By Reico Wong

THE transformation of Jurong Lake District into the largest suburban commercial hub outside the city centre is slowly but surely taking shape, with yet another development project moving into the construction phase yesterday.

Developers of the mixed-development project, situated next to both Jurong East MRT station and Jurong East bus interchange, revealed more details about the 25-storey building at a groundbreaking ceremony.

To be called Westgate, the 594,000 sq ft lifestyle mall will span seven floors of retail space, said its joint developers CapitaMalls Asia (CMA), CapitaMall Trust and CapitaLand.

It will target middle- to upper-middle-income families residing in neighbouring districts, working professionals, visitors to the nearby upcoming Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, and students of nearby schools.

Mr Lim Beng Chee, chief executive of CMA, said that while they are just starting to market the mall to retailers, the tenant mix will include international and high-street fashion brands and IT and electronics stores.

There is also likely to be a supermarket, a food court and family restaurants. The mall is expected to be open for business by the end of next year.

The development will have a 20-storey office podium, named Westgate Tower, which is set to be completed by the end of 2014.

Employees who work at some 315,000 sq ft of office space there will have ease of access to the shops and other facilities, such as a childcare centre and a gymnasium.

Mr Lim added that he remains optimistic about rental rates at Westgate remaining on the level of between $16 and $18 psf per month - a target which CMA had when they first announced that they had been awarded the land parcel last June.

This is despite property analysts' forecast that the gloomy economic outlook would have a dampening impact on retail and office rental rates, especially in the suburban parts of Singapore.

Yesterday's event also saw the developers unveiling the architectural design of the complex.

Drawing inspiration from Jurong's original landscape of mangroves and rivers, design consultants from Benoy said that they want the complex to be an "urban oasis". They have laid out numerous areas to be filled with landscaped greenery and water features.

Semi-outdoor covered pedestrian streets will connect the complex to the MRT station, bus interchange, hospital and other neighbouring developments.

"Together with neighbouring malls IMM and JCube, we will have the equivalent of a three-in-one mega-mall in Jurong," said Mr Lim.

"This mega-mall will meet the needs of most shoppers in the western part of Singapore - IMM the value-focused mall, JCube the entertainment hot spot with an Olympic-sized ice rink, Imax cinema and this project, the lifestyle mall."

Minister of State for Trade and Industry and National Development Lee Yi Shyan, who was the guest of honour at the event yesterday, said that the Government is committed to leading the transformation of Jurong.

"The Workforce Development Agency's Devan Nair Institute is under construction (in the vicinity)...a new government complex housing my ministry, and two of our statutory boards, AVA and BCA, will also relocate here in the next few years", he said.

reicow@sph.com.sg

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