Hutoupi Lakeside Hotel BOT Project Inviting Investments in Public-Private Partnership
Posted Date:2022-07-16
517
Introduce
The Xinhua Hutoupi Scenic Area is the closest scenic area to downtown Tainan, and is located near the Southern Taiwan Science Park and the Tainan HSR Station, with smooth and convenient transportation. Hutoupi is also renowned for the beautiful scenery of the reservoir. Mayor Huang Wei-Che has paid special attention to the development of tourism in Hutoupi and the investment in lakeside hotels and paid visits to the area many times. He said that Tainan ranked first in the six special municipalities in terms of accommodation rates for two consecutive years in 2020 and 2021 and ranked second in the country in terms of tourism and leisure and the county with the lowest negative rating. With the tourism environment of Tainan well regarded in the market, it is a great time to invest in Tainan’s tourism industry. Hutoupi is often regarded as the "No. 1 Reservoir in Taiwan" and features attractions such as the Tiger Moon Pavilion and a suspension bridge spanning the lake. In the early morning, the lake and mountains are surrounded by mists and is known as "Little Sun Moon Lake." It was once ranked as one of the twelve major scenic spots in Taiwan under Japanese rule and the tourist environment is a common memory of Tainan citizens, making it a perfect destination for both the young and old alike.
The base of the lakeside hotel urban planning area is categorized as a tourist service area with a total size of 1.3654 hectares, a 40% building coverage ratio, and a 120% plot ratio. The present site was formerly a youth activity center, with old facilities in disrepair. After evaluation by the city government, the hotel will be rebuilt through a build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, hoping to bring in private capital for professional operations and management and to revitalize local tourism with a vibrant and creative business model and to become a new landmark by integrating the green building concept into the natural environment of the lake and mountain scenery, providing a high-quality living environment, dining space and a venue for education, training, or exhibitions and developing the site into a world-class lakeside hotel in Tainan. Hutoupi is also adjacent to Tainan's first golf course, the Tainan Xinhua Golf Course and offers a splendid view of Hutoupi from the green. In addition, the nearby "Tainan Xinhua Fruit and Vegetable Market" regarded as one of the most beautiful markets in Taiwan, features a mountain-shaped terraced rooftop incorporating topographical features. The market has finished construction and will soon be in operation, which is expected to bring in more sports and vacation crowds.
Director-General Kuo Chen-Hui of the Tainan City Tourism Bureau pointed out that as of July 15, 2022, there were 755 legal hotels and guesthouses in Tainan City providing nearly 15,000 rooms, making the total number of hotel rooms the highest among the six special municipalities. The investment in large hotels such as the Aloft Tainan, the Formosa Yacht Resort and the Grand Banyan Hotel amounted to NT$3.7 billion and were put into official operations in the first half of this year (2022). This demonstrates that Tainan's tourism industry is thriving despite the pandemic. The Hutoupi Scenic Area can be integrated with adjacent tourism resources such as Xinhua Old Street, Xinhua Forest, Dakeng Leisure Farm and Erliao Sunrise Platform and is a key stopover for mountain tours, attracting about 350,000 visitors annually. In 2021, the Tourism Bureau of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications approved support for the project and invested NT$78.4 million in Forward-Looking Budget for tourism infrastructure, including all-age playgrounds and forest trails, which will be completed by the end of this year (2022). This is expected to greatly improve the quality of the tourism environment and attract more family tourists. In addition, the kick-off of the Hutoupi Lakeside Hotel BOT project will satisfy the demand for accommodation and vacation facilities and the charm of recreation at Hutoupi is something to be looked forward to.
The investment promotion campaign for the project will runs from July 14 to September 26 (75 days). Please visit the website of the Department for the Promotion of Private Participation Ministry of Finance and the investment promotion website of the city government to view and download relevant documents. We sincerely invite private investors to participate in the bidding process and work together with the city government to promote the tourism boom in Hutoupi and create new business opportunities for tourism development in the Xinhua area of Tainan City and the mountainous tourism axis.