Ophir/Rochor Rd White Site For Sale

Source : The Business Times, July 01, 2008

But developers are not expected to bid bullishly

A 2.7 hectare prime white site at Ophir/Rochor Road has been offered for sale by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) - but developers are not expected to bid bullishly.

The site, in the new Beach Road/Ophir-Rochor Corridor, has been put on the confirmed list of the first-half 2008 Government Land Sales (GLS) programme.

And according to URA, it is a 'natural extension from the established convention, office, hotel hub at Marina Centre'.

But given current quiet market conditions and rising construction costs, property analysts say that developers are unlikely to bid strongly. Bids are expected to range between $600 and $900 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr).

Cushman and Wakefield managing director Donald Han believes the site does not compare with a 'super prime' Beach Road site awarded in September 2007 for $1,068.6 psf ppr.

He also said that with a North Bridge Road site already identified as part of the second-half GLS programme, 'developer and investor interest in the Ophir/Rochor Road site could be diverted'.

The new 'corridor' will be a 24/7 mixed-use area comprising integrated office, hotel, retail, entertainment and residential projects, according to URA.

'New developments in the Beach Road/Ophir-Rochor Corridor will inject vibrancy and activities into this part of the city and form a new office cluster for financial and business institutions that will complement the existing financial district at Raffles Place and Marina Bay,' it says.

The first development site for sale in the 'corridor' will have a maximum permissible gross floor area (GFA) of about 160,000 sq m, (1,722,224 sq ft). At least 40 per cent of the total GFA is for office use, with at least 15 per cent for hotel and hotel-related uses. The remaining GFA can be for office, hotel or other complementary commercial and residential use.

CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho said that if awarded, the office development is likely to be ready in 2013 and could offer city-fringe office occupiers an option to 'upgrade or expand into a higher-grade quality building without moving into the CBD'.

Mr Li said that occupancy rates in the Beach Road/City Hall area remain strong at 93.3 per cent.

Although the market is subdued, sites on the confirmed list are generally expected to sell faster compared to those on the reserve list.

DTZ Debenham Tie Leung executive director Ong Choon Fah reckons the Ophir/Rochor Road site could appeal to developers who want to position a project 'differently'.

'Not everybody wants to be in Marina Bay,' she said.