Tuesday Nov 05, 2024
FT
Tuesday Nov 05, 2024
Monday, 2 September 2019 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Rohana Wannigama – Director, Capitol Developers/Managing Director, Capitol TwinPeaks, the flagship residential venture of the Sanken Group, addressed a panel of industry peers at the ‘Future of Condominium living in Sri Lanka’ on the issues faced by condominium developers in Sri Lanka. The event which was organised by the Chamber of Construction Industry (CCI), was held on 21 August at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute, Colombo 7. 
The event, under the leadership of President, CCI and Managing Director, Sanken Construction Ltd. – Engineer, Major Ranjith Gunatilleke, welcomed industry titans in real estate and construction, as well as investors, trust managers and industry partners from across the nation. In his address on issues faced by condominium developers in Sri Lanka, Wannigama delved into concerns such as approval processes, high cost of project financing and the integral role of the banks, infrastructure lags, the impact of currency fluctuations and parity variance, protectionist policies on raw material imports, foreign direct investment and tax inconsistencies in real estate.
Wannigama during his address noted, “We are now having a paradigm shift in moving more towards city based life at a much faster pace than in the past. Given the limited space within cities, we as developers, need to look for economical solutions to make use of limited resources such as land, facilities and other amenities within these metropolitan cities. Which is why the concept of condominium developments have emerged and it is beyond doubt that this will be the future of city living in Sri Lanka.
“Earlier we used to live in villages as a community. Nowadays we are doing the same by building high-rise apartments which are apparently vertical villages in the city. Therefore, it is always a good practice for us to be familiar with what are the best practices in order to inaugurate, and have as many condo developments for the welfare of the society at large. In doing so we will need to see what the shortcomings developers have, in order to seek remedial measures.”
In addition, Wannigama noted, “With regard to recognition of developers the Sri Lankan real estate sector has an array of all sorts. In the best interest of apartment buyers and investors, we need to have a grading system to safeguard both buyers and lenders. I sincerely hope I have shed some light on the issues faced by developers in a meaningful manner so that we could work in partnership to overcome challenges we are facing now, perfecting the processes for a better condominium development Industry in Sri Lanka.”
Under the Sanken Group umbrella, located on the coveted Beria Lakefront, Capitol TwinPeaks has received international recognition. Synonymous with several landmark high rises around Sri Lanka, Sanken has contributed to a majority of Colombo’s skyline; with over 17 subsidiaries complementing the Company’s overall expertise in real estate; as well as presence in over 12 countries.
For more information, visit www.capitoltwinpeaks.com
