Sokimex Group Plans 15-Story Hotel Near Royal Palace
Local conglomerate Sokimex Group plans to construct a 15-story hotel as well as a supermarket and high-end shops on a more than 15,000-square-meter plot of land behind Phnom Penh’s Wat Ounalom, the firm’s founder, Sok Kong, said Thursday. Mr. Kong said his company had applied for a loan of $40 million through a bank based in China to begin the project, but the bank suspended Sokimex’s request because of the current political situation in Cambodia following last month’s election. A representative from Unesco in Cambodia on Thursday said a building of such height should not be allowed so close to the Royal Palace and that Unesco would be visiting the site over the weekend. Still, Mr. Kong assured the project would begin as soon as the loan is approved and a new government is in place. “We will start building this project after receiving the loan from the bank. The bank now suspended the loan because the situation [following the election] is bad,” Mr. Kong said, declining to name the Chinese bank. … Roeung Phallin, Chey Chumneah commune chief, said there is a restriction that means no building can be taller than the palace. …
Aun Pheap and Joshua Wilwohl
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/sokimex-group-plans-15-story-hotel-near-royal-palace-41433/
