believed to be conducting the exclusive due diligence in relation to a potential purchase. US-based global investment manager TPG Angelo Gordon was also understood to be part of the JV. The hotel’s price was anticipated to be around S$170 million.
A hotel, at least, is situated in Changi Business Park. Park Avenue Changi was opened in 2013 and houses 171 rooms. It also offers 80 serviced apartments.
