Desmond Sim, Head, CBRE Research, Singapore and South East Asia:
“The proposed strategies behind the development of Jurong Lake District is in line with the government’s push to bring jobs closer to home in the West and the wider sub region including the Jurong Innovation District further north west. It is not uncommon for metropolis cities to have more than one business district; Tokyo and Shanghai are examples of such cities. Lakeside Gateway is the next step in the transformation of Jurong Lake District, following the success of Jurong Gateway, which has seen high levels of occupancy in the completed commercial developments. Jurong Lake District will be the new node for commercial activities in a business district. As such, the masterplan is expected to promote complementary activities and developments such as supporting hospitality, leisure and entertainment.
To be future-proof, a key feature of the Master Plan should encourage organic business growth with innovation and entrepreneurship as a main focus. The infrastructure and the land-use mix could provide ground-up support by allowing flexibility in the usage of space within proposed developments so that businesses can stay nimble and responsive to shorter business cycles as they evolve. It should also allow for different types of businesses to thrive in. One possibility is the promotion of mixed-use developments with office, industrial/business parks and retail components. This could translate to more white sites being included in the Master Plan.
Beyond pure real estate play, the plan will also have to take into consideration sustainability, infrastructure and social goals in tandem with Singapore’s ambition to be a smart and inclusive nation. To this end, we envisage the plan will take full advantage of the green lungs and the panoramic view of the lake. The planning guidelines will probably revolve around the full use of the lake. The Master Plan could allow the experimentation of innovative developments departing from the traditional intensification of land use through plot ratios.
The underground tunnel is expected to pave the way for a car-lite environment, where heavy traffic and services tunnels and utilities are diverted underground to minimise carbon footprint and to maximise efficiency.
Overall, it is expected that international firms will likely to collaborate with local firms and experts to provide a comprehensive scope of Master planning that will aim to address all or most of the stakeholders and at the same time align to the goals as identified by the URA.”
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