State to take back Geylang plot for redevelopment

Singapore

THE Singapore Land Authority (SLA) on Tuesday said that the land occupied by 191 private terrace houses at Lorong 3 Geylang will return to the state when the current leases expire on Dec 31, 2020. The government has slated the land for future public housing.

SLA said this is the first time that a private residential plot's land lease is expiring and is being returned to the state. The next major estate to be affected by lease expiry will be Fuyong Estate in 2046.

The private terrace houses currently located at Lorong 3 Geylang are on 60-year leases which started in 1961.

Most of the current owners of the 191 houses have moved out and are letting out their units to foreign workers and other occupants who use them for religious activities. Only about 33 households continue to live in these premises.

The government on Tuesday said it plans to rejuvenate the two-hectare site with new public housing options.

The area is about 900 metres from Kallang MRT Station and 500 metres from the new Geylang Bahru MRT Station which will open this October.

Under the Master Plan 2014, Kallang will offer housing, green spaces, water bodies, more leisure options and new transport facilities to residents.

Around the vicinity, there will also be new public housing developments in Boon Keng, Bendemeer and around Kallang MRT Station, as well as new private residences in Kampong Bugis.

The plot is also situated along Kallang River, falling within the 10-kilometre stretch from Lower Peirce Reservoir to Kallang Basin for which the government is picking the public's and private sector's brains on how to revitalise.

SLA said it is committed to helping owners still occupying their units through the lease expiry process. Each owner will be assigned a dedicated SLA officer, who will guide them through the process over the next 31/2 years.

But the reality remains that owner-occupants will have to look for a new home, either by buying a Housing & Development Board flat or private property, renting on the open market or living with their family members.

For elderly owner-occupants, some may be eligible to buy the short-lease two-room flats which are cheaper to purchase under the HDB scheme.

As for employers of foreign work pass holders, SLA suggested for them to relocate their workers to other approved housing such as purpose-built dormitories.

Temple operators on the premises can also consider co-locating with religious organisations operating in other areas, or renting a space from commercial and industrial premises which allow a portion of the gross floor area for religious purposes, it said.

According to media reports, the last transaction along the lorong was a 854 square foot plot for S$88,000 in December 2015.

JLL national director for research and consultancy Ong Teck Hui said that is like paying a monthly rental of S$1,400 to S$1,500 for the remaining five years of the lease.

"That's another way of looking at it. It is no longer an investment good, but a consumption good. You forgo your S$88,000; you won't get anything back."

He added that redeveloping the area could also help to clean up the neighbourhood by removing the workers' accommodation and temple operators, especially if the existing premises are dilapidated and badly kept.