Soundwill to expand Causeway Bay hotel
Soundwill Holdings will double the size of its proposed hotel project in Causeway Bay to 500 rooms after enlarging the site by one third, according to company sources.
The development site at Sharp Street East, opposite Times Square, had been enlarged from 6,600 square feet to 8,805 sq ft, or from a maximum of 280 rooms to 500 rooms, sources said.
The 30-floor hotel has a total floor area of 130,000 sq ft.
Total investment costs were not disclosed, but construction outlays were put at about $1,500 per sq ft, which would translate into a total construction cost of $195 million.
The proposed hotel is scheduled for completion in mid-1999.
Sources said there was a shortage of rooms in Causeway Bay, especially in three to four-star hotels.
'We hope to fill the gap and provide stable income for the company as well,' one source said.
Soundwill's other hotel plans include converting a commercial building in Kimberley Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, into a 200-room, three-to-four-star hotel with a floor area of 60,000 sq ft.
The company bought the commercial building for $267.5 million.
Another redevelopment project, on a 2,500 sq ft site in Prince Edward Road, had yet to be finalised for residential or commercial purposes, sources said.
Capital values of properties in Prince Edward Road had jumped substantially after the completion of Sun Hung Kai Properties' Grand Century Place in Mongkok, the sources said.
The company said it would focus on developing small-to-medium-sized residential projects.
It said it was in a sound financial position and capital could be raised from internal sources or bank loans.
