Designer Wins Deal to Bring SpongeBob to Life in Foshan and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

SpongeBob and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are coming to southern China, and today’s top story reveals the design firm tasked with bringing the cartoon characters to life in Foshan. Also showing up in the headlines of the day, Singapore’s en bloc exuberance is still going strong, with another two apartment sites being offered for collective sale with a total reserve price of $293 million. China’s first Atlantis resort is slated to open in Hainan in a couple of weeks, and beleaguered Chinese conglomerate HNA Group is signing up with Singaporea’s Temasek Holdings to explore opportunities… or at least do something other than answer questions about liabilities. Read on for all the details.

Designer Chosen for $1.85B Nickelodeon Theme Park in Foshan

Los Angeles-based design agency Rethink Leisure & Entertainment has been awarded the design and masterplanning contract for the Elite Global Group’s Nickelodeon theme park project at the Foshan Cultural and Ecological Coastal Park in southern China’s Guangdong province.

The $1.85 billion project has been described as “the most immersive and extensive Nickelodeon experience ever built”, featuring such beloved characters as SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Dora the Explorer and more. Rethink will provide a full suite of design services including masterplanning, park design, attraction development and IP selection. Read more>>

Singapore Spawns Two More En Bloc Housing Deals

The rush to sell en bloc shows no signs of abating with two estates put up for sale yesterday in Singapore – one in East Coast and the other near Pearl’s Hill City Park. United Mansion has a reserve price of S$98 million ($75 million) for the walk-up block in East Coast Road. That is S$1,485 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) with no development charges payable.

The freehold site has a verified gross floor area of 65,975 square feet and could yield 87 apartments, said marketing agent Cushman & Wakefield. Meanwhile, Landmark Tower in Chin Swee Road is also up for sale, said marketing agent JLL. The owners have a reserve price of S$285 million ($218 million), but expect the site to fetch in excess of S$300 million. Read more>>

Frasers Hospitality Plans Millennial-Friendly SG Project

Frasers Hospitality will open a hotel residence at Singapore’s China Square Central in the first quarter next year, to serve what it sees as a growing group of young business travellers. Under its millennial-focused Capri brand, the 304-room, 16-floor Capri by Fraser, China Square, with a gross floor area of 16,000 square metres, will boast new technologies accessible to travellers with plugged-in lifestyles.

Guests will be able to download an app through which they can make reservations and request housekeeping with a chatbot. Room cleaning order will also be optimised using motion sensors that detect if a guest is in the room and through housekeeping requests from the app. Read more>>

Atlantis Sanya Resort Set to Open This Month

Atlantis Sanya, the first Atlantis resort in China, will fully open to the public on April 28, 2018. The grand opening of this ocean-themed integrated entertainment destination will coincide with the festivities of Hainan Province Special Economic Zone 30th Anniversary.

Located on the Haitang Bay National Coast in Hainan province, Atlantis Sanya joins the flagship resort Atlantis, The Palm in Dubai, as well as The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences in Dubai and Atlantis, Ko Olina in Hawaii, both under construction. The resort’s 1,314 guestrooms and 154 suites offer stunning views of the sea and underwater life. Read more>>

Troubled HNA Inks Aviation, Logistics MoU with Temasek

HNA Group today signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Temasek, an investment company headquartered in Singapore, to explore opportunities in aviation and logistics, and airport infrastructure.

Mr Chia Song Hwee, President and Chief Operating Officer of Temasek said, “This Memorandum of Understanding between HNA and Temasek signals the interest of our two organizations to explore common business interests and pursue opportunities to work together. In particular, opportunities in aviation, international travel and related businesses reflect the growing demands of higher incomes and a more interconnected world.” Read more>>

Landing International Leases Philippines Resort Site

Landing International Development Limited, which owns and operates Korea’s Jeju Shinhwa World, has announced the leasing of 9.5 hectares of land in the Philippines’ Parañaque City which it says will be used to develop a new integrated resort.

In a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Landing said the IR would include a Filipino culture theme park, an indoor waterpark, an indoor movie-based theme park, a convention center, hotels, a retail mall and other commercial and entertainment facilities. Read more>>

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