Ex-Zouk site, 4th Ave plum land plots for sale

[reporter2]

Ex-Zouk site, 4th Ave plum land plots for sale

JUL 1, 2017

Developers expected to trigger both 99-year leasehold sites, given positive market sentiment, prime locations

Wong Siew Ying


Fancy living right where party types used to dance the night away at the iconic Zouk nightclub?

The original site of what is arguably Singapore's best-known nightspot has been made available for developers to build up to 525 new homes on.

But the developers must conserve the three warehouses occupied by Zouk until December last year, when it moved to Clarke Quay.

The site in Jiak Kim Street was one of two plum residential sites - which could provide 970 new private homes - made available for sale by the Urban Redevelopment Authority yesterday.

Both 99-year leasehold plots - the other is in Fourth Avenue in Bukit Timah - are on the reserve list, so they go to tender only when a developer commits to a minimum bid acceptable to the Government.

Analysts expect developers to trigger both sites for sale soon, riding on the positive sentiment in the property market and the sites' prime locations in Districts 9 and 10.

"Both sites should be very popular... I would expect the Fourth Avenue site to be triggered sooner, given the current momentum for developers to replenish their landbanks," said Ms Tricia Song, research head at Colliers International Singapore.

Spanning 18,532.2 sq m, the Fourth Avenue site has a maximum gross floor area of 33,358 sq m, and can yield 445 apartments.

It is within an established bungalow enclave and is also next to the Sixth Avenue MRT Station.

Consultancy OrangeTee expects the site to be hotly contested, attracting possibly 15 to 25 bids.

"Fourth Avenue could be triggered soon, given the keen demand from developers for the Toh Tuck site... The size and quantum of the site are on the lower end and would be palatable to smaller developers," said OrangeTee head of research and consultancy Wong Xian Yang.

A Toh Tuck Road site tender attracted a record 24 bids in April, with Malaysian developer SP Setia clinching the 99-year leasehold plot for $265 million, or $939 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr).

Mr Wong estimates the top bid for the Fourth Avenue site could be $340 million to $376 million, or $950 to $1,050 psf ppr).

Collier's Ms Song puts it at $330 million to $380 million, or $900 to $1,050 psf ppr.

Interest in the Jiak Kim Street site, however, will depend on sales at a nearby upcoming luxury project - Martin Modern by GuocoLand. Mr Wong said: "(It) will serve as a litmus test for property demand and the pricing level of new launches in the area."

The plot is 13,482.4 sq m, with a maximum gross floor area of 51,234 sq m. It is zoned residential with commercial space on the first floor, and could offer 525 private homes.

"Besides proximity to two upcoming MRT stations - Great World and Havelock MRT stations - the Jiak Kim Street condo site is located in the core central region... (future residents) would enjoy an uninterrupted view of the Singapore River," noted Mr Nicholas Mak, head of research and consultancy at ZACD Group.

Ms Song believes the site could attract eight to 12 bids, perhaps with consortiums.

Mr Mak projects a top bid of $634 million to $690 million ($1,150 to $1,251 psf ppr), lower than Ms Song's range of $675 million to $810 million ($1,200 to $1,500 psf ppr) for the Jiak Kim Street site.

[reporter2]

Former Zouk site, Fourth Ave plot now available on reserve list

Analysts agog about river-fronting Jiak Kim site, with 1st storey commercial use allowed in the conservation warehouses

July 1, 2017

KALPANA RASHIWALA


LAND-HUNGRY developers can now start making applications for the release of two 99-year private housing sites that have just been made available on the reserve list by the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

Most industry observers consider the choicer plot to be the one in Jiak Kim Street along the Singapore River - as first-storey commercial use is allowed, albeit only within three conserved warehouse buildings that once used to house Zouk. The nightspot has since relocated to Clarke Quay.

The other plot, next to the Sixth Avenue MRT Station in Bukit Timah, is surrounded by Good Class Bungalow Areas. It is expected to yield about 445 housing units.

Property consultants polled by BT expect the Jiak Kim site to be triggered from the reserve list earlier, especially if GuocoLand's upcoming Martin Modern condo a short distance away does well at its launch, which is planned for late-July.

Sites on the reserve list of the Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme are launched only upon successful application by a developer or when there is sufficient market interest in a site. (Confirmed list sites, on the other hand, are launched for tender according to schedule, regardless of demand.)

If the Jiak Kim site is triggered, property consultants expect 8-15 bids, with the highest offer coming in anywhere from S$1,200 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) to S$1,500 psf ppr.

The 1.3-hectare site can be developed up to 36 storeys, with a maximum gross floor area (GFA) of 51,234 square metres (551,478 sq ft) - of which up to 1,700 sq m (inclusive of Outdoor Refreshment Area) can be for commercial and complementary uses. Within this 1,700 sq m, URA is capping shop and restaurant use at 500 sq m.

The successful bidder for the site will have to restore the three conservation buildings, for which certain uses are barred - such as live entertainment, a private clubhouse and bars/pubs.

URA has stipulated predominantly residential use for the site, with an estimated 525 units. Besides developing private apartments for sale, the developer could also build serviced apartments. Approval may also be sought to include some strata landed houses.

"A unique selling point of this plot is that it is one of the few GLS sites with river frontage that have been offered," said Savills Singapore research head Alan Cheong. "I would not be surprised if the winning bid comes in north of S$1,400 psf ppr . . .," he added.

Ong Teck Hui, national director at JLL, said: "The parcel is at the door step of the city and the new residential project on site will attract ready buyers, especially investors."

Over in the Bukit Timah Road/Fourth Avenue locale, URA is offering a 1.85-ha triangular plot for private housing development.

URA has stipulated three building-height control zones for this land parcel: two, six and 10 storeys. Serviced apartments will not be allowed.

Wong Xian Yang, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee, said that the site could potentially be triggered within the next six months, given the keen demand for a Toh Tuck site in April. That site, which is much further away from town, garnered 24 bids, with the winning bid at S$939 psf ppr.

Mr Wong expects the Fourth Avenue site to attract 15-25 bids, the highest of which could be around S$950-1,050 psf ppr.

JLL's Mr Ong said: "The project on this site will have nice views, given that it is surrounded mainly by low-rise landed housing. It is likely to attract a mix of owner occupiers and investors."

He predicts that 8-12 parties would contest for the site. "The top bid could fall between S$1,050 and S$1,200 psf ppr, with the breakeven cost estimated at S$1,600-1,750 psf."

[tonymontana]

The ex zouk site is a superb site. I would certainly get a unit there if I had the $.