SINGAPORE: The government's S$450 million compensation package for the acquisition of Pearls Centre is fair, say analysts Channel NewsAsia spoke to.
However, some tenants who did not receive an ex gratia or goodwill payment are appealing to the authorities.
Compensation for properties at the multi-storey Pearls Centre varies.
According to Pearls Centre management, for commercial units facing the road, the compensation is S$9,000 per square foot.
Shops that are near the escalator get S$3,000 per square foot.
Other areas get at least S$1,200 per square foot.
As for residential properties, the figure is S$1,100 per square foot.
Analysts say the compensation is reasonable.
Christine
Li, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee, said: "As the
government has not been topping up commercial leases for quite some
time, developers are not really prepared to pay today's market value,
even if this site was put up for collective sale. So, we think that the
(compensation) price is largely in line with fair value."
However, some tenants like Mr Ravishankar did not receive the ex gratia payment, which can be as high S$30,000.
He has been running an Internet cafe on the ground floor of the centre for about
six years.
He said he contacted the Singapore Land Authority.
Mr
Ravishankar said: "There is no reason given. So I just simply called
them, then asked them what is the reason. They said they cannot tell me,
it's a case-by-case problem. They asked me to appeal through the
email."
Pearls Centre management says that out of its 250 tenants, about 30 per cent were affected.
Kok
Chee Choon, committee member of Pearls Centre management, said: "We've
received more than 10 calls from those who did not receive the ex gratia
payment. After we've gathered their feedback, we'll be appealing to the
authorities next week to try and get some compensation for these
tenants."
For the ex gratia payment, the Singapore Land Authority
says it considers tenants' age, the duration of their operations, the
scale and nature of their business, and whether they are Singapore
citizens.
- CNA/ir