URA Launches Hotel Site At New Bridge Road

Source : The Business Times, July 10, 2009

THE Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) yesterday launched a public tender for a hotel site in New Bridge Road.

The 0.45 ha site, which went on the reserve list in April 2007, was made available after a developer triggered its release with a $43.9 million bid last month.

The site has a maximum permissible gross floor area of 168,853 sq ft, which means the trigger price equates to $260 per sq ft. But analysts say it could fetch more than $300 psf as interest seems to be returning to small development sites with good attributes.

Last month, a government tender for a small hotel site on Short Street closed with 14 valid bids received. The number of bids - 15, including one judged invalid because it was below the minimum bid price - is among the highest in a government land sale tender.

'Small sites have been quite well-received recently,' said Cushman & Wakefield managing director Donald Han, citing the Short Street tender as an example.

The New Bridge Road site is in the Chinatown historic district, a popular tourist area with many historic, cultural and architectural attractions.