45 hotels bid for tender to house athletes at 2015 SEA Games

SINGAPORE — A tender for hotels to house athletes from around the region at the 2015 SEA Games in the Republic has received 45 bids.

The bids were mainly from four- and five-star hotels in the city, including the Pan Pacific, Fairmont and Ritz-Carlton. The offers were of between 30 and 50 rooms.

The Singapore Sports Council announced earlier that it is considering a Village in the City concept instead of a traditional Games Village so that Singaporeans will have more opportunities to interact with the athletes.

But one property analyst said that housing athletes in hotels could lead to a shortage of rooms for other visitors, among other challenges.

Said Mr Nicholas Mak, Executive Director at SLP International Property Consultants: “On the day of the event, they will need to be moved to sporting facilities like the stadium. This can pose some logistics challenges as well as (result in) traffic congestion, so the authorities will have to look into this.”

About 15,000 volunteers will be roped in for the Games, with a recruitment drive planned for February next year at the Gardens by the Bay. LIP KWOK WAI