Ho Bee, Banyan Tree Win Mipim Awards

Source : The Business Times, November 30, 2007

HO BEE Group and Banyan Tree Holdings have won two of the seven categories in the inaugural Mipim Asia Awards held in Hong Kong.

The Berth by the Cove: The Mipim Asia Award is the first for the Sentosa development

Mipim, the Marche international des professionnels de l'immobilier, is a real estate and city development fair that also honours innovative and outstanding buildings.

Over 100 projects from 15 different countries across the Asia-Pacific region were submitted to the Mipim Asia Awards.

'The quality of the final projects is a testimony to the high standards in Asian real estate today,' commented Robert Lie, president of the jury and chairman of ING Real Estate Investment Management Asia (Hong Kong).

Ho Bee on Wednesday won in the Residential Developments category with its Sentosa development, The Berth by the Cove, by architects Axis Architects Planners.

This is the first award for The Berth, and Ho Bee general manager of marketing and business development Chong Hock Chang added that it is also 'the first true waterfront housing in Singapore'.

He said: 'The development is designed such that you either face the vast South China Sea or the enchanting waterways within the Cove. Further, it is also the first of its kind to have its own berthing facilities.'

On the efforts of Axis Architects, Mr Chong said: 'They may be a local architect but the team has proven themselves to be able to compete against the best in the region by helping us bag this prestigious award.'

Banyan Tree Holdings won in the Hotels and Tourism Resorts category with its Banyan Tree Lijiang in China by Architrave Design & Planning.

Banyan Tree managing director (Design Services) Ho Kwoncjan explained that each Banyan Tree Resort is designed to blend into its natural surroundings, using indigenous materials as far as possible and reflecting the landscape and architecture of the destination.

'Whether redesigning rustic Tibetan farmhouses as lodges, or visualising a resort within an intimate village setting, we promote the uniqueness of indigenous cultures,' he said.