The Kaohsiung Harbor Bureau said last week that it would use parts of certain properties at Kaohsiung Port to build a sailboat hotel, adding that it would open bidding for a qualified contractor next year.
The project is part of the bureau’s master plan titled “Waterside Pearl,” which was presented at the weekly meeting of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications last week.
The bureau said it intended to relocate piers No. 16 to No. 21 to the reclaimed areas of the Kaohsiung Port, adding that the sailboat hotel would be built between the old No. 16 and No. 18 piers.
The “Waterside Pearl” plan contains a development area of 10.73 hectares and the designated area for a six-star sailboat hotel was about 4 hectares, it said, adding that the hotel would be built under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model.
Construction is scheduled for completion by 2015.
The bureau said the hotel would have a great geographical advantage as it would be surrounded by Dream Mall, Sanduo Shopping District, Tuntex Sky Tower and Hanshin Shopping District, which are all between 1km and 2km away.
Visitors arriving at Kaohsiung Hsiaokang International Airport will have only a 10-minute drive to reach the hotel.
Meanwhile, the soon-to-be-built Kaohsiung World Trade Center and Kaohsiung Maritime Culture and Popular Music Center will also be in the proximity of the hotel.
Aside from the sailboat hotel, the bureau said the old No. 19 and No. 20 piers would be used to build the Kaohsiung Port Cruise Service Center. The investment in the Cruise Service Center was estimated to top NT$2.85 billion (US$93.5 million).
The bureau said the center is scheduled to become operational by 2014 and will accommodate some of the biggest international cruise ships, including the MS Allure of the Sea, currently the world’s largest cruise ship.
The old No. 21 pier will be used to build a duty-free mall and a commercial-use building, which is scheduled to be completed by 2021.
In related news, starting in 2013, all single-hull ships registered in other countries will be barred from entering the ports of Taiwan, the ministry said last week.
The ministry said it was in the process of stipulating regulations, which would be made public by the end of this year. In the initial state, the ban will only apply to single-hull oil tankers registered in countries other than Taiwan. Operators will have a one-year grace period to adjust to the policy change, the ministry added.
As far as single-hull oil tankers registered in Taiwan were concerned, the ministry said it would discuss with other agencies an appropriate time to execute the policy.
The International Maritime Organization had asked that all single-hull oil tankers be phased out by 2015 because of the oil spill risks they pose to the environment.
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