Fate of long-delayed Park City remains murky

Park City would make a significant addition to Gaw Capital Partners’ property portfolio (Photo: Le Toan)

A representative of Gaw Capital Partners told VIR that the firm submitted the adjusted design of the project to the relevant authorities for approval.

Gaw Capital Parnters is waiting for the adjusted investment certificate as well as the approval from local authorities for the new design, thus it has yet to determine the specific time of starting the construction.

Park City was initially granted an investment certificate in 2008 as a joint venture between Saigon Development JSC and Saigon Entertainment Park Holding Pte., Ltd. from Singapore. The development, which has a total investment capital sum of $310 million and lifespan of 50 years, was intended to be a multi-functional entertainment centre.

The 49.5-hectare project’s investors were replaced by Indochina Land Holdings 2 and 3 in 2009, and in 2010 its function was changed into a trading centre and residential development.

Faced with investor restructuring, difficulties in land clearance and compensation, and the downturn of the real estate market, the project has been in limbo ever since.

In mid-2015, Gaw Capital Partners, a Hong Kong-based real estate private equity firm, announced taking over the Park City project, along with two other projects, namely Indochina Plaza in Hanoi, and Hyatt Regency Danang and Malibu Villas in the central province of Quang Nam.

The move fuelled expectations for the long-delayed Park City project because Gaw Capital Partners was considered having solid financial potential. At that time, Gaw Capital Partners said that it paid a total of $106 million for acquiring the above projects from property funds Indochina Land Holdings 2 and 3.

Furthermore, Gaw Capital Partners would co-operate with partner NP Capital to implement the construction. The founder of NP Capital is the vice chairman of Vietnam’s leading real estate developer Tien Phuoc Real Estate JSC.

Besides, in 2015, the real estate firm also announced its intentions to develop the mixed-used project Empire City in Ho Chi Minh City, with a total investment capital sum of $1.2 billion. The project would be implemented via Empire City Limited Liability Company—a joint venture between Tien Phuoc Real Estate, Tran Thai Real Estate, and Denver Power, a member of Gaw Capital.

Gaw Capital resuscitates plan for Park City project Gaw Capital Partners, a Hong Kong-based real estate private equity firm, is advancing plans to realise the Park City project in Ho Chi Minh City, which has been delayed for more than nine years.