It is just some two weeks to go before Resorts World Sentosa opens it doors, and retailers at neighbouring shopping mall VivoCity are expecting better business from spillover human traffic.

Some estimate that business may go up about 20 per cent.

About 6,000 visitors take the monorail from VivoCity to Sentosa everyday. Many hang around in the mall even after returning to the mainland.

One tourist said: “We just came over from Sentosa on the monorail. We will grab a bite and buy something back.”

Visitor numbers to Sentosa are expected to go up once the integrated resort opens, and many retailers are upbeat about the prospect of increased spillover traffic.

Michael Tay, store manager, Best Denki, said: “I am very positive, looking at the situation; definitely it will bring us more traffic, probably it will help us to increase about 20 per cent of the business.”

To handle the crowds, VivoCity set up an additional customer service counter last month and doubled its pool of sales and security staff. More information panels have also been added. Outside the mall, transport facilities are also being ramped up.

A new pedestrian boardwalk to Sentosa is being built and transport operator SMRT will announce new public bus services within the next two weeks. It currently runs shuttle services for staff and family of Resorts World Sentosa.

ComfortDelGro, which manages SBS Transit, said it is currently “exploring the possibility” of running direct shuttle services into Sentosa.

Source: Channel News Asia, 8 Jan 2010

LTA, Sentosa roll out measures to raise accessibility as they prepare for IR opening

SENTOSA and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) are spending $300 million to bolster infrastructure, widen roads and put new trains on the island’s monorail tracks as they prepare for the opening of Resorts World Sentosa – Singapore’s first integrated resort.

‘We expect Sentosa’s annual visitor numbers to more than double in the coming years,’ said Mike Barclay, chief executive of Sentosa Development Corporation. The island gets about 6 million visitors a year now, but this is expected to rise to 15-20 million visitors over the coming years.

The measures taken by Sentosa Development Corporation and LTA are intended to facilitate access to Sentosa across all modes of transport, Mr Barclay added.

They are focused on three main areas: improving the road infrastructure in and around Sentosa; increasing the capacity and variety of public transport options between the mainland and Sentosa and also within Sentosa itself; and reviewing the pricing strategy of the various modes of transport into the island.

There will be changes to the gantry and car park charges to encourage visitors to take public transport, car pool or share cabs during peak hours.

‘We urge the public to take advantage of public transport to go to Sentosa and the resort,’ said LTA chief executive Yam Ah Mee.

For example, the existing charges are $2 for each private vehicle as well as $2 for each visitor. This will be replaced with variable flat charges on a per vehicle basis. Under the new system, a vehicle can pay up to $7 to enter the island, regardless of the number of passengers in the car.

On the other hand, public transport will become cheaper in some cases. The price of the shuttle bus service into the island will be cut by $1. Sentosa has also increased the capacity of the monorail trains in the island.

Outside the island, LTA has completed several enhancements to the road network. These include the reconfiguration of the ramp system to the West Coast Highway viaduct, which was completed last month.

A second vehicular bridge – which runs parallel to the existing bridge – linking Sentosa to the mainland was also opened in September last year, doubling road capacity to and from the island.

And more plans are in the pipeline. Sentosa is looking to further improve links within the island and is looking at a second cableway system and a buggy service for hotel guests.

A tender has also been called to introduce shuttle services between Sentosa and Changi Airport, hotels, key shopping districts and Singapore’s heartlands by the second quarter of 2010.

Source: Business Times, 8 Jan 2010

KEPPEL Land is taking a 42 per cent stake in a waterfront township project in Ho Chi Minh City that will include about 4,700 homes with a potential gross floor area of about 10.76 million square feet and which will take about eight to 10 years to develop.

The project’s first phase, which is expected to be launched in 2011, has an estimated on-completion value of US$80-120 million. This will be KepLand’s third township development in the Vietnamese city.

KepLand said yesterday that it had formed a joint venture with Tien Phuoc Co Ltd and Tran Thai Co Ltd to develop the waterfront residential township on a prime 30 hectare site at South Rach Chiec in the city’s popular District 2. The plot boasts over 2km of river frontage.

‘This is a pilot programme which will be developed in phases,’ KepLand said.

The joint venture will build and transfer to the city, a social housing project of about 1,800 apartments on another site in District 2, about 10 minutes’ drive from the waterfront site. In return, the city will assign to the joint venture the 30 hectare cleared site, which is zoned for waterfront development, KepLand said in a regulatory filing with the Singapore Exchange yesterday.

In addition to the 4,700 homes (which will be high-rise condos targeting the upper-middle income market), the township will also include complementary commercial components such as retail outlets and shophouses.

The site is 8km from the central business district. ‘Travelling time to the CBD will be cut to less than 15 minutes upon completion of the Thu Thiem Tunnel, East-West Highway and Ho Chi Minh City-Long Thanh Expressway, all currently under construction, over the next two years,’ KepLand said.

KepLand’s 42 per cent stake in the project amounts to US$16 million (about S$22.3 million) of the joint venture’s total registered capital of US$38 million. Tien Phuoc and Tran Thai will hold 38 and 20 per cent respectively.

Keppel Land International executive director and CEO Ang Wee Gee said: ‘Keppel Land was able to leverage its reputation in Vietnam and its strong relationships with local authorities and strategic partners to secure another large site to meet demand for its homes and build up its quality portfolio.

‘Our new township will allow us to tap our experience to masterplan and develop a desirable live-work-play environment and lifestyle for our residents.’

KepLand also gave an update of its waterfront villa development Riviera Cove in Ho Chi Minh City, saying that about 80 per cent of 60 launched villas were taken up within a month of their release in mid-November 2009, at an average selling price of about US$680,000 per unit. The remaining units in the 96-unit project will be progressively launched this quarter.

KepLand’s two earlier township projects in Ho Chi Minh City are still under construction – Saigon Sports City, an integrated residential, commercial and recreational sporting hub on a 64-ha site in District 2, and a 367-ha waterfront residential township in Dong Nai Province.

The latest waterfront township development marks KepLand’s second collaboration with Tien Phuoc, following the 1,393-unit The Estella condo, also in District 2.

Tien Phuoc’s other projects in the region include South Saigon Residential Complex, Le Meridien Saigon Tower (a hotel and office mixed-use development) and Cam Ranh Bay Resort.

Source: Business Times, 8 Jan 2010

FRASERS Centrepoint Trust (FCT) said yesterday that it will buy two suburban malls for $290.2 million.

The retail real estate investment trust (Reit) also said it plans to issue up to 152 million rights units to help finance the mall acquisitions. The remaining amount will be borrowed.

The structure and timing of the issue of new units has not been determined, FCT added.

The Reit will acquire Northpoint 2 at Yishun for $164.55 million and YewTee Point in Choa Chu Kang for $125.65 million from its sponsor Frasers Centrepoint, the property arm of Fraser and Neave.

The transactions are subject to approval by FCT unitholders. The two acquisitions will grow the trust’s portfolio 25 per cent to $1.5 billion.

‘Northpoint 2 and YewTee Point are excellent suburban retail malls strategically located in the town centres of established high-density housing estates,’ said Christopher Tang, chief executive of FCT’s manager.

‘Both malls are in the immediate vicinity of MRT stations, which deliver a high level of shopper traffic. With captive shopper catchments, occupancy rates at or close to 100 per cent and diverse bases of quality tenants, both malls would be invaluable additions to FCT’s portfolio of high-quality suburban malls.’

The trust now has three malls – Causeway Point, Northpoint and Anchorpoint. Northpoint 2, a new extension to Northpoint, has a net lettable area of 85,530 sq ft. YewTee Point has 72,382 sq ft.

FCT said the two additions will enhance its asset, income and tenant diversification, the trust said. The malls will add more than 70 new tenants. And the larger asset and unit base – after the issue of the rights units – is expected to enhance the trust’s overall capital management flexibility.

FCT said that the price of the rights units will be determined closer to the launch date.

FCT units gained four cents or 2.8 per cent to close at $1.45 yesterday.

Source: Business Times, 8 Jan 2010

New venues pique interest and could snatch meetings, conventions and exhibitions from incumbents

They just emerged from a challenging year, but meetings and exhibitions executives now have to prepare themselves for a tougher campaign ahead.

Once the integrated resorts (IRs) are launched, the amount of exhibition space in Singapore is going to jump by a whopping 180,000 square metres – not a number to sniff at since current big players have only about 135,000 sq m between them.

And if you throw the glitzy lights of Broadway musicals and the whirring sound of the jackpot machines into the mix, it’s no wonder that current meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) players are bending over backwards to keep their clients happy.

And the incumbents certainly have their work cut out for them.

Already, Marina Bay Sands (MBS) and Resorts World at Sentosa (RWS) have snagged over 60 events running until 2012.

It doesn’t help that the new kids on the block also have the novelty factor in their favour.

According to Nancy Tan, managing director at conference organiser Ace:Daytons Direct, the two IRs piqued interest as far back as two years ago.

There were clients who requested for the IRs as an option when selecting venues, she told BT. ‘People want to try new venues.’

However, she added, that the venue needs to match event requirements, something that could go either way for both incumbents and the new players.

For instance, depending on the scale of the business event, a certain number of hotel rooms may also have to be booked at MBS. This may not be entirely suitable for conferences where delegates pay out of their own pockets for their hotel rooms, she pointed out.

On the other hand, Gaming Asia – which took place at the Expo last year – will be held at MBS from July 15-16. The new location is ‘ideal’ given that the exhibition is casino and gaming-related and that MBS is in the central business district, said Lynn Ee, marcom executive with organiser ComExpo Pte Ltd.

Gaming Asia, which attracted nearly 1,500 visitors last year, is widening its focus this year to include training and education opportunities within the industry, security as well as merchandising, in addition to gaming equipment.

Still, there’s an element of musical chairs going on with the same events making the rounds at different venues.

For instance, MBS’s firmed-up list shows that events such as the Aerospace Supplier eXchange – which took place at the Singapore Expo last year – will move to MBS in 2011 and Sea Asia – which was held at Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre last April – will shift to MBS in 2011.

But if there’s a silver lining for MICE players, it’s that this doesn’t seem to be a zero-sum game because the IRs seem to be opening up the scene by attracting new events to Singapore.

RWS will host World Urban Transit Congress in October as well as Singapore LIVE – in conjunction with Singapore Arts Fest – in June. And at least six events in MBS’s line-up are new, including the Industrial Fabrics Association International Expo Asia 2011 and Dye+Chem Asia International Expo 2010. The 2010 UFI Congress, which will be held at MBS, will also make its way back to Singapore after 15 years.

MBS believes that the IR offers consumers greater choice and will ultimately grow the industry.

‘The integrated design means we can provide convenience and efficiency. This translates to significant cost savings,’ added the MBS spokesman.

‘Singapore already has excellent existing MICE facilities and RWS is working in close partnership with them to create more reasons for repeat visitorship,’ highlighted RWS’s director of MICE, Elena Arabadjieva.

To compete, industry players such as Suntec recognise they have to go ‘beyond the call of duty’ and stay ‘flexible’, so as to keep clients happy.

To drum up strong business for this year, the Expo has increased its sales trips and marketing activities, and has also just appointed a US agent.

Every year, Singapore hosts more than 6,000 business events. According to the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the business travel and MICE industry brought in nearly $6 billion in tourism receipts in 2008, which is close to 40 per cent of total tourism receipts.

While 2009 figures have yet to be released, the year was a fairly challenging one for the MICE industry.

There was a drop in attendance and, in some cases, budgets were revised by as much as 20-25 per cent, said Ace’s Ms Tan.

‘While all (organisers and exhibitors) went ahead with their scheduled show dates, they were conscious of their budgets,’ said Chandran Nair, deputy general manager of Singex Venues, which manages the Expo.

In 2009, Suntec hosted about 1,400 events – down slightly from 1,575 events in 2008. However, at 6.7 million visitors, it also saw a 5 per cent increase in visitor numbers over 2008.

And with the economy showing signs of recovery, the MICE scene could see a far better year in 2010. Tony Lai, assistant chief executive at STB, felt that the tourism industry was well-placed to seize opportunities.

Source: Business Times, 8 Jan 2010