Sloane Court Hotel site being sold for $80.5m
Historic hotel in Balmoral Road to be redeveloped into a 12-storey, 80-unit condo
The Sloane Court Hotel and a small adjoining plot in Balmoral Road belonging to the children of the late Chiam Heng Luan is being sold for $80.5 million for redevelopment.
The hotel sits on prime district 10 land, flanked by swanky freehold condo developments.
It is likely the 32-room hotel, which was built in 1960 by Mr Chiam, a Hainan-born go-getter, will be torn down next year.
Construction and engineering firm Tiong Seng Holdings and civil engineer Ocean Sky International are buying the sites which have a combined area of 3,617.9 sq m and are zoned residential with a gross plot ratio of 1.6.
Mr Lim Geok Hwee, chief operating officer of Tiong Seng Properties, the real estate arm of Tiong Seng, said the site will be redeveloped into a 12-storey, 80-unit condo with units averaging 700 sq ft.
ZACD Group executive director Nicholas Mak noted that the units could be launched at above $2,500 psf late next year.
When The Straits Times visited the hotel yesterday, a staff member was surprised by the proposed sale. She said many of the 10-plus workers there were long-time staff, including a chambermaid in her 70s.
Sloane founder Mr Chiam, also a co-owner of the former Mitre Hotel at 145, Killiney Road, won a court battle in 2007 to have his cousin evicted from Mitre so that it could be sold.
Tiong Seng, through its wholly owned subsidiary Yuan Ching Development, has a 60 per cent interest in the joint venture TSky Development, while Ocean Sky holds the remaining 40 per cent stake through its unit Arctic Sky Investment.
The proposed acquisition is conditional upon the approval of the shareholders of the vendors of the sites. The $80.5 million price tag excludes development charges.
"To build up to the maximum allowable gross floor area, we will have to pay a development charge for intensifying use of the land," Mr Lim said.
"The current development charge is about $20.2 million."
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