SINGAPORE’S Sentosa will welcome a new heritage hotel by 2015, as the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) has earmarked a 4.2-hectare area for hotel development.
Sitting between Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa and Mövenpick Heritage Hotel Sentosa, the former British military barracks – including six blocks and a parade square – can potentially house up to 550 rooms. SDC will put up a public tender later this month, and the successful bidder will be able to lease the site for 60 years.
SDC CEO, Mike Barclay, said: “Previously, we looked at transforming the site into a restaurant and lifestyle quarter along the lines of Dempsey, but according to food operators, it would have been difficult to achieve this due to space constraints. We also looked at retail (options) but decided against it, as the area is just too remote.
“Consequently, for this particular site, a hotel makes a lot of sense because on both sides of it there are already hotels that integrate heritage buildings alongside new builds. It fits in perfectly with our strategy of clustering,” he added.
T S Low, deputy CEO of SDC, told TTG Asia e-Daily that several hospitality chains and boutique hotel operators have already expressed interest in the project.
He added: “We are not looking for a specific class of hotel, but for a developer who would restore the heritage buildings on the site sympathetically, while adhering to the conservation guidelines laid out by the Urban Redevelopment Authority.”
Sentosa will boast 14 hotels with a total inventory of 3,134 rooms after W Singapore – Sentosa Cove opens this month (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 7, 2012), followed by the Mövenpick Hotel’s new Heritage Wing in November (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 3, 2012).
Other developments planned include an 860m cableway to transport 1,600 passengers hourly from the Merlion Plaza to Siloso Point and new pedestrian walkways linking the Sentosa Boardwalk to the beach.
