D'Leedon (D10, 99 years leasehold, Capitaland)

[august]

Wow that's a interesting point. Could u compare with the waterfront collection as well? It will be interesting to know if dividing the plot of land into 3-4 development make sense?

land size = 809,000 sqft
plot ratio = 2.5
total units = 1700+

[kane]

Wow, 8.4 on hdb? This is useful info.

[DaytonaSS]

land size = 809,000 sqft
plot ratio = 2.5
total units = 1700+

Many think that it's better to cut into 3-4 plots , so there will be more facilities available 。 I was wondering issit it better to more big big open area for facilities? 4 smaller pool n 2 large pool got big difference?

[Wild Falcon]

It depends on individual preference. I always believe there is an optimal size which is like 400+ units at most, or else it becomes difficult to manage or can forget abt future enbloc (esp for 99LH sites). Too small doesn't have economies of scale. And 1700 units sharing how many tennis courts, function rooms and swimming pool? Are there enough? For swimming pool, as long as olympic size for a 400 units and below condo, should be ok. I'm not sure the size of the pool in d'Leedon. If 4.3 olympic size in totality (assuming one olympic size for 400 units), then should be sufficient and similar to most other mass/mid condos. Or else might be too cramped.

Many think that it's better to cut into 3-4 plots , so there will be more facilities available 。 I was wondering issit it better to more big big open area for facilities? 4 smaller pool n 2 large pool got big difference?

[amk]

u have to bear in mind, that CAPL is probably under gov direction to try out "mega" projects, to let Singaporeans get used to this. otherwise how to house 6.5M ppl ?

In HK, a project with 1700 units is hardly "mega". Ppl are used to it.

[land118]

u have to bear in mind, that CAPL is probably under gov direction to try out "mega" projects, to let Singaporeans get used to this. otherwise how to house 6.5M ppl ?

In HK, a project with 1700 units is hardly "mega". Ppl are used to it.

Think coming election, questions will still be raise about the 6.5m population that MBT mentioned some time back.

But here's the article on MM's view on that 6.5m figure in 2008....wonder when they will allow population here to hit 6.5m...Wonder if we hit the 5.5m yet that MM then think is optimal for now.



http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%...201-47850.html

MM Lee 'not sold' on 6.5 million population.
MINISTER Mentor Lee Kuan Yew 'has not quite been sold' on the idea of a 6.5 million population size in Singapore.
Instead, he projects for Singapore an optimum population size of five to 5.5 million for Singapore.
He said on Friday: 'I have not quite been sold on the idea that we should have 6.5 million.'

'I think there's an optimum size for the land that we have, to preserve the open spaces and the sense of comfort.'
MM Lee was speaking at think-tank Institute of Policy Studies's conference 'Scenerios for the Next Generation', which seeks to gaze into the crystal ball and discuss what Singapore will look like come 2030.
Speakers, including Cabinet ministers, academics and journalists, held forth on subjects such as how the economy should evolve, cultural trends, and the Singapore identity.
Over an hour-long dialogue with some 900 participants, MM Lee touched on issues ranging from whether Singapore has the talent pool to sustain a two-party political system, to the widening income divide.
One question, posed by the moderator, diplomat Tommy Koh, was whether Singapore is guilty of overbuilding.
A year ago, the Government had announced that it is making plans to accommodate a population of 6.5 million people - up from the current 4.5 million - in the next 40 to 50 years.
This sparked off worries about overcrowding.

[CCR]

Great article on dleedon in today's Sunday times.... Makes me even more convinced that it's a great piece of property.... I have made up my mind...mwill look for a two bedroom unit for investment...

[devilplate]

Great article on dleedon in today's Sunday times.... Makes me even more convinced that it's a great piece of property.... I have made up my mind...mwill look for a two bedroom unit for investment...

wow...their marketing campaign worked

[DaytonaSS]

Mar 5, 2011

Home & garden
Starchitect

In person, award-winning architect Zaha Hadid is as forbidding as her buildings

By tay suan chiang

This 6,500 sq ft four-bedroom show suite by Zaha Hadid for d'Leedon features her signature curvy and seamless lines. There are four other showflats, with one pictured below. -- PHOTOS: CAPITALAND, ZAHA HADID ARCHITECTS, SIMONE CECCHETTI


Celebrated British architect Zaha Hadid is known for her sensuous public buildings. But one of her latest works is something she has not done before: a high-rise private residential development.
In a country where an increasing number of condominiums are designed by well-known foreign architects, it is Singapore's good luck to have 'starchitect' Hadid design her first such project here.
Zaha Hadid Architects, which the award-winning Iraq-born architect founded in 1980, is designing d'Leedon, a 1,715-unit development at the site of the former Farrer Court HUDC estate, for property developer giant CapitaLand.
On why she had not done high-rise, residential projects before, MsHadid says simply in her husky voice: 'Because no one had asked me. Most of the work we do is through competitions and most are public buildings. I'm not against residential projects.'
She was speaking at a press conference in Guangzhou, China, just over a week ago, where CapitaLand was marketing d'Leedon to Chinese buyers. Set on a 78,000 sq m site, the project has seven 36-storey towers comprising 1,703 apartments and 12 semi-detached houses.
But forget the conventional rectangular towers - that is not the 'Zaha' touch. Instead, as Mr Patrik Schumacher, a director of the firm, explains: 'The towers are like flowers in a park.'
They tend to be narrow on the lower floors and curve outwards, as if growing wider at the top. They are sub-divided into 'petals', according to the number of units on each floor, from four to eight. The tops of the buildings are a series of 'fingers' stepped at different heights.
Construction, which has already begun, will not be easy. A spokesman for the firm says: 'The biggest challenge will probably be for our engineers, who will face structural challenges unseen in residential condominiums before, such as slating columns and large cantilevers, as each floor differs from the one below.'
When completed in 2015, d'Leedon will likely be spectacular, like Ms Hadid's other buildings.
The 2004 Pritzker Architecture Prize winner, and the only female architect to have won it, she is famed for buildings such as the Maxxi: National Museum of 21st Century Arts in Rome and the BMW Central Building in Germany. The Pritzker is architecture's equivalent of the Oscar.

In person, award-winning architect Zaha Hadid (above) is as forbidding as her buildings. Other works in progress include the London Aquatic Centre for the 2012 Olympic Games, Dongdaemun Design Park & Plaza in Seoul and Galaxy Soho, an office and retail complex, in Beijing.
Her buildings have a fantastical feel and appear larger than life, just like the single architect herself.
There is a sense of excitement when she walks into a room, as she enters the Westin hotel for the press conference and again when she visits the Guangzhou Opera House over the next two days. The opera house, which opened last year, was also designed by her firm.
Ms Hadid, 60, is not tall but has a presence. She dresses in jackets by Japanese designer Issey Miyake, paired with a simple black top on the inside and black leggings, with what looks like black, ankle-high rain boots. She is seldom seen without a huge ring, and this time, it is an infinity-shaped one with pave diamonds.
At the press conference, she chooses to let Mr Schumacher do the d'Leedon presentation, while she nurses a Coke Zero and, at times, rummages through her black Prada purse. If she is bored, she does not hide it. When she speaks, she does not mince her words.
Apart from d'Leedon, her firm - with offices in London, Rome, Hamburg, Guangzhou and Beijing, and more than 400 staff - has designed two villas in Nassim Road for an entrepreneur and the masterplan for the science hub, one-north, in Singapore.
The latter, which she calls zero-north, a genuine mistake or not, is something that still gets her worked up despite working on it six years ago. 'It is a sore point for me that we have not been invited back to do any contribution to the masterplan. But it is a 25-year masterplan, so something might still happen.'
The one-north hub is a 200ha project in Buona Vista that is being developed in phases. It will have world-class research facilities and business parks to support growth in biomedical sciences, infocomm technology, media, physical sciences and engineering.

'The towers are like flowers in a park'. Mr Patrik Schumacher, a director at Zaha Hadid Architects,on the 99-year leasehold d'Leedon project (above). The project has seven 36-storey towers comprising 1,703 apartments and 12 semi-detached houses. The masterplan integrates educational institutes, residences and recreational amenities with the research facilities for a work-live-play-learn environment.
Candid nature
For someone who has been in the industry for more than 30 years, Ms Hadid has more works on paper than in reality. Her website lists 26 completed works but there is a longer list of projects under construction. With builders perhaps spooked by their radical aesthetics and challenging engineering requirements, the buildings have yet to be completed, or in some cases, never got built.
Such is the case of the Cardiff Bay Opera House in Wales. Ms Hadid won the design competition in the 1990s twice. It was to have been a radical building but the UK National Lottery refused to fund the project as it considered it to be financially risky, so the structure was never built.
While that has not put her off, it has made her critical of her fellow architects.
She misunderstands this reporter's question when asked if architects are too caught up with designing iconic buildings. 'If they have any talent at all, they would have caught up. Unfortunately, many don't have the ability to do it, so I don't think they have caught up,' she says. 'In fact, the reverse is true, 99 per cent of architects do terrible stuff.'
In the 1960s and 1970s, 'there was really interesting work', she says, but in the 1980s and 1990s, 'the buildings were not embedded to icon, but to some other word, which I will not say in public'.
Unlike other architects, she embraces the term 'starchitect': 'For years, architects were glorified plumbers. Now that they have emerged from the ashes, they are criticised for being starchitects and doing icons. Architects can create something which empowers the trade, not for the sake of it, but also to make a great work.'
She is all seriousness and, at times, intimidates. At a lecture on her works at the opera house, she grumbles about the podium: 'I hope my office did not design this thing. Just for your information, when you design a podium, there should be enough space for someone to lean on.'
Later, as the podium wobbles, she says: 'This is making me dizzy, I may have to sit down soon.' An opera house staff member scurries to stuff paper under it to stabilise the structure.
But there is a funny side to her. She says it is strange for her to speak in her own space 'because I can't make any jokes about it, which is a shame'. She quips about being a politician or singer if she had not become an architect. 'But standing here today, with this echo, I don't think I would have become a singer.'
It is just as well that she did not. In an industry dominated by men, Ms Hadid is arguably the world's most famous female architect, and looks to stay that way.
[email protected]
Rocking Guangzhou with opera house

Nicknamed pebbles for their shape, the two buildings of the Guangzhou Opera House have a granite and glass-clad steel frame (above) that lets in light (below). -- PHOTOS: GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE
Beijing has a bird's nest, a water cube and an egg as its architectural icons. In the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, visitors have been raving over two pebbles - the nickname of the two buildings of the Guangzhou Opera House because of their shape.
For the uninitiated, the bird's nest refers to the Beijing National Stadium. The water cube is the Beijing National Aquatics Center and the egg is the National Centre for the Performing Arts.
Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the opera house, which was completed last year, is the firm's first project in China. It won a design competition for it in 2002, and construction of the 1.38-billion yuan (S$266-million) building began in 2005.
Mr Patrik Schumacher, a director of the firm, says the design concept was based on the 'idea of two rocks in the Pearl River, which are nestled close to each other'.
The Pearl River is the main river that flows through Guangzhou. It cannot be seen from the opera house but is within walking distance from the building.
From an angle, the buildings appear to be embracing each other. Climb the flight of steps leading to the opera house and even non-architectural buffs will go 'wow'.

The 1,800-seat opera theatre (above), which is housed in the larger of two buildings, comes with champagne- gold walls and fairy lights in the ceiling. The structure is impressive when seen during the day but it is even more beautiful when lit up at night. Flaws such as uneven finishing in the building structure show up less.
The larger building houses the 1,800-seat opera theatre while the smaller one has a multi-purpose performance space which can seat about 440 people.
The cladding of the opera house has numerous pieces of dark grey granite which contrasts with the dazzling white interior. The other building is white outside and black inside.
The bigger of the two buildings has five floors: The basement is where the ticketing area is, the first floor with the lobby and an entrance to the theatre and the remaining floors also have entrances to the theatre. Three rehearsal studios, 43 dressing rooms and 15 piano rooms are on the various levels.
A granite and glass-clad steel frame, resembling a giant spider's web, envelopes part of the building while letting natural light in.
In between the frame and the theatre are large, dramatic foyers where visitors can walk freely. There are no straight lines here. The foyers twist and turn, creating a maze-like effect.
While visitors will be dazzled by the spaciousness of the building, the theatre wows, too. Designed in the signature Hadid style, it is asymmetrical and has sensual convex and concave forms.
Ms Hadid is pleased with the result, looking around with a wide smile when Life! was with her during a performance by the British Akram Khan Dance Company last Friday.
And do the locals like it? Ms Alison Chow, from the opera house's branding department, says: 'Our recent concerts for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and pianist Richard Clayderman were so popular, we had to add one more.'
When Life! visited last weekend, many residents were taking photos of the building, indicating they do love their pebbles.
ABOUT ZAHA HADID

The Maxxi museum in Rome was named World Building of the Year at last year's World Architecture Festival. -- PHOTO: IWAN BAAN Born in Baghdad, Iraq, in 1950
Graduates from the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London in 1977, and becomes a partner at the Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), where she works with famed Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas
Founds Zaha Hadid Architects in 1980
Shoots to fame in 1983, when she wins a design contest for The Peak Leisure Club in Hong Kong, a project that was never built
Vitra Fire Station in Weil am Rhein, Germany, is completed in 1993, making it her first completed building
Wins the first prize in a design competition in 1997 to build the Maxxi: National Museum of 21st Century Arts in Rome
Becomes an honourable member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2000. Also receives honorary fellowship from the American Institute of Architects
Her firm wins a design competition for the Guangzhou Opera House in 2002
Wins the coveted Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004, the only female architect to have done so
Designs the exhibition setting for a show of artworks from the Deutsche Bank Collection, titled All The Best, at the Singapore Art Museum, in 2006
Named Designer of the Year at the prestigious Paris home show, Maison et Objet, in 2008
In 2009, the Maxxi in Rome is completed, and she is named by British newspaper The Times as one of the '50 People of the Decade'
Last year, the Maxxi is named World Building of the Year at the annual World Architecture Festival. Hadid also receives the Unesco Artist for Peace prize and makes it to Time magazine's list of 'The World's 100 Most Influential People'. Guangzhou Opera House opens in May

[Wild Falcon]

The only problem is, the original design was very narrow at the bottom and large at the top to resemble a "flower" which was her trademark. But the final design was a far cry - anyhow curve - not even narrow at the bottom which was a shame and definitely doesn't resemble any flower. In fact, the final thing is the complete opposite which is fat at the bottom (scroll up to see the abomination). Sometimes, don't just read marketing talk. Look at the actual design. And don't go to the wrong websites because many websites still unfortunately reflect the orignal Zaha Hadid design.

Anyway, this d'Leedon is very affordable due to the small sizes.

[azeoprop]

Every floor different from the floor below...so don't expect construction to be fast, most probably top date is as advertised.

[azeoprop]

Actually the final design looks more like a bottle tree than a flower haa haa....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachychiton_rupestris
http://www.bottletree.com.sg/?p=103

[stalingrad]

The only problem is, the original design was very narrow at the bottom and large at the top to resemble a "flower" which was her trademark. But the final design was a far cry - anyhow curve - not even narrow at the bottom which was a shame and definitely doesn't resemble any flower. In fact, the final thing is the complete opposite which is fat at the bottom (scroll up to see the abomination). Sometimes, don't just read marketing talk. Look at the actual design. And don't go to the wrong websites because many websites still unfortunately reflect the orignal Zaha Hadid design.

Anyway, this d'Leedon is very affordable due to the small sizes.

don't get yourself worked about someone claiming to be convinced by the marketing gimmick. the person that claimed to be buying is probably just an agent trying to talk up interest.

[DaytonaSS]

don't get yourself worked about someone claiming to be convinced by the marketing gimmick. the person that claimed to be buying is probably just an agent trying to talk up interest.

Hahaha funny I see your last time post I though this guy must be agent too. Did u become a broker lately ? I want to open trading acc leh

[DaytonaSS]

The only problem is, the original design was very narrow at the bottom and large at the top to resemble a "flower" which was her trademark. But the final design was a far cry - anyhow curve - not even narrow at the bottom which was a shame and definitely doesn't resemble any flower. In fact, the final thing is the complete opposite which is fat at the bottom (scroll up to see the abomination). Sometimes, don't just read marketing talk. Look at the actual design. And don't go to the wrong websites because many websites still unfortunately reflect the orignal Zaha Hadid design.

Anyway, this d'Leedon is very affordable due to the small sizes.

U mean she go launches n press conference to promote something that is not her work? OMG then she is not worthy of the awards le

[mantrix]

don't get yourself worked about someone claiming to be convinced by the marketing gimmick. the person that claimed to be buying is probably just an agent trying to talk up interest.

or could be someone who is already vested but pretends not to be?

[DaytonaSS]

Really meh, can talk up or talk down property by posting in forum meh. Thought pple come ard to pick up in for n learn from experts. Mostly kill time ba.

Btw queensway best area, best of everything ! Come buy 5rm flats at 1m. Sure huat!

[DaytonaSS]

or could be someone who is already vested but pretends not to be?

Got swim 3x today?

[mantrix]

Really meh, can talk up or talk down property by posting in forum meh. Thought pple come ard to pick up in for n learn from experts. Mostly kill time ba.

Btw queensway best area, best of everything ! Come buy 5rm flats at 1m. Sure huat!

learn from experts like you?

http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_641529.html

"Instead, homes on the city fringe, like those in Queenstown and Toa Payoh, will be hardest hit.

This, said SLP's Mr Mak, is because they will not be able to compete against the high-quality developments in prime neighbourhoods. At the same time, they will not be priced as low as mass-market rentals in the suburbs."

[DaytonaSS]

learn from experts like you?

http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_641529.html

"Instead, homes on the city fringe, like those in Queenstown and Toa Payoh, will be hardest hit.

This, said SLP's Mr Mak, is because they will not be able to compete against the high-quality developments in prime neighbourhoods. At the same time, they will not be priced as low as mass-market rentals in the suburbs."

Hahahha I saw the article , it was posted on another thread also. First time pple suggest I m expert leh, hope u didn't mean it otherwise from my low quality posting n shallow sharing most will know I eat too full liao

btw i m not vested in queenstown

[mantrix]

Hahahha I saw the article , it was posted on another thread also. First time pple suggest I m expert leh, hope u didn't mean it otherwise from my low quality posting n shallow sharing most will know I eat too full liao

We all monkey around here lah, no one really claims to be an expert

If your post on Queenstown huat was sarcastic (which means you actually meant the reverse) then you really expert liao. If not then you are normal still

[DaytonaSS]

We all monkey around here lah, no one really claims to be an expert

If your post on Queenstown huat was sarcastic (which means you actually meant the reverse) then you really expert liao. If not then you are normal still

i wanna see next month got record sales in HDB website or not ma. If got means can talk up property one.

Pple will buy after reading forum n not analyst. Just like those straits time journalist come here read liao replicate in the newspaper.

[DaytonaSS]

Just saw a debate on D15 thread on Cape n surrounding condos...

Did abit of research n found SilverSea hitting high of $2400psf..

SILVERSEA MARINE PARADE ROAD

4,085,750 1,658sqft Strata 2,465 Jan-11


SILVERSEA MARINE PARADE ROAD

$3,623,400 1,647sqft Strata 2,200 Dec-10


What are your view on D15 vs D10 (1)new 99 (1600psf avg) & Old FH 1600 psg avg

[DaytonaSS]

is D15 the new 9/10/11 ? The prices are rock hard man!

[sh]

is D15 the new 9/10/11 ? The prices are rock hard man!

if Marina Bay is going to be the new centre of singapore, D15 is nearer to it than D10/11.... think about it...

[Wild Falcon]

She is paid to do it the event lah. Maybe she didn't even realise the significant deviation from her vision of a flower and keeps talking about how the narrow bottom and large top resembles a flower! It's hilarious. Sometimes, learn to use your own eyes and develop your own taste instead of just looking at brand names. The final design is fat at the bottom and its such a shame. I don't mind if you are buying because of the location or watever 1km to watever school. But please don't buy merely because of the design - because the final thing is realy quite fugly and doesn't resemble the flower she keeps talking about. But if you look back to her original vision - then you will understand.

And I'm pretty sure there are a few here who has bought the d'Leedon.

U mean she go launches n press conference to promote something that is not her work? OMG then she is not worthy of the awards le

[Wild Falcon]

I think D15 got the Indians and PRC pushing up the prices. Less so in other districts. If you go to some condos in Meyer or Tg Rhu, almost every other person is an Indian. These Indians just like to be near their own people, and they r so wealthy, they don't care about the prices.

But those transactions were done before cooling measures.

Just saw a debate on D15 thread on Cape n surrounding condos...

Did abit of research n found SilverSea hitting high of $2400psf..

SILVERSEA MARINE PARADE ROAD

4,085,750 1,658sqft Strata 2,465 Jan-11


SILVERSEA MARINE PARADE ROAD

$3,623,400 1,647sqft Strata 2,200 Dec-10


What are your view on D15 vs D10 (1)new 99 (1600psf avg) & Old FH 1600 psg avg

[DaytonaSS]

She is paid to do it the event lah. Maybe she didn't even realise the significant deviation from her vision of a flower and keeps talking about how the narrow bottom and large top resembles a flower! It's hilarious. Sometimes, learn to use your own eyes and develop your own taste instead of just looking at brand names. The final design is fat at the bottom and its such a shame. I don't mind if you are buying because of the location or watever 1km to watever school. But please don't buy merely because of the design - because the final thing is realy quite fugly and doesn't resemble the flower she keeps talking about. But if you look back to her original vision - then you will understand.

And I'm pretty sure there are a few here who has bought the d'Leedon.

how do u feel abt this D10 along farrer compared to D15? I just checked out Silversea again n it made d'Leedon look cheap.

PS1: i not agent.
PS2: i not talking up d'leedon using other projects. Comparing the news ones
PS3: i understand older FH represents better value
PS4: Personally alot of prices are beyond my understanding already. The new shock being Tennery, Silversea, The Cape. I m sure there are more out there out to shock me.

[DaytonaSS]

I think D15 got the Indians and PRC pushing up the prices. Less so in other districts. If you go to some condos in Meyer or Tg Rhu, almost every other person is an Indian. These Indians just like to be near their own people, and they r so wealthy, they don't care about the prices.

But those transactions were done before cooling measures.

Thats a reasonable point. LKY's the hard truth did mention that the new influx of rich indians like that area.

[kane]

learn from experts like you?

http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_641529.html

"Instead, homes on the city fringe, like those in Queenstown and Toa Payoh, will be hardest hit.

This, said SLP's Mr Mak, is because they will not be able to compete against the high-quality developments in prime neighbourhoods. At the same time, they will not be priced as low as mass-market rentals in the suburbs."

the non mature estate condos that aren't very near mrt have caught up in price to the point that there's almost no price difference. If there's any tsunami, I think the non mature estates could take more of a hit than the mature estates.