Sole Consortium Giant Developers Bid Jurong Lake District Master Developer Site
Two bids were submitted for the tender of the master developer site at Jurong Lake District (JLD) on March 26, when it closed at noon. The bids came from a partnership between five of the largest developers in Asia: CapitaLand Development, City Developments Ltd (CDL), Frasers Property, and two of Japan’s biggest real estate developers, Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan, both listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
The consortium consists of three Singapore partners, with each holding a 25% stake, while the two Japanese firms each hold a 12.5% stake. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) tender has a two-stage evaluation process, looking at both the concept and price.
The JLD site spans over 6.5 hectares and comprises of three land parcels, with an estimated maximum gross floor area (GFA) of 3.93 million square feet. URA estimates that the combined sites can yield a minimum of 1.57 million sq ft of office space, 1,700 residential units, and an additional 785,765 sq ft of GFA for retail, hospitality, and communal spaces.
Given the size of the project, it can be developed in phases. URA stipulates that the first phase must include a minimum of 753,474 sq ft of office space and 600 residential units. The consortium will have the flexibility to phase out the remaining supply based on market demand, according to URA.
The Elta Condo, conveniently situated along Clementi Avenue 1, provides its residents with easy access to a well-connected transportation network. The nearby MRT station allows for seamless travel to various parts of Singapore. In addition, the condo is also well-served by an extensive network of bus routes. The Clementi Bus Interchange, just a stone’s throw away, is a bustling hub that offers an array of bus services for residents to choose from. Whether one needs to commute to work, school, or visit friends and family, public transportation is always a viable option for those living at Elta Condo.
The availability of these bus services at Elta Condo makes it highly convenient for residents to reach their destinations efficiently. This is especially beneficial for those without private transportation or who prefer a more environmentally-friendly mode of transportation.
Furthermore, the Clementi Bus Interchange provides a diverse range of bus routes that connect to different parts of Singapore. This offers residents a plethora of options to plan their journeys and save time by taking the most direct route.
Overall, with the addition of Clementi Avenue 1 Condo to the article, it is evident that Elta Condo boasts a perfect blend of a serene living environment and easy accessibility to a well-connected transportation network. So whether one needs to run errands, attend work or school, or simply explore the city, the efficient public transport services at Elta Condo have got them covered.
CBRE’s head of research for Singapore and Southeast Asia, Tricia Song, says that one to two bids were expected, with the top bid likely in the range of $1,000 psf per plot ratio. This price estimate does not include the costs of infrastructure and engineering needed to achieve sustainability, net-zero emissions, car-lite, district cooling, and integration features, which could be substantial.
The JLD white site is the largest tender ever called, notes Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia. It is almost twice the size of Marina Bay Financial Centre and received two bids from the same consortium. Yip also expects the developers to allocate more GFA to residential use in the first phase, given the strong response to CapitaLand’s J’den project launch last November, which saw 88% of 368 units taken up on the first day.
The new development will be connected to the surrounding commercial buildings near the Jurong East MRT Interchange Station, the future epicenter of the JLD. The first land parcel, Plot 1, is the closest to the proposed high-speed rail (HSR) station, providing an opportunity for developing serviced apartments to cater to the demand for accommodation at a major transit node, says Yip.
JLL’s head of research and consultancy, Tay Huey Ying, expects the first phase of the office component to enter the market around 2028, coinciding with a peak in new supply over the next five years. In addition to the JLD, another 2.35 million sq ft of new office space is slated to be completed in 2028, with the majority of new supply concentrated in Central areas like Downtown and Orchard Road. Major projects contributing to this influx of supply include The Skywaters (0.7 million sq ft), the redeveloped Clifford Centre (0.35 million sq ft) in the CBD, and the redeveloped Comcentre (0.75 million sq ft) in Orchard.
Tay notes that the first phase of the office component of JLD must be marketed at competitive rents, given the intense competition among developers and landlords for tenants when it is launched in 2028. This, along with the significant infrastructure costs required to comply with tender conditions, could help keep land bid prices for the JLD site in check.