Global chain Best Western gears for 700 rooms in Sri Lanka

The US-based Best Western chain of hotels is already looking at expanding its midscale Colombo property, upto 120 rooms in 2014, after its opening in mid June this year. This brand would actually fill the void for rooms at this rate compared to other city hotels.
Currently, set to open with only 60 rooms, the Best Western group is looking at further expanding the room capacity by an additional 60, its Asia and Middle Easter International Operations Vice President Glenn de Souza told the Business Times.

He noted that they were eyeing a further expansion to about 700 rooms within Sri Lanka with four more hotels to be established around the island.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Urgent need for Condominium Owners Association

Today Condo owners have no place to go to get their problems and issues effectively resolved without taking long and undue delays. So they are frustrated and a Condo Owners Association (COA) will be sympathetic to them and look for ways to solve their problems. In short this will become a strong lobby group and the government and condominium industry will also benefit, not only the condominium owners.

A new Condominium Owners Association can look into issues such as increasing maintenance fees, misappropriation of funds, declining value in some condos, limited reserve funds, overpriced contracts, poor representation, poor construction, bad attitudes of Board of Directors towards the owners.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Real Estate Gems In Sri Lanka With Steradian Capital

The island of Sri Lanka’s capital markets are going through a period of high capital investment. With the end of a 26-year civil war in 2009, the country is opening up tourism, international shipping, international trade and scaling up domestic businesses. There are many commercial and investment opportunities in the Sri Lankan real estate markets. This interview with Hardy Jamaldeen covers the full array of options from virgin beaches waiting for resorts and tourists to office space near Sri Lanka’s expanding port terminals to agribusiness in this tropical paradise.

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(Source: Forbes.com)

Krrish project on amidst payment delays

Despite a delay of 17 months, the Urban Development Authority (UDA) is confident that the Krrish Group will complete its due payments to lease the Transwork Square property for its long, overdue mega development project.

UDA Chairman, Nimal Perera told the Business Times that Krrish must make a payment of Rs.589. 7 million to close the land lease deal.
The total payment made by them up to now is Rs. 4.4 billion, he said adding that the full payment due is Rs. 4.995 billion.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Real estate market overview: High-end office space shortage

We believe there is currently a notable shortage of high-end office space in the Colombo central areas. The lack of availability of Grade A space is prompting organisations to refurbish lower grade developments in order to meet the requirement of being centrally located.What we also note is that the developments owned by large corporations have also started letting out entire floors to outside companies whilst relocating some of their own subsidiaries in order to cash in on the high rental rates.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

State land for private condominiums

The Government will release state lands to the private sector to construct condominiums.Laws to facilitate this are to be introduced in Parliament soon. They will come in the form of regulations under the Land Development Ordinance, Land Grants (Special Provisions) Act and the State Lands Ordinance. The move follows a recommendation made to the Cabinet by the Lands and Land Development Minister Janaka Bandara Tennekoon.

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(Source: Sunday Times)