Residents at Laguna Park condominium in Marine Parade are giving the en bloc sale process a second try.

A new 10-member sales committee comprising eight new members has been set up.

At an extraordinary general meeting held on Sunday, some residents voiced confidence that a sale can be completed in three to six months, while others reportedly raised concerns about the recent changes in the Land Titles (Strata) Act which are intended to streamline the en bloc sale process and prevent lengthy disputes.

The previous attempt to sell the 33 year-old former HUDC estate for S$1.2 billion failed last year.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 2 May 2010

Real estate agents said more owners are looking to cash in on their homes near the Circle Line train network, even as the property market powers on.

They said there has been a 10 to 20 per cent rise in interest in selling those properties since the 11 new Circle Line stations opened on April 17.

The Circle Line network moves over 200,000 commuters a day.

Market watchers said it’s also moving properties near the 11 newly opened train stations.

For instance, Dennis Wee Properties has seen sales interest increase 20 per cent over the past two weeks.

Chris Koh, director, Dennis Wee Properties, said: “There were some owners that we spoke to who said that we should wait for the lines to be opened and then put my property up for sale and they have been asking now since the line has been up five to 10 per cent more than what they used to go.”

Steven Ming, director, Investment Sales & Prestige Homes, Savills, said: “With rising cost of car ownership here in Singapore, we can expect a growing appreciation amongst home buyers for properties located close to such transport nodes or good network and they may well be willing to pay as much as maybe 20 per cent more.”

At a recent industry event, some developers said they were concerned that the expanded rail network could drive up land costs.

Under the Government Land Sales programme for January to June, 10 out of 26 sites are close to train stations.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority told Channel NewsAsia that it makes sense to release land around train stations for development.

As this will encourage more people to live there and benefit from the increased connectivity.

But industry watchers said developers shouldn’t worry because homes near transport network will command a premium and raise margins and home prices may continue to climb albeit more slowly.

With the property market picking up and more construction projects in the pipeline, industry watchers expect building cost to continue to rise. So far, they said construction cost has risen by about 20 per cent since the recession last year.

Observers said fanciful apartments with special features like jacuzzis and better finishes have also pushed construction cost up.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 3 May 2010

ISLAMABAD – The Pakistani Taliban yesterday appeared to claim responsibility for an attempted car bombing in New York while police hunted a white male in his 40s who was filmed walking away from the area just before the bomb alert was raised.

The United States authorities have played down the potential connection between the Pakistani militant network and the bomb attempt in Times Square, saying the group does not have the global infrastructure to carry out such a strike.

However, the Pakistani Taliban is allied with militant networks such as Al Qaeda, which could aid in expanding its reach.

Two of the three videos that surfaced following the weekend scare feature Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud, providing the strongest evidence to date that he survived a US missile strike in January.

The most substantial of the militant videos is nearly nine minutes long, according to IntelCenter, a US-based group that monitors militant media. In it, Mehsud did not specifically mention New York, but said he was speaking last April 4. He hinted of an attack by suicide bombers “very soon”.

The third video appeared to refer to the New York scare, though it did not mention any specific location or that it was a car bomb, according to the Site Intelligence Group.

A voice attributed to a Pakistani Taliban militant spoke as if the attack was successful and called it revenge for the US missile strike killing of former Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud as well as the recent slaying of Al Qaeda leaders in Iraq, Abu Omar Al Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub Al Masri.

US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said she wouldn’t rule out an act of international terrorism in the attempted car bombing.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg had earlier said there was “no evidence that this is tied in with Al Qaeda or any other big terrorist organisation”.

The police are studying footage from 82 security cameras around Times Square and evidence from the car and bomb.

New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said a man was filmed acting in a “furtive” manner, looking over his shoulder and taking off a shirt as he hurried away from the area. Agencies

SINGAPORE – It now meets 30 per cent of our water demand, double the previous amount.

And by 2020, Newater will be able to meet 40 per cent of Singapore’s total water needs.

This can be done if Singapore continues to expand its Newater capacity to 75 million gallons a day (mgd), said Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong yesterday at the official opening of Sembcorp’s Newater facility at Changi East Close.

The fifth and largest Newater plant to date, the facility has a total capacity of 228,000 cubic metres per day. With its addition, Mr Goh said Newater was well placed to play an “increasing role in our journey” toward “eventual self-sufficiency” in water.

This comes as the first of two Water Agreements with Malaysia is due to expire next year. Singapore will not be renewing it.

“By 2061, when the second Water Agreement expires, we can also be totally self-sufficient if there is no new water agreement with Malaysia,” said Mr Goh.

This was not always the case.

“Apart from the vagaries of the weather, dependence on imported water from Malaysia had also at times been a cause of tension in bilateral relations.

“Whenever there were serious bilateral disagreements, some Malaysian politicians would use water as leverage to pressure us to compromise in their favour,” Mr Goh said.

Experiences such as these underline the importance and urgency of a robust and diversified water supply, said Mr Goh.

And it was “not just a matter of having enough to drink and wash” – industries being developed needed reliable supplies of water, and large investors needed to be sure of the long-term prospects of Singapore’s water supply.

Wafer fabs, for instance, are among the major users of Newater today. With industries such as these requiring chemically pure water, demand for Newater has grown from 4 mgd in 2003 to some 60 mgd today.

“In this way, Newater plays a critical role in supporting Singapore’s economic growth,” said Mr Goh.

The threat of water shortage has also become even more pronounced with climate change, and international acceptance of water reuse as a viable long-term water solution will grow.

With Newater, Singapore has “closed the water loop, and demonstrated how water reuse can form part of a sustainable solution to meet water needs”, he said, noting Singapore as a world leader in this respect.