Construction starts on StarLake

After much delay, the mammoth StarLake urban development project can finally begin

A source from Tay Ho Tay Development said that the first infrastructure systems will be started in March this year. The whole project’s infrastructure is estimated to take two years to complete, while the first low-rise villas will open in the fourth quarter of 2014.

In November last year, the developer received a $200 million cash injection from the Korean Development Bank for the project’s first phase, thus far totally invested by Daewoo E&C.

According to a high ranking official from the developer, the cash will enable Daewoo E&C run the project over the next two years and have its infrastructure systems up and running immediately after getting land clearance from the Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee.

Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee Chairman Nguyen The Thao said that StarLake, which is expected to be complete by 2016, will make a significant contribution to the capital’s landscape. However, the project has faced difficulties for many years, including a lack of capital, zoning changes and land clearance compensation. Thao now claims that the issues have been overcome.

StarLake requires a total investment fund of around $2.5 billion and is planned to be a modern, environmentally-friendly urban area by 2019, housing 25,000 residents. The project will include a promenade, parks, trees and lakes alongside the more traditional urban structures, as well as 25 hectares of open space devoted to public activities and a headquarters building.

The developer hopes it will be a cultural hub and an international, commercial and financial centre.

The project spans the Tay Ho, Cau Giay and Tu Liem districts of Hanoi and joins up with the diplomatic area in the north with road links to the city’s spacious main arteries. It also plans to link up with a range of other key projects in Hanoi such as the road connecting the Nhat Tan Bridge and the Noi Bai International Airport and ring roads 1, 2 and 3.