The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) announced today that it has accepted an application from a developer to put up the first sale site in Jurong Lake District for sale via public tender.

The 1.9 ha land parcel located at Jurong Gateway Road next to the Jurong East MRT station was made available for sale through the Reserve List system on 28 November 2008. URA has received an application from a developer for the site to be put up for public tender. The developer has committed to bid at a price of not less than $350 million in the tender for the land parcel.

URA will launch the tender for the land parcel in about 2 weeks. The tender period for the land parcel will be about 8 weeks.

The Jurong Lake District consists of two unique but complementary precincts – Jurong Gateway and Lakeside. Occupying a total site area of 360 ha – which is about the size of Marina Bay, it will be a major regional centre in the west of Singapore.

The Jurong Gateway, with a total land area of about 70 ha, will be the biggest commercial hub with a lakeside setting outside the city centre, with a good mix of office, retail, hotel, entertainment, food & beverage (F&B) and other complementary uses.

On the other hand, the Lakeside precinct which spreads over 220 ha of land and 70 ha of water body, is slated to be developed into a world class leisure destination for locals and tourists. New edu-tainment or nature-based attractions, waterfront boardwalks, wetlands, parks & promenades will be developed in the scenic lakeside setting.

The first sale site at Jurong Gateway Road is located next to the Jurong East MRT station – in the heart of Jurong Gateway precinct. Existing developments in the precinct include the JTC Summit and Jurong Entertainment Centre, which is undergoing a major revamp. Other upcoming developments in the area include the Jurong General Hospital and the West Campus for Continuing Education and Training.

With more than 3,000 multinational and global businesses clustered in the nearby International Business Park and Jurong/Tuas industrial Estates and a catchment of one million residents from the surrounding towns, the Jurong Gateway precinct will be a viable business location outside the Central Business District.

Several government agencies such as the Ministry of National Development (MND) and its statutory boards, Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) and Building and Construction Authority (BCA) as well as the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) and its statutory boards, Public Utilities Board (PUB) and National Environment Agency (NEA) will also relocate their offices to the Jurong Lake District in the near future.

The sale site at Jurong Gateway Road has a land area of 1.9 ha and a potential gross floor area (GFA) of about 107,000 sqm of space can be built on it. The commercial development to be built on site will reinforce the existing commercial cluster and contribute to creating a vibrant & exciting Jurong Lake District.

In line with the plan for Jurong Gateway to be developed as a major regional commercial centre in the west of Singapore, the proposed development on the land parcel will have at least 30% of the total GFA for office use. The remaining GFA can be for additional office use or other uses permitted under the White site zoning such as commercial, hotel and residential uses.