The Independent Singapore just got a hot new neighbour.

Located just beside The Independent Singapore’s office in Paya Lebar Square, the new Paya Lebar Quarter (PLQ) development by Lendlease was officially launched on Thursday (Oct 24).

Valued at S$3.7 billion, the Paya Lebar Quarter is reportedly part of the government’s decentralization efforts to create spaces bringing jobs closer to residences in order to reduce commuting times.

Construction for the PLQ began three years ago.

The four-hectare development includes residential, retail, and office spaces branded as Park Place Residences, PLQ Mall, and PLQ Workplace respectively.

There are more than 200 retail shops in the mall and 429 condominium units across the three residential towers.

SMRT Corporation, CBRE, UOB, Sabre Asia Pacific, Roche Singapore, Obayashi Singapore and Tokyo Electron Singapore are among the many companies headquartered in the new PLQ office towers.

PLQ is also directly accessible through the Paya Lebar MRT station.

Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong, who was the guest of honour during the opening ceremony, described PLQ as “the new place to live, work, and play.”

“All in all it’s a tremendous opportunity for us to reimagine and remake Paya Lebar for the future, even for the next century,” Minister Wong said during the launch./TISG