Toa Payo: PonteSud – News Desk
Some 775 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats in Sembawang North will go on sale in July, making it the first project to be launched in the new housing estate. Two-room flexi and three-, four- and five-room flats, as well as three-generation units, will be on offer at the Sembawang Beacon project, which has a waiting time of three years, the Housing Board said on July 6.
Bounded by Admiralty Link, Admiralty Lane and Canberra Road, the project will be near amenities such as a neighbourhood park, Sembawang MRT station and Sembawang Mart, which has a supermarket, foodcourt and shops. The design of Sembawang Beacon was inspired by the area’s maritime heritage, HDB said, noting that the northern town was once home to the British naval base in the 1920s, where naval officers would reside in black-and-white houses.
The facade of the blocks will have bold black frames, reminiscent of the colonial homes, it added. A playground at the development will also feature nautical motifs and a lighthouse play structure. The project will have green spaces such as a roof garden and an open lawn. HDB said plants of historical and traditional significance, including the Sembawang tree, Kayea ferruginea, will be planted in common areas to “capture the spirit of old Singapore”.
HDB said new amenities such as a neighbourhood centre, a 1ha park with playgrounds and fitness stations, as well as more cycling paths and walkways, are in the pipeline. Sembawang North, which will span 53ha, will have about 8,000 BTO flats and 2,000 private homes when completed. Analysts previously said the Sembawang BTO project should fall under the Standard category, as it is not near major transport nodes.
Standard flats, which come with a five-year minimum occupation period (MOP), form the bulk of flat supply. Plus and Prime flats, which are closer to the city centre, transport nodes and amenities, come with stricter resale conditions, such as a 10-year MOP and a subsidy clawback. A total of 5,500 BTO flats will be offered in the July sales exercise, with the other projects in Bukit Merah, Bukit Panjang, Clementi, Tampines, Toa Payoh and Woodlands. About 3,000 balance flats in varying stages of completion will also be put up for sale. HDB did not reveal the launch date.
Property analysts said they expect strong demand for many of the BTO projects, particularly those that are close to amenities and MRT stations. Of the eight projects, five are situated within 600m of an MRT station. The July launch will also include the first flats in Simei, which HDB classifies as part of Tampines, in more than a decade. The project will have about 380 units of two-room flexi and four- and five-room flats on a plot bounded by Simei Road and Upper Changi Road East.
The site is a five-minute walk from Upper Changi MRT station. The Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore Expo and Changi Business Park are in the vicinity. The second development in the new Woodlands North Coast precinct, a 1,130-unit project, will also be on offer. The new precinct is envisioned as a mixed-use waterfront development and will have a total of 4,000 flats when it is completed. The first project in the precinct, Woodlands North Verge, was launched in February. Some 19,600 BTO flats will be launched in 2025.
