Anger smolders at Splendora

Splendora, backed by Korea Posco E&C and domestic Vinaconex, is envisioned as a large-scale residential area along Thang Long Avenue west of Hanoi.

Disputes in this project have been prolonged for several months. Unhappy buyers say the developers promised to answer complaints by the beginning of December but so far have not provided any feedback

The buyers had many times come to the management board of the project to post their grievances.

The latest dispute occurred  in the middle of this month when buyers gathered at the project site to ask for meeting with management board of the joint venture.

Buyers became angrier when they were not received by any high-ranking officials of the project, but only a staff member who was responsible for writing down all buyers’ opinion and claimed that the meeting was unplanned so all of the high-ranking officials were out.

Nguyen Thi Thai, a representative of the buyers of the project said that she had arranged the meeting with Hoang The Trung, deputy general director of the joint venture, however the joint venture ignored buyers’ complaints.

Reporters were barred from the meeting, despite the support from the buyers. This absence made buyers angrier. They came to the project site and protested with slogans such as “An Khanh joint venture must solve buyers’ requirements” and “We require to organise buyers’ meeting,” among others.

Buyers have prepared a long list of grievances they want the developers to resolve. One of the most important demands, they say, is for the developer to halt work on the project pending the resolution of a dispute over a pricing formula and materials used in construction.

Buyers also called for developers to recalculate their house value because the price of each house had been increased by $26,300-$67,000 after the capital contribution contracts were changed into house purchase contracts.

Due to the difficult finances, buyers also required the developer to hand-over bareshell houses, instead of completed units. Apart from that, the developers were also called on to finish infrastructure system, landscape around and public facilities, especially the education system in the first phase area to serve project’s residents when they move to live there.

Buyers also say they want to express their complaints to the joint venture’s general director, or people who have enough responsibility to talk with them.

Customers have expressed doubts over the joint venture’s ability to finish infrastructure system, from power, water, gas and telecom supply, swimming pool, kindergarten, restaurants and supermarket in only some months before the mid 2013.

Splendora was started in 2006 with investment capital of $2.1 billion and is being developed as a joint venture between Posco E&C and Vinaconex.

The project covers 264 hectares six kilometres west of the National Convention Centre. The first phase of the Splendora project covers 50 hectares and is estimated to be completed in 2013 including around 550 townhouses and villas.