$44m bid triggers tender for New Bridge Road site

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A HOTEL site on New Bridge Road is up for public tender after an unnamed
buyer put in a bid that matched or exceeded the Government's minimum price.
This has triggered the tender process.

The site was on a reserve list and
goes on sale only when developers indicate a certain level of interest. In
this case, an undisclosed developer committed to a bid of at least $43.8
million.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said yesterday that it
will launch the tender for the 99-year leasehold site in about two weeks and
the launch date will be announced later.

The land parcel has a site area
of about 0.45ha and can generate a maximum permissible gross floor area of
15,687 sq m and is ideal for a boutique hotel, said the URA.

This site is
in Chinatown and suitable for a three- or four-star hotel.

A recent
survey conducted by the Asian Real Estate Association showed that the hotel
sector was the least preferred segment this year compared with land for
residential, retail, office and industrial uses.

But there will still be
keen investors given the improved sentiment, said a property expert.

He
said that some hotel investors may believe that the worst is behind them and
that the market will improve by the time the project is completed.

They
could also be banking on the integrated resorts to bring more tourists to
Singapore, he added.

Industry watchers said the triggering bid for the
New Bridge Road site is also another sign of increased optimism about the
economy.

Earlier this month, a small Short Street hotel site received 15
bids with the winning tender offering 76 per cent above the trigger price.

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