GuocoLand to debut flexible leasing concept at Guoco Midtown on Beach Road

GUOCOLAND is introducing a new leasing concept at its mega Beach Road mixed-use development which will give tenants flexible and adaptable spaces to expand or contract their teams without having to move or renovate their main offices.

The developer said on Monday it will set aside 15 per cent of the office net lettable area in Guoco Midtown for this "core & flex" leasing scheme to "meet the needs of companies with dynamic business needs and shorter business cycles".

The entire 950,600 sq ft development, targeted for completion in the first half of 2022, will comprise a 30-storey office tower with a gross floor area of 770,000 square feet, public and retail spaces, over 200 residences, and the conserved three-storey former Beach Road Police Station building.

The offices at Guoco Midtown will have a central core office floor plate with a higher 3.3 metre ceiling, compared to the 2.9m norm for Premium Grade A offices.

There will be two floors for tenants to set up innovation labs or experimental start-ups.

Guoco Midtown will also have networking lounges, collaborative work spaces, seminar and training rooms, and facilities for company town hall meetings.

Cheng Hsing Yao, group managing director of GuocoLand Singapore said: "Instead of being a 'landlord', we aim to be a partner to our tenants by supporting their business needs. We will incorporate flexibility into our leases, offer facilities for their activities and pursuit of innovation, and provide amenities to make the work environment more fun. Instead of providing a mere place to live in, we have designed a home that is conducive for work or entertainment."

Guoco Midtown will also boast an internal street - called Seawater Street - flanked by public spaces and low-rise retail and restaurants. All ground floor restaurants will have alfresco dining spilling into the two large sheltered public spaces called the City Room and the Market Place. Seawater Street can also be closed to vehicles during the weekends so that it can link up all the various public spaces to become a large event space to host more than 2,000 people.

The whole development will comprise 10 different plazas and gardens, six of which will be open to the public. Altogether, they form more than 170,000 sq ft of landscape and public spaces, and more than 34,000 sq ft of vertical greenery.

Mainboard-listed GuocoLand's shares traded unchanged at S$1.98 as at 4.25pm.