Lease of Farrer Park Swimming Complex to Private Entity

Asst Prof Tan Kheng Boon Eugene asked the Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (a) whether the initial lease of the Farrer Park swimming complex to a private entity was awarded through a public tender; (b) whether the subsequent renewals of the lease were done through public tenders and, if so, what was the winning bid for each renewal; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider requiring the private operator to provide for more and affordable use of the pool by the public during off-peak hours.

Mr Chan Chun Sing: Farrer Park Swimming Complex was closed to the public on 1 June 2003 due to low utilisation. The Singapore Sports Council (SSC) launched an open Request For Proposal (RFP) in September 2003 to invite the private sector to submit proposals for alternative uses of the closed swimming pool. Two proposals were received. A lease of the facility was awarded to a private entity for a term of five years to 30 July 2009. The winning bidder was assessed to have performed better overall against the evaluation criteria, including the fee which it would pay to SSC for the lease.

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After July 2009, the lease was extended on a monthly basis due to the uncertainty of the future plans for the site and when the land would need to be returned for redevelopment. In an audit by the Auditor-General's Office (AGO) which concluded earlier this year, AGO pointed out that in extending the lease, SSC should have carried out a valuation to ascertain the prevailing market rent, regardless of the uncertainty over the long term plans for the site. SSC has now completed a valuation on the market rate, and will be issuing a new tender/RFP in the coming months.

SSC is mindful that sports facilities should remain affordable even if it is operated by a private operator. This was, and will continue to be, part of the criteria of RFP exercises and terms in lease agreements. Flexibility is, however, given to the private operator to determine if it should charge differential fees between peak and off-peak periods based on demand and business considerations.