Green Mark Gross Floor Area Incentive Scheme for private developments that achieved higher-tier Green Mark Ratings

Circular No : BCA/GM GFA/2009-04-TD01

Our Ref : DC/ADMIN/CIRCULAR/PB_09

Fax : 6227 4792

This circular should be read in conjunction with the overall 10% bonus GFA budget in URA’s Circular No: URA/PB/2009/03-DCG dated 29 April 2009 on “Framework for Managing Bonus Gross Floor Area Incentives”.

CIRCULAR TO PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTES

Who Should Know:
Architects, engineers, developers, building owners, property consultants.

Effective Date:
With effect from 29 Apr 2009 for a period of 5 years with a mid-term review after 2 years of implementation.

Objective
This circular gives the details of the Green Mark Gross Floor Area (GM GFA) incentive allowed beyond the Master Plan (MP) Gross Plot Ratio (GPR) for developments that achieved higher-tier Green Mark ratings of Platinum and Goldplus. The incentive is given to encourage greater adoption of green building technologies and building design practices that will contribute to the sustainable development of Singapore.

Details of GM GFA Incentive Scheme

Background

1. In January 2005, BCA launched the Green Mark (GM) Scheme to promote the sustainable development of Singapore’s built environment. The scheme encourages the adoption of an integrated design approach, incorporating passive design and various green building technologies to achieve greater energy efficiency and a more sustainable built environment.

GM GFA Incentive Scheme

2. To accelerate the adoption of environmentally-friendly green building technologies and building design practices that will contribute to the sustainable development of Singapore, BCA and URA have jointly released a set of GM gross floor area (GFA) incentives. For buildings that achieve higher-tier GM ratings of Platinum and Goldplus, developers / building owners (referred to as the “applicant”) can enjoy additional GFA allowed beyond the Master Plan GPR.

3. Buildings that achieve GM Platinum can qualify for up to 2% additional GFA (subject to a cap of 5,000sqm) while those achieving GM Goldplus can qualify for up to 1% additional GFA (subject to a cap of 2,500sqm).

4. The approval of the additional GM GFA is subject to: a) endorsement of the green building design concept by the Green Mark Incentive Committee (GMIC) of BCA;b) achievement of stipulated GM standard assessed by BCA under the prevailing BCA’s Green Mark Assessment criteria;c) compliance with all other planning and urban design requirements for the site; and d) payment of Development Charge (DC) or Differential Premium (DP), whichever is applicable.

5. The additional GM GFA will not form the new prescribed maximum Gross Plot Ratio (GPR) for the site upon redevelopment.

Eligibility

6. The types of development that are eligible for this GM GFA Incentive Scheme are shown in the table below.
   

7. The GM GFA Incentive Scheme will apply to all new private1 developments, redevelopments and reconstruction developments2 submitted on or after the effective date. Developments which have obtained planning approval but have not commenced construction of the superstructure works on site may also be considered for the GM GFA Incentive Scheme. For such cases, the applicant should obtain BCA’s endorsement for the GM proposal before making an amendment or fresh submission to URA to include the additional GFA.

8. The GM GFA Incentive Scheme will also apply to Government Land Sale (GLS) sites, except for sites in which the GM Platinum or Goldplus standards are mandated as part of the sales condition3. For sites in which the Goldplus standard is mandated, the developer can still qualify for an incremental GFA incentive if the developer chooses to attain the higher GM Platinum standard4.

9. Applicants who take up the GM GFA Incentive Scheme will not be eligible for the Green Mark Incentive Scheme (GMIS)6.

Submission and evaluation process

10. Appendix 1 shows the flowchart for the submission and evaluation process for the GM GFA Incentive Scheme.

11. Applicants who are interested in the GM GFA Incentive Scheme must first submit an application form (attached inAppendix 2and2-1) to BCA and obtain BCA’s endorsement before including the additional GFA in a planning submission to URA. This application must indicate the GM rating that the applicant has set out to achieve and provide details of the green building design concept proposal to demonstrate how that GM rating can be attained. BCA’s GMIC will evaluate the application based on the prevailing Green Mark Assessment criteria before endorsing the application (more information can be obtained fromhttp://www.bca.gov.sg/GreenMark/green_mark_criteria.html). With BCA’s endorsement, the applicant can then proceed to plan and design the development with the additional GM GFA.

12. Following this, the applicant will submit the GM GFA computation form (attached inAppendix 3) and a copy of BCA’s endorsement together with the development application incorporating the additional GFA to URA for planning approval. The GM GFA computation form must also be copied to BCA.

13. The quantum of allowable GM GFA is based on the equivalent value of the green premium7 incurred for attaining the higher tier of GM and computed using the prevailing DC or DP rate, whichever is applicable. The prescribed Green Premium rates (see Appendix 3-1 for the set of Green Premium rates that will be effective from 29 Apr 09) and DC/DP rate to be used for computing the GM GFA will be pegged to the date of planning submission to URA where the GM GFA is proposed and leading to a conveyance where the GM GFA is first endorsed by URA and BCA. This would facilitate the applicants to do their feasibility studies and GM GFA computations by using the prevailing prescribed Green Premium and DC/DP rates at the point of the submission. The computation will be accepted if URA grants in-principle approval for the additional GFA through a planning conveyance, which could be a Provisional Permission (PP) or Written Direction (WD). For avoidance of doubt, URA will state clearly in the PP / WD that the proposed additional GM GFA (with exact GFA amounts) under the GM GFA Incentive Scheme is endorsed. Examples of how to compute the GM GFA is shown inAppendix 3-2.

14. For mixed used developments, the applicant should ensure that the total proposed GFA, inclusive of the additional GM GFA, adheres to the use quantum requirements under the corresponding MP land use zone or any specific land sales requirement applicable to the site.

15. Upon verification that the GM GFA computation is in order, URA will proceed with processing the development application while BCA will require the applicant to raise a security deposit (SD)8 within a stipulated period. To ease the financial burden on the applicant during this economic downturn, the SD required will be initially set at 50% of the market value of the full quantum of allowable GM GFA for a period of 2 years only (see Appendix 4 for an example on SD computation). For the avoidance of doubt, although the applicant need only provide a SD amount equal to 50% of the market value of the full quantum of allowable GM GFA, the applicant shall be liable for the full 100% of the market value of the additional GFA which has been approved and granted to the applicant should he fail to meet the stipulated GM standard and performance when the project is completed.

Consequences for non-compliance

16. Where the applicant has failed to meet the stipulated GM standard and performance, the applicant shall pay to BCA the amount(s) in the manner set out inAppendix 5. Where applicable, the said amount(s) shall be deducted from the SD. If the amount in the SD is insufficient, the applicant must pay to BCA the applicable shortfall sum on demand.

17. Checks for compliance will be done by BCA at 2 stages:

Stage 1: Before Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP) Stage

18. The applicant is required to apply to BCA for GM assessment and submit documentation that demonstrates achievement of the stipulated GM rating before Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP) stage. Clearance for TOP will be withheld if the applicant fails to submit evidence of achieving the intended GM rating.

19. If the applicant still has not submitted the evidence of achieving the intended GM rating after a reasonable grace period, and as such has failed to comply with the terms and conditions of the GM GFA Incentive Scheme, the applicant shall pay to BCA the amount(s) in the manner set out in Appendix 5 and clearance for TOP will be released. The said amount will be deducted from the SD. If the amount in the SD is insufficient, the applicant must pay to BCA the applicable shortfall sum on demand.

Stage 2: One Year after TOP Stage

20. One year after the issuance of TOP, BCA will assess the building performance for actual operation. Performance will be demonstrated through BCA Green Mark site validation and energy savings9, if applicable. The criteria of performance will be based on the prevailing BCA’s Green Mark Assessment criteria.

21. Failure to achieve the required performance will result in the withholding of the SD. The applicant will be given up to one additional year to prove that the GM performance requirements are met. If the GM performance requirements are still not met after one additional year, the applicant shall pay to BCA the amount(s) in the manner set out inAppendix 5. The said amount will be deducted from the SD. If the amount to be deducted exceeds the amount of the SD or the available balance, the applicant shall pay to BCA the shortfall sum on demand.

22. Such amount collected at both stages will go to a fund that will be dedicated to supporting market adoption of green buildings and to other GM incentive schemes.

23. We would appreciate it if you could convey the contents of this circular to the relevant members of your organisation. If you or your members have any queries concerning this circular, please do not hesitate to contact BCA’s hotline at Tel: 6325 5400 (email:bca_enquiry@bca.gov.sg) or URA’s DCG Enquiry Line at Tel: 6223 4811 (email:ura_dcd@ura.gov.sg). We would be pleased to answer queries on this. For your information, the past circulars to the professional institutes are available from our websiteshttp://www.bca.gov.sg/greenmark/gmgfa.html andhttp://www.ura.gov.sg.

Thank You.

HAN YONG HOE
GROUP DIRECTOR (DEVELOPMENT CONTROL)
for CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
URBAN REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

¹ For avoidance of doubt, the GM GFA incentive scheme will not apply to public sector developments.

² Reconstruction developments include major additions and alterations to existing building and major retrofitting to existing buildings as deemed suitable for the GM GFA incentive scheme at BCA’s sole discretion.

³ Generally, sales sites located within new strategic growth areas, which include Marina Bay and Downtown Core, Jurong Gateway in Jurong Lake District, Kallang Riverside and Paya Lebar Central will be required to achieve the GM Platinum or GM Goldplus in the sales conditions.

⁴ Incremental incentive is the difference between the GFA incentives for GM Platinum and GM Goldplus.

⁶ Project consultants (i.e. Architect and M&E Engineers) whose developments meet the criteria would still be eligible for GMIS till the expiry of this scheme.

⁷ Green premium is defined as the additional cost for the development to achieve the higher GM standard. BCA will review the prescribed Green Premium every 6 months (on 1 March and 1 September) and publish the same on its website: www.bca.gov.sg/sustain/sustain.html.

⁸ DP/DC rate is pegged to the date of planning submission to URA where the GM GFA is proposed and leading to a conveyance where the GM GFA is first endorsed by URA and BCA.

⁹ The minimum energy savings requirements are only applicable for air-conditioned buildings (exclude residential buildings). The energy saving must be demonstrated by energy modeling and validated on completion.

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