It seems that despite the Covid-19 pandemic leading to more Singaporeans working from home, more office space is still coming up — but with a twist.
A new campus-style development at one-north will feature an executive learning centre for workers to reskill for a post-Covid-19 world, and offices located in heritage bungalows as part of a flexible workplace arrangement.
Boasting a land size of 2.4 hectares – approximately 400,000 square feet (sq ft) – on lushly landscaped grounds, Rochester Commons at one-north is set to become the nation’s first campus-style integrated development.
It will feature an office tower, shared executive learning centre and business hotel — as well as heritage bungalows turned into offices, perhaps facilitating workplace safe distancing.
According to a media release from CapitaLand, Rochester Commons’ 17-storey Grade-A office tower will have over 200,000 sq ft of office space.
These work spaces will be maintained on the “core and flex” method — meaning businesses will keep just a core office space on a long-term lease, and maintain satellite offices on flexible leases.
Executives in this tower will work in column-free large floor plates spanning 22,500 sq ft per floor.
However, for those who are looking for a different working environment, 7 black-and-white heritage bungalows have been conserved and converted into niche workspaces.
We think that owning to the small sizes of these offices, their working environment should be cosier and almost like working from home.
Also, as they fit fewer workers, they’re also ideal for safe distancing — say goodbye to long waits for crowded lifts!
The other 5 bungalows will have food and beverage (F&B) establishments with exciting dining options and new-to-market concepts.
Besides offices, the 17-storey tower will house a business hotel.
The 135-unit Citadines Connect Rochester Singapore will be operated by CapitaLand’s lodging arm The Ascott Limited, and will cater to visitors on short or long stays who’re travelling for business or leisure.
What’s cool about the hotel is that it’ll be fully tech-enabled, meaning mobile keys, self check-in kiosks and content streaming-enabled televisions.
Guests will also be able use an app to book rooms, check in, request for services, check loyalty points, check out, make payment and provide feedback.
Robot staff will do perform concierge services, laundry services and the refilling of room supplies.
A main draw of Rochester Commons would be Catapult, South-east Asia’s first shared executive learning centre.
It aims to groom executives in leadership and imbue them with future-ready skills that will help them adapt to a post-Covid-19 world.
Catapult is designed to deliver training programmes in an experiential and immersive way using cutting-edge technologies such as virtual and augmented reality.
Its centerpiece will be a 180-degree immersive screen that offers learners shared virtual reality viewing experience and expanded virtual conferencing capabilities during workshops.
It will also have a panoramic screen that brings 3D visuals to life.
CapitaLand chief executive Tan Yew Chin said Catapult isn’t just a standalone learning facility.
Rather, it’s “designed to facilitate cross-learning and networking in a state-of-the-art campus”, which will be more and more important as executives learn and reskill to adapt to the new normal after Covid-19, he added.
If you’re wondering how people will be able to get around the massive development, it will be connected via an approximately 1,200-foot green trail.
Facilities like a sky garden, viewing decks, event spaces and meeting pods will also be built for the Rochester Commons community to enjoy the outdoors.
By night, the area will become alive with vibrancy.
Its F&B establishments will boost its liveliness as workers and visitors take a well-deserved break.
Rochester Commons will also have outdoor social spaces, including a multi-purpose outdoor court named “Common Ground”, for executives to take part in curated community events.
A short walk from Buona Vista MRT station, Rochester Commons will have a strategic location indeed.
It’ll be located between 2 of Singapore’s major business hubs – the Central Business District and International Business Park at the Jurong Lake District.
The project is slated to be completed by the end of the 4th quarter of 2021.
Check out a video tour of an artist’s impression of Rochester Commons below:
Featured images adapted from CapitaLand.
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