HIGH Street Centre at 1 North Bridge Road was relaunched for collective sale for the second time via a public tender at a S$748 million reserve price. This is 6.5 per cent lower than the S$800 million reserve price when it was first launched for sale in mid-2020. 

Appointed property consultant Cushman & Wakefield on Wednesday (Oct 25) confirmed that owners holding over 80 per cent by strata area and share values agreed to put the property on the market at the lower price tag.

The project sits on a 99-year leasehold site of about 60,298 square feet (sq ft) which has an allowable gross plot ratio of 7.72. It works out to a total gross floor area (GFA) of 466,085 sq ft.

Cushman & Wakefield said the Urban Redevelopment Authority will support the development of at least 60 per cent of the site’s total GFA for commercial use, which may comprise a mix of office as well as retail including food and beverage.

Another 40 per cent may be allocated for the redevelopment of a hotel of no more than 450 keys, or for residential or serviced apartment use. 

The S$748 million reserve price therefore works out to S$2,164 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr) if the buyer uses the 40 per cent quantum for residential use. Utilising this same quantum for hotel purposes would translate to S$2,290 psf ppr including the payment of a land betterment charge as well as a premium to top up the lease to a fresh 99 years.

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As the site is zoned “commercial”, either option for the use of the 40 per cent quantum will not incur an Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty.

“This is an opportunity to acquire a commercial site like no other with the option to develop a hotel within the tracks of Asia’s only Formula 1 Night Race,” said Christina Sim, Cushman & Wakefield’s senior director of capital markets.

Sim also observed a “premium on rents for exclusive office spaces” in and around the City Hall district due to the scarcity of commercial development sites in the area.

The tender for 1 North Bridge Road will close at 3 pm on Jan 25, 2024.