ST article 23 January 2010
New Jurong leisure centre gets go-ahead (Previous Jurong Entertainment Centre site)
[Tiffany's Note: The area encompassing Jurong MRT, Jurong Entertainment Centre, and the surrounding shops has been looking especially dated, especially with Jurong Point's spanking new extension and air-conditioned bus interchange. As a major MRT station, we can expect heavy human traffic & therefore a healthy retail crowd in this area. Together with the Jurong Hospital and the Jurong Lake District developments, there is much potential for prices in the Jurong East area. However, owners must be prepared to bear with the inconvenience of construction as future developments will not be included in valuation reports until they are ready.]
Excerpt: 'A LAVISH new entertainment complex for Jurong has received the green light after being put on the back burner during the financial crisis.
The manager of CapitaMall Trust (CMT) told a results briefing yesterday that the facility - including its Olympic- sized ice-skating rink - should be ready in early 2012. Demolition of the old Jurong Entertainment Centre will be completed soon.
The new centre has been designed by Benoy Architects, the group that conjured up the Ion Orchard look.
Besides the ice-skating rink, which will be visible from the surrounding eateries, the centre will have a rooftop garden plaza and cinema alongside retail outlets.
Mr Simon Ho, chief executive of CapitaMall Trust Management Limited, which manages CMT, said the centre will have five storeys and three basement levels. There will be a 24-hour linkway to the Jurong East MRT station.
He said that plans for the centre were reactivated after a deferment last year due to the economic crisis and sky-high construction costs. But he said the retail sector is looking up again.
The retail sales index - an industry measure - was up 4 per cent last November from a year earlier. This was the first increase in 13 months.
CMT's positive fourth-quarter results also increased confidence about tackling the Jurong centre.
It will have retail floor space of 204,153 sq ft with average rent per sq ft estimated at $12.26, a 123 per cent increase from the $5.49 psf level at the old centre. The project is expected to cost $200.3 million and generate 8 per cent in return on investment.'
.JPG)
+Logo+-+Long.jpg)
Posts
