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Thu, 13 Jun 2013
The Straits Times
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Jem mall to open Sat after 4-day delay; Tenants seek compensation
by Jessica Lim

Updated June 14, 2013:

Jurong East's Jem mall will finally open tomorrow after a four-day delay, for which some tenants want compensation.


Get the full story from The Straits Times.

Jem's development director Chris Brown announced the opening in a statement to the media on Thursday, saying: "We are pleased to inform you that Jem will be opening at 10am on Saturday."


Jem mall delays opening over 'admin issues'

The highly anticipated Jem mall in Jurong East did not open on Tuesday Jun 11 as planned, surprising some of its major tenants.

In a statement at press time late Monday night, Australian developer Lend Lease said it will be shifting the opening date back, citing "administrative issues".

Earlier, it had announced to much fanfare that the 241-store mall would open Tuesday.

It even conducted a tour for the media, told tenants to prepare themselves and fixed an opening celebration ceremony on Thursday. Tenants including The Soup Spoon had even stationed staff at Jurong East MRT station nearby to give out fliers announcing their opening in Jem.

"We were anticipating having received all the necessary endorsements by the end of business today. However, that was not the case," said Jem's development director Chris Brown yesterday. "We have therefore taken the difficult decision of not opening the mall to the public tomorrow in order to adhere to regulatory requirements."

He added: "This is in the best interests of the public and the retailers... We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and we will notify the public on the new opening date as soon as possible."

The Straits Times understands that the opening date will be moved back till beyond June 13.

Read the full story here.


Get the full story from The Straits Times.


Jem making 'good progress' in processing required fire permits

According to a media statement from the Jurong mall's Development Director, Mr Chris Brown, they are making "good progress" in processing the required fire permits from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) before they can open.

Said Mr Brown: "With the T.O.P. of the building’s retail component received on 31 May, the base building has received all necessary approvals.

"We are making good progress of processing the final permits required for the tenants to commence trading.

"Until these are in place, we continue to maintain the difficult position of not opening the mall to the public in order to adhere to regulatory requirements.

"We are focusing on getting Jem opened as soon as possible.

"We look forward to advising you on the new opening date as soon as we have the information. "

Jem announced on June 11 over its Facebook page that they would not be opening as scheduled. The post garnered over 100 comments, with many expressing their disappointment and frustration.

Jem added in another post on Tuesday that they were sorry for the delay and would give a token of appreciation to shoppers who made their way there between 10am to 11am.

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Click on the thumbnails for a sneak peek at the interior of Singapore's newest shopping mall.

(Photos: ST, Jem)

 

 

 

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The much-publicised opening of the Jem mall in Jurong East failed to materialise on June 11 due to a lack of necessary fire permits.
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readers' comments
Jurong mall's Development Director is Mr Chris Brown, sounds like an 'angmo'. If it is, then it is a case of employing "foreign talent" who is not familiar with local regulations.
Posted by Simple Minded on Fri, 14 Jun 2013 at 13:14 PM

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