Source: TG Development
Units at Lloyd Sixtyfive overlooking the courtyard, which has lush greenery, swimming pools and cabanas
Some distance from the bustling shophouses on Killiney Road is the quiet enclave of Lloyd Road, which in turn leads to Oxley Road, where the late Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s founding prime minister, was once a resident.
The newest condominium project on Lloyd Road is Lloyd Sixtyfive, which was developed by TG Development and completed in 2016. The developer had purchased the 35,639 sq ft, freehold site at 65 Lloyd Road in 2010 for a reported sum of $137 million in a deal brokered by CBRE. Back then, there was a 27-unit apartment block called Meng Garden Apartments on the site. “When we first came to inspect the site, we fell in love with it immediately,” recounts Ong Boon Chuan, TG Development’s executive chairman and CEO.
Design inspired by contrasts
The main lure of the area is its contrasts: a quiet street just off a busy one with the convenience of the Orchard Road malls and the Somerset MRT station a few minutes’ walk away. There are also a 24-hour FairPrice supermarket and a variety of food options, including the original Killiney Kopitiam, founded in 1919, which still stands here. “Being located next to Oxley Road also enhances the prestige of Lloyd Sixtyfive’s address,” Ong adds.
TG Development appointed award-winning architect Mok Wei Wei of W Architects to design Lloyd Sixtyfive. The interesting contrasts of the neighbourhood also influenced the design of the project. From the street, passers-by will not be able to glimpse what lies beyond the deliberately minimalist façade of the development. “But once you step in, you will be surprised,” says Mok. “It’s a delayed revelation.”
Units at Lloyd Sixtyfive are arrayed in two L-shaped, 10-storey blocks to create an internal courtyard. This maximises the views from the units: Occupants either have a view of the courtyard or the quiet residential street which the condo fronts. The courtyard has been designed as “an intimate communal space”, with a layered landscape of lush plantings, swimming pools, Jacuzzi, pool decks and cabanas, according to W Architects.
Setting a new benchmark
Although a boutique development, Lloyd Sixtyfive’s loft-style apartments have a wide range of configurations. The one-bedroom units are from 592 to 603 sq ft, and those on the first level with private enclosed space are from 861 to 990 sq ft. There are also one-bedroom lofts with a double-volume ceiling in the living area, and these are from 872 to 904 sq ft. The one-bedroom-plus-study units range from 710 to 1,055 sq ft for the loft apartments.
Close to half the units at Lloyd Sixtyfive are two-bedroom-plus-study loft apartments, and these are from 1,668 to 1,701 sq ft. There is also a range of three-bedroom units, starting from 1,733 sq ft, to three-bedroom-plus-study loft apartments of 2,422 sq ft. The three-bedroom loft penthouses are a generous 3,638 sq ft.
The latest transaction at Lloyd Sixtyfive was for a 710 sq ft, one-bedroom-plus-study, sold last month for $2.02 million, or $2,842 psf — the highest per sq ft price achieved in the project as well as the Killiney Road-Lloyd Road-Oxley Road area, based on caveats lodged to date.
This brings total sales at Lloyd Sixtyfive to 11 units as at Aug 8. Interest in the project has picked up in recent months, and so has the number of enquiries, notes TG Development’s Ong. As such, the developer is offering a 15%+3% discount to buyers. “With the positive market sentiment, we expect to have some price adjust ments soon,” he adds.
Source: TG Development
The show suite of a one-bedroom-plus-study at Lloyd Sixtyfive. A similar 710 sq ft unit was sold at a new benchmark price of $2.02 million, or $2,842 psf
Source: TG Development
The two-bedroom-plus-study loft apartment with a double-volume ceiling in the living room at Lloyd Sixtyfive
Architectural drama on Balmoral
TG Development’s other new condo project, The Oliv on Balmoral Road, is also designed by W Architects. The 12-storey residential project contains just 23 units, and was completed in 2014.
The Oliv has dramatic curved sky terraces. The lush greenery and use of different materials — off-form concrete, timber strips of natural balau wood and perforated aluminium screens — create an interesting, textured façade.
There are only two units per floor and they share a sky terrace. However, the sky terraces are deliberately curved upward or downward where the bedrooms of the units are, so residents will have privacy.
Source: TG Development
The Oliv on Balmoral Road has a dramatic façade featuring curved sky terraces
‘Bungalows in the sky’
W Architect’s Mok describes the units as “bungalows in the sky”. The spacious fourbedroom units feature double-volume ceiling. The sky villas are 3,337 sq ft, the garden units are sized at 4,446 and 4,908 sq ft, and the penthouses are 5,414 and 6,125 sq ft.
TG sold four units at The Oliv between July 2009 and September 2010, and decided to hold the remaining units for rent. Prices then ranged from $7.48 million ($2,242 psf) to $8.6 million ($2,579 psf) for the 3,377 sq ft sky villas on the fifth to seventh floors, while a 4,446 sq ft garden unit fetched $11.06 million ($2,488 psf). “We have taken The Oliv off the market for some time. We intend to put it back on the market for sale within this year,” says TG Development’s Ong.
Both The Oliv and Lloyd Sixtyfive demonstrate that even boutique condo developments can elevate their neighbourhoods and set new benchmarks in terms of design and prices.
“TG Development takes pride in delivering well-considered designs and architecture,” adds Ong. “Through our projects, we hope to enhance the streetscape, thereby making the neighbourhood more pleasant.”
This article appeared in The Edge Property Pullout, Issue 792 (Aug 14, 2017) of The Edge Singapore.