Category Archives: General

Grand Park Orchard to open in July

Posted on 11 Mar 2010 | Comments Off on Grand Park Orchard to open in July

Grand Park Orchard – formerly known as Park Hotel Orchard – will be opening its doors in July after an $80 million makeover.

Five-star luxury: The 308-room hotel is Park Hotel Group’s flagship property; room rates are expected to be around $350 per night

The five-star 308-room hotel at Orchard Road is Park Hotel Group’s flagship property. Room rates are expected to be around $350 per night.

Grand Park Orchard will bring more sparkle to the shopping belt with an eight-storey-tall media wall. It will also add to food and beverage establishments in the area, with all-day restaurant Open House serving pizzas, dim sum, sandwiches, claypot dishes and roast meat; the Champagne Bar serving Veuve Clicquot cocktails; and the Onyx Bar.

Shoppers can also look forward to the opening of Grand Park Orchard’s four-storey retail podium, Knightsbridge.

Park Hotel Group has positioned Knightsbridge as a space for luxury brands, and it will soon reveal the names taking residence.

It said that it has secured pre-commitments for more than 50 per cent of the space so far.

Park Hotel Group director Allen Law said that Grand Park Orchard ‘represents the aspirations of the group as we scale the heights to be the leading hospitality chain in the Asia-Pacific’.

The hotel owner, developer and manager has eight properties across three countries. These include Park Hotel Clarke Quay and Grand Park City Hall in Singapore.

Source : Business Times – 11 Mar 2010

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MND considers total ecosystem in planning

Posted on 10 Mar 2010 | Comments Off on MND considers total ecosystem in planning

IN ITS urban planning blueprints, the Ministry for National Development (MND) won’t miss the forest for the trees. Instead, it takes a well-rounded approach when drawing up its development concept plans, taking into account existing infrastructure and consulting MPs and other agencies.

This was National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan’s assurance to the House yesterday. ‘When we do make changes, they will be taken as a whole. It’s not just development for its own sake,’ he said.

‘On an overall basis, the whole planning process takes into account the whole gamut of requirements, ranging from housing, to roads, to schools, to nature areas, even right down to things like markets, places of worship and so on.’

Earlier, Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Marine Parade GRC) had asked about the Government’s planning methods. Were new projects drawn up in isolation, or was the total ‘ecosystem’ of the area taken into account?

He was particularly concerned about the growing density of the Amber and Katong areas. After the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) approved the construction of new residences in the area, a clutch of condominiums had sprung up. With more such estates on the way, traffic congestion, overcrowding and rising social pressure are becoming a definite possibility, Mr Lim said.

Mr Mah said the URA’s integrated approach to planning would mitigate such problems. In fact, the development of the Amber and Katong districts was precisely an example of such consultation bearing fruit.

‘The master plan takes into account what the increased density in the area means for traffic congestion and discussions were held with the relevant agencies, such as the Land Transport Authority.’

This helped the URA pre-empt overcrowding, he explained. The MRT network will be extended into the area and the Marina Coastal Expressway will take pressure off the existing East Coast Parkway.

‘I think this is one of the strengths of the Singapore planning system: That when we plan, we plan it on a holistic level, taking everything into consideration,’ he said.

Source : Straits Times – 9 Mar 2010

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