The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) yesterday said it has received strong interest for state properties it put up solely for lease as offices

The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) yesterday said it has received strong interest for state properties it put up solely for lease as offices earlier this year.

SLA has so far awarded one site. The former River Valley Primary School site was awarded to ERC Holdings Pte Ltd, which submitted the highest of four bids.

ERC, an investment holding company, intends to invest $3 million to $5 million to refurbish the property, which is in the Central Business District, the SLA said.

The government agency also said that three other tenders which closed in May - for the former Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) building in Cantonment Road, the former Moulmein Community Centre (CC) and the former ITE Pasir Panjang in Alexandra Road - saw average bids as high as 68 per cent above the guide rents.

These tenders are under evaluation and further announcements will be made when the tenders are awarded, SLA said.

In the meantime, three more properties for office use - at Pearl’s Hill Terrace, Raeburn Park and Jalan Bukit Ho Swee - have also been launched for tender recently.

For the former River Valley Primary School, ERC has plans for a boutique office complex with support services like food and beverage outlets, and meeting and training rooms.

The complex is slated to open by the fourth quarter of 2007, and about half of it may be sub-let. ‘We have been bidding for such properties as they are a cost-efficient alternative for the private sector in the face of the high market rentals,’ said Andy Ong, chief executive of ERC.

‘In land-scarce Singapore, the interim use of state properties is a cost-effective way to optimise their use pending their long-term redevelopment.’

The tender for the CPIB building also saw strong interest - attracting 15 bids, the highest number ever received for a SLA public tender for rental of state property. The bids ranged between $27,000 and $91,731, with Bravo Building Construction Pte Ltd’s bid being the highest at 68.6 per cent above the guide rent. The next 11 bids were also all above the guide rent by at least 10 per cent.

Elsewhere, the former Moulmein CC and former ITE Pasir Panjang drew bids from property management companies and securities firms.

Phillip Securities Pte Ltd topped the bid for Moulmein CC with a tendered monthly rent of $35,000.

And at the former Pasir Panjang ITE, RichZone Properties Investment Pte Ltd, a new property management company, offered $289,000 per month - almost 45 per cent more than the guide rent.

Source: The Business Times, 08 June 2007