$660 million lifestyle hub to go up at Buona Vista – 5,000-seat theatre, shops part of Rock Productions, CapitaLand project

COME 2011, a futuristic-looking lifestyle hub with a 5,000-seat theatre, restaurants, shops, chill-out wine bars and even dance clubs will emerge in Buona Vista.

Property giant CapitaLand and a church-linked business company, Rock Productions, announced yesterday that they will jointly develop an integrated complex in Singapore’s one-north science hub at a cost of $660 million.

CapitaLand’s share of the proposed development, including the ownership of about 1,000 carpark lots, will be about $380 million.

Rock Productions – the business arm of the 16,000- strong New Creation Church – will invest $280 million.

The complex, which will be connected directly to the Buona Vista MRT station, will be sited within the 17ha Vista Xchange, the business service centre as well as lifestyle and cultural hub of one-north.

Designed by Mr Andrew Bromberg of Aedas Hong Kong, it will have eight levels of civic and cultural space, and four levels of retail and entertainment space.

The project came about after JTC Corporation last Friday awarded Rock Productions the tender to build, lease and operate an integrated civic, cultural, retail and entertainment hub at Vista Xchange on a 60-year lease at a land price of $189 million.

Rock Productions had spoken to a few partners and decided on CapitaLand, which entered into an agreement through its indirect wholly owned subsidiary One Trustee to acquire the hub’s retail and entertainment zone, which has a gross floor area of more than 24,000 sq m.

CapitaLand Retail will also manage the entire development of the integrated hub.

It is proposing an open concept for the retail and entertainment zone, which will be spread over two floors above the ground and two basement levels. The basement levels will house chic tenants that will include restaurants, cafes, thematic dance clubs, a concept food hall and a gourmet supermarket.

CapitaLand Retail chief executive officer Pua Seck Guan said the zone presents a unique opportunity for CapitaLand to extend its presence to the Buona Vista area.

The zone will cater to the affluent crowd from the nearby Bukit Timah, Holland and Rochester Park areas, as well as the visitor catchments from the one-north communities, surrounding estates and tertiary institutions, he said.

Rock Productions will own and manage the hub’s civic and cultural zone, which has a gross floor area of 30,000 sq m. This zone will have a 5,000-seat state-of-the-art theatre designed by world renowed performing arts facility design consultants Artec Consultants and Bromberg.

Among Artec’s best-known projects are the Lucerne Culture Centre in Switzerland and the concert hall and opera theatre at the Esplanade here.

Rock Productions has engaged IMG Artists, a global performing arts management company, to work on the marketing and programming efforts for the zone.

A major tenant has already been secured.

New Creation Church, which now holds its services at The Rock Auditorium at Suntec City, will be the anchor tenant of the theatre, using the space on a large part of Sundays and one mid-week night, said Rock Productions director Matthew Kang.

Rock Productions also owns and manages The Rock Auditorium and Marine Cove, the recreational and dining establishment at East Coast Park.

Source : Straits Times – Sept 2007

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Cultural-retail landmark to up cool quotient for one-north

The buzz for one-north is set to reach new heights – thanks to an impressive new complex that will showcase civic, cultural and shopping activities.

JTC Corp is seeking proposals for a prime 1.93 hectare site next to Buona Vista MRT station. The plot – the largest land parcel yet to be offered by JTC for private sector development at one-north – is to house a civic, cultural and retail complex (CCRC). More than half the gross floor area of 54,000 sq m has to be used for civic, cultural and/or institutional purposes. JTC says these could include a performing arts centre, concert hall or auditorium.

The remaining 24,000 sq m can be used for commercial purposes or for retailing. This could include uses for food and beverage, childcare and retail banks.

Jones Lang LaSalle regional director and head of investments Lui Seng Fatt believes that it will be the commercial/retail component that will interest developers. He estimates that this component could be priced at $500-600 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr), with a break-even price of about $1,100 psf.

It is much more difficult to price the civic, cultural and institutional component. As Mr Lui notes, conventional theatres do not make money.

He estimates that it could still cost about $300 psf to construct this part of the complex. Eventual bids for the whole parcel of land could come in at between $120 million and $150 million, he reckons.

JTC says that the request for proposals is to be submitted using a two envelope system, with the design and concept of the proposed development separate from the proposed land premium. Design and concept will be assessed before the proposed land premiums are known.

JTC has provided parameters for the design and concept but it is still up to the developer to decide. As Mr Lui points out, the developer could propose office space for the commercial/retail component, especially as this might provide better rental yields.

Chesterton International head of research and consultancy Colin Tan does highlight that one-north is ’special’. ‘It was designed to support the talent that is living there,’ he said. As such, the planning parameters and expectations for the site could be different from the norm. And JTC will want to ‘make it work’.

Knight Frank director (research and consultancy) Nicholas Mak also believes land premium may not be the key consideration in this search for proposals as JTC wants one-north to be a ‘live, work, play and learn’ environment. ‘The CCRC will have to be ‘destination’,’ he added.

JTC does say it wants the complex to be the ‘landmark cultural focal point of the area’. In this way, it will serve as the civic and cultural nucleus of residents in one-north.

Upcoming residential launches include the 368-unit One Rochester Park by United Engineers and the 405-unit One North Residences by UOL and Kheng Leong.

Source: The Business Times, January 2007      

 

   

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