Orchard Boulevard: Beyond a premium address
By Cecilia Chow
/ EdgeProp Singapore |
SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - New luxury condominiums in the Orchard Boulevard neighbourhood in prime District 10 have set record prices in recent years. The latest is the 54-unit Park Nova, located at the corner of Orchard Boulevard and Tomlinson Road where its biggest penthouse of 5,899 sq ft, fetched $34.438 million ($5,838 psf) on the first day of launch in early May. The smallest of three penthouses of 4,499 sq ft, went for $26.026 million ($5,784 psf) that same day. Four other units at various floors were sold at prices ranging from $14.58 million ($5,019 psf) to $17.178 million ($5,320 psf). (See also: [UPDATED] Biggest penthouse at Park Nova sold at $5,838 psf, a record for Orchard Boulevard area)
Previously, Boulevard 88’s biggest penthouse of 6,049 sq ft, went for $31 million ($5,125 psf) in June 2019. Its three other penthouses went for prices ranging from $28 million to $29.53 million, or from $4,899 to $4,936 psf in the months of March to May 2019. Three of the four penthouses were sold to Chinese buyers. Based on caveats lodged, 118 out of a total of 154 units in the condominium have already been sold since it was first launched in March 2019.
The precursor of these record-breaking transactions is 3 Orchard By-The-Park. Completed in 2017, its two penthouses of 6,555 sq ft and 6,900 sq ft were sold for $31.5 million ($4,805 psf) and $32 million ($4,638 psf) in June and September 2019 respectively. Both buyers were said to be Chinese nationals too.
YTL’s 3 Orchard By-the-Park, where both penthouses were sold for $31.5 million and $32 million respectively in 2019 (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
The 77-unit, freehold 3 Orchard By-The-Park by developer YTL Westwood Properties Pte Ltd, was designed by Italian architect and designer, Antonio Citterio, of Milan-based design firm, Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel & Partners.
“Demand for Orchard Boulevard freehold properties remains high due to the limited availability,” says a YTL spokesman. “With recent prices already set above $5,000 psf for luxury projects in the area, the upside for 3 Orchard By-The-Park is immense in the mid- to long-run.”
Quiet enclave
What is it about the Orchard Boulevard address that commands such premium prices? Besides limited supply of such prime, freehold luxury units, Dominic Lee, head of luxury team at PropNex, who has marketed luxury projects in the prime districts, reckons it’s the prestige of the Orchard Boulevard address, the fact that it is relatively quiet compared to some of the prime neighbourhoods and its proximity to the malls and other amenities on Orchard Road.
Orchard Boulevard, where new luxury condominiums have been sold at prices above $5,000 psf (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
“The canopy of trees as you drive along Orchard Boulevard has a calming effect,” says Lee. “It’s close to Orchard Road and yet away from the hustle and bustle of the area.”
Sitting between Park Nova and 3 Orchard By-The-Park is another upcoming development, the 192-unit Cuscaden Reserve by a consortium made up of SC Global, together with Hong Kong developers New World Development and Far East Consortium International. They paid $410 million or $2,377 psf ppr for the 99-year leasehold, 61,597 sq ft site in April 2018 in a government land tender.
These three upscale condominiums along Orchard Boulevard, form a little enclave bordered by Cuscaden Road, Tomlinson Road and Orchard Spring Lane, and is likely to give the whole area an uplift when they are fully completed. (See: Discover insightful data of any Singapore condominium with our condo directory)
Orchard Bel Air, where the owners are attempting a collective sale. It's located next to the upcoming Orchard Boulevard MRT station (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
On the opposite side of the road is Orchard Bel Air, where residents have just formed a collective sales committee for a potential collective sale. There are only 71 units in the 28-storey tower and they are all 3,251 sq ft except the sole penthouse, which is 6,510 sq ft. The condo was completed in 1984, with a 99-year lease from 1980.
Jason Tan, executive director of JTResi, is one of the residents of Orchard Bel Air. He has been living there since 2006. “This is the quiet end of Orchard Boulevard,” he says. What he likes about the area is that it is close to Botanic Gardens and to Dempsey Hill too.
Another attraction is its proximity to Singapore’s “Embassy Row” with the Embassy of the United States of America, the British High Commission and Embassy of the People’s Republic of China.
He is looking forward to the completion of the Orchard Boulevard MRT station next door. It is part of the Thomson-East Coast Line and will be just one stop to the Orchard MRT station, which will serve as an interchange for both the Thomson East Coast and North-South Lines.
The Regent Singapore at 1 Cuscaden Road had opened in 1982 as The Pavilion-Intercontinental Singapore. It was rebranded Regent Singapore in 1992 (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Luxury hotels
Such lofty property prices and land values are not surprising given its prime location, according to Tan of JTResi. It is where many of the luxury hotels are situated as well as Tourism Court, the headquarters of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) at 1 Orchard Spring Lane. The former headquarters of STB, previously known as the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board, was at Tudor Court, where it had stayed from 1970 to 1995. Since 1970, STB started to develop land around Tudor Court as part of its efforts to promote Orchard Road as a tourist belt.
Tudor Court was conserved in 2005. After STB vacated the building, it has been converted into shops for lease.
Hotels along Orchard Boulevard are Four Seasons Singapore which opened in 1994. Next door is the upcoming Boulevard 88, which is part of a mixed-use development that includes a hotel too. The new 204-room The Singapore Edition Hotel was conceived by American hotelier, entrepreneur and real estate developer Ian Schrager and Marriott.
St Regis Hotel Singapore on Tanglin Road, which opened in December 2007, with St Regis Residences on Cuscaden Road (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
The Singapore Edition Hotel and Boulevard 88 is a redevelopment of the former Boulevard Hotel site by City Developments, Hong Leong Group and Schrager’s LEA Investments.
Meanwhile, The Regent Singapore at 1 Cuscaden Road had opened in 1982 as The Pavilion-Intercontinental Singapore. It was rebranded Regent Singapore in 1992.
Another upcoming hotel in the area is the 142-room Artyzen Cuscaden Singapore, which is expected to open next year. It’s a redevelopment of a bungalow on Cuscaden Road by Shun Tak Holdings’ Artyzen Hospitality Group.
St Regis Hotel Singapore, which fronts Tanglin Road, opened in December 2007 and was the first St Regis in Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, St Regis Residences, located behind it on Cuscaden Road, was completed in 2008. It was the first luxury hotel-branded residence in Singapore.
Tanglin Mall, located at the junction of Tanlin Road and Grange Road is being revamped (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Makeovers, redevelopments
During the Covid-era, some malls are using the downtime to refurbish and upgrade their offerings. One such mall is Tanglin Mall, located at the junction of Grange Road, Tanglin Road and Napier Road. It is the closest mall to the upcoming Orchard Boulevard MRT station.
Further down Tanglin Road is Tanglin Shopping Centre, a strata-titled mall built in 1971. The owners of the strata-titled mall are believed to be making another collective sale attempt.
The former Negara on Claymore Hotel is being redeveloped into the upcoming Pan Pacific Orchard Hotel, which will be a 347-room hotel that boasts a biophilic, zero-waste design.
Older hotels in the Orchard Road area are also being refurbished or redeveloped. The 423-room Hilton Hotel Singapore is undergoing refurbishment and will reopen as the first Voco hotel in Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, the old Mandarin Orchard will reopen as a new Hilton Singapore next year. With 1,080 rooms, it will be the biggest Hilton in Asia Pacific.
Ion Orchard which opened in October 2009, was the catalyst that led the transformation of Orchard Road over a decade ago (Photo: Samuel Isaac/EdgePop Singapore)
The former Orchard Hotel at the junction of Tanglin Road and Orchard Road was rebranded Orchard Rendezvous Hotel two years ago. The former Orchard Parade Hotel was in turn, a redevelopment of the former Ming Court Hotel, which opened in 1970.
Further down Orchard Road is Liat Towers, which was given a new lease of life following the opening of Shake Shack a year ago. Next door is Wheelock Place, with an underground link to the Orchard MRT station. The MRT station is, in turn, linked to malls on the other side of Orchard Road and Paterson Road like ION Orchard, Wisma Atria and Ngee Ann City as well as Shaw Centre and Tang Plaza on the opposite side of Orchard Road. The Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza sits on the site of the original Tangs Department Store that opened on Orchard Road in 1958. The department store known as C.K. Tang, after the founder, was said to have transformed Orchard Road as a shopping district back then.
In fact, Orchard Road has undergone many transformations over the decades. The last major transformation was in 2009, with the opening of ION Orchard, which sits on top of the Orchard MRT station, with underground links to the neighbouring malls as well as across Orchard Road.
Another part of Orchard Road that has undergone a transformation a decade ago is the Somerset area with the development of 313@Somerset, linked to the underground Somerset MRT station as well as two new neighbouring malls, namely Orchard Gateway (redevelopment of the former Specialists’ Centre and Hotel Phoenix and Orchard Emerald across the road, linked by a sky bridge) and Orchard Central, a redevelopment of the former Glutton’s Square at the original Orchard Road Car Park Market. There’s an underground link to The Centrepoint across the road too.
Tanglin Place and Tudor Court on Tanglin Road (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Premium in outdoor spaces, close to nature
In 2019, STB, National Parks Board and Land Transport Authority embarked on a mission to make Orchard Road “The Lifestyle Destination” and to “Bring Back the Orchard”. As part of the 2019 Master Plan, URA unveiled key proposals focusing on a more inclusive sustainable and resilient city. The Orchard Road shopping belt was divided into four precincts, namely Tanglin, Orchard, Somerset and Dhoby Ghaut. Tanglin’s identity as an arts and cultural neighbourhood will be strengthened.
Covid has brought sustainability to the forefront as the retail, F&B, entertainment and hospitality sectors undergo a sea change.
For those living in the Orchard Boulevard area, Orchard Road is more than a lifestyle destination, it is also their neighbourhood playground.
YTL sees an opportunity to release its “final collection” at 3 Orchard By-The-Park. It will be a mix of three- and four-bedroom garden suites as well as three- and four-bedroom loft units. Some of the units come with private pools. Sizes range from 2,583 to 3,509 sq ft.
Check out the latest listings near Park Nova, 3 Orchard By-The-Park, Boulevard 88, Orchard Bel Air, Cuscaden Reserve, Tanglin Mall, Orchard Rendezvous Hotel, Wheelock Place, 313@Somerset, Orchard MRT station, Orchard Boulevard MRT, Somerset MRT station
Wanna do a virtual tour of new condo launches in 2021? Don’t forget to visit the virtual show flat of Haus on Handy & The Lilium
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