Bookmark & Share
Developers looking to nab the Jurong Lake District (JLD) tourism development project should be creative enough to make it stand out among the $9 billion expansion plans at Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands, as well as the increasing number of theme parks within the region, reported the Business Times.
The 7ha site is relatively smaller compared to that occupied by Resorts World Sentosa (49ha) and Marina Bay Sands (15.5ha), hence, the need for unique development ideas.
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has called for an expression of interest for the site, which will close in November.
To feature attractions, shops, eateries and hotels by 2026, STB chief executive Keith Tan revealed that the project will be integrated with the future Jurong Lake Gardens and Science Centre.
“There will be many things to do in that area, worthy of a one- or two-night stay in a hotel that we hope will be developed there.”
Christine Li, senior director and head of research at Cushman & Wakefield, noted that Jurong had been earmarked as a family-oriented entertainment cluster with gardens and edutainment.
She believes that it is “no longer feasible to just add physical attractions because with easy access to technology, people need a stronger reason to visit the places”.
With this, she suggested that structures similar to Amazon’s Spheres and Googleplex be placed in the project to serve as attractions.
Meanwhile, a veteran hotelier believes radical thinking is a must, and that there is a need to “seriously focus on quality tourism, not the business transients who are here for a day or the leisure transients who simply sight-see but don’t spend very much”.
The Jurong development project also raises doubts regarding JLD’s development, in light of the High-Speed-Rail (HSR) project’s deferment.
The HSR project was highly anticipated to increase the JLD project’s revenue.
Tan, however, is unaffected by the HSR’s deferment.
“If it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t happen, we think there’s still viability in the area. Our tourism projects are not dependent on whether HSR comes about or not,” said Tan.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
Related Articles:
Country club to make way for high speed rail terminus
URA issues call for Jurong Lake District master plan proposals