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Tanjong Pagar set to rival Marina Bay as business-residential enclave http://fb.me/1c6bjGZSa
http://business.asiaone.com/property...ld-and-the-new
IT IS a business district. But alongside its office buildings and hotels are HDB blocks, coffeeshops, temples and rows of conservation shophouses with an eclectic mix of tenants - from chichi restaurants and art galleries to bridal shops, bars and KTV pubs.
Yes, Tanjong Pagar seems like a bit of a CBD oddity, straddling both the old and the new.
Meaning "cape of stakes" in Malay, the former fishing village has undergone a series of major transformations, including as a nutmeg plantation with estates named after their European owners such as Duxton, Spottiswoode and Everton; as well as the establishment of dry docks and wharfs. The latter activities in Tanjong Pagar eventually helped establish Singapore as a global shipping and trading centre.
Today, the rickshaw pullers and old rail services that used to support the area's trading activities are gone, even as the culturally rich precinct is undergoing yet another transformation.
"In URA's 1995 planning report for the Downtown Core, it listed the lack of a live-in population in the pre-dominantly office area as a weakness," notes Lee Lay Keng, head of Singapore research at DTZ Debenham Tie Leung (SEA).
"Plans were made to inject new residential developments into the CBD. State land was sold for mixed developments including residential use. Office space was allowed to be converted into other uses including residential, except for a brief period between May 2007 and October 2008, when office space was in short supply."
This was part of the rejuvenation plans for the older parts of the CBD such as Tanjong Pagar and Shenton Way. New residential developments soon followed, with examples like The Icon and The Lumiere springing up, while upcoming developments include Clermont Residence in Tanjong Pagar Centre - set to be the tallest residences in Singapore - Altez at Enggor Street and Skysuites @ Anson.
At the same time, new office developments emerged to replenish the office stock, including Eon Shenton on Shenton Way and PS 100 on Peck Seah Street; while Carlton City Hotel opened on Gopeng Street.
The on-going rejuvenation and redevelopment of Tanjong Pagar - a prominent gateway into the main financial and business areas of Shenton Way, Raffles Place and Marina Bay - will transform the area into a more vibrant business enclave, identical with a fully self-serviced work, live and play micro-market, says Joseph Tan, executive director of residential at CBRE.
Based on the Economic Strategies Committee's recommendations, Tanjong Pagar will represent the next phase of growth in Singapore's CBD in the medium term, he notes. In the longer term, as plans for the Greater Southern Waterfront under the 2013 Master Plan are implemented, further impetus will be added to the rejuvenation of the Tanjong Pagar precinct, especially after the relocation of its ports around 2027.
"Currently, you are looking at the tip of the iceberg, as Tanjong Pagar is a keystone (within the context of the Greater Southern Waterfront) and will form a link between the southern and northern business districts," says Chua Yang Liang, head of research, South-east Asia and Singapore, at Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL). "URA's plan is to create more mixed use developments.
This urban regeneration is expected to enhance property values over time. "Take, for example, Marina Bay, where residential capital values have tripled from just under $1,000 per square foot (psf) in Q4 2004 to nearly $3,000 psf today," says CBRE's Mr Tan.
Indeed, Andrew Tangye, director of commercial leasing at JLL, believes there is a big opportunity in Tanjong Pagar.
"What is unique about Tanjong Pagar as a CBD sub-district is that its URA backed gentrification is successfully blurring the lines of the old and new, providing occupiers with a wider choice of amenities," he says. "This gentrification has in turn led to a positive shift in the occupier profile within the older conservation buildings in the immediate area, as has recently been witnessed in Duxton Hill with its plentiful F&B offerings and the conversion of several conservation buildings into upscale boutique hotels on Maxwell Road and Keong Saik Road."
The fact that the area is accessible, well-served by the MRT network and major roads and expressways, also helps attract both investors and owner-occupiers, says DTZ's Ms Lee. "Median rents at The Icon were around $7 psf per month in 2013, based on data from URA. This is higher than the median rents of around $5.75 psf per month for the whole of District 2."
In the past decade, city-living has become more and more accepted as the lifestyle concept develops alongside the emergence of Marina Bay as an extension to downtown Raffles Place, as well as its development into a financial hub, notes CBRE's Mr Tan.
"Similarly, as more new and good quality commercial and residential developments are added to the Tanjong Pagar micro-market, it is poised to compete with Marina Bay as a fully self-serviced work-live-play enclave, attracting a variety of PMETs, lifestyle seekers and investors."
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