www.propertyguru.com.sg/property-management-news/2015/10/109912/holland-village-makeover-in-progress



The makeover for Holland Village is now in motion, with authorities releasing more information about the first site to go on sale, while an existing landmark is poised for redevelopment, reported Channel News Asia.

By early next year, a new retail centre will also be built within the area. Developed by Raffles Medical Group, the five-storey medical centre and shopping mall, named Raffles Holland V, will feature about 49,000 sq ft of F&B outlets and retail stores. Another 9,000 sq ft will be allocated for medical facilities, and the remaining 4,500 sq ft will be leased by DBS. The complex is set to open for business in March 2016.

Meanwhile, Eng Tiong Realty, the owner of Holland Road Shopping Mall, revealed plans to redevelop the property. The firm plans to tear down the mall within the next few months in order to build a new one. The mall, which is known to some as the Windmill building, has been closed since August.

A spokesperson for Eng Tiong noted that it is important for small players to innovate, as well as keep pace with changing demands. “(We should also) be prepared when the new mixed development in Holland Village opens in the near future,” said the spokesperson, who owns several shop houses within the area.

However, the key development to watch out for is the new Holland Village extension, which will be situated behind the existing shop houses. Recently, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) released more details regarding how it wants the site to be developed.

The URA said the 2.3 ha site is divided into two areas — Zone 1 is set aside for private residential development (with a maximum of 570 units), while Zone 2 is meant for commercial and / or serviced apartment uses. At the same time, the URA noted that a maximum of 13,500 sq ft of retail floor area is allowed for Zone 2, while the buildings can have a maximum height of 35 storeys.

It is unclear when the expansion of Holland Village will commence. The site was placed on the Reserve List of the Government Land Sales (GLS) programme in December 2014, a possible indicator that the site will be put up for sale only if the government deems the indicated minimum price from a developer acceptable.

The land parcel will also be under a Concept and Price Revenue tender system. As such, developers will have to submit their concept proposals before their bids are evaluated.

Despite the weak property market, property consultancy CBRE still expects developers to show keen interest in the site. “I think interest will be high, given that there’s a cutback in good plots of land, going forward,” said Desmond Sim, CBRE’s Head of Research for Southeast Asia.

“Interest for any plot of land in the GLS will always be high, because there are a lot of developers out there keen to replenish or shore up their land bank.”



Cheryl Marie Tay, Senior Journalist at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories email [email protected]