Phnom Penh weekends may never be the same. At least that’s what investors at Cambodia’s “first shopping mall and entertainment center” are hoping residents will be saying in a few months.
After two years, construction workers are finishing up the first phase of the “Parkway Square” project on Mao Tse Tung Boulevard. Developers have said it’s a $10 million project. Guests are already swimming in the pool and testing the nearly-finished gym.
The joint Singaporean-Cambodian venture is opening at a time of economic stagnation in the capital. The negative climate has already claimed a bowling alley in the Hong Kong Center which closed several months ago.
A Parkway spokesman expressed optimism for the mall despite the national and regional economic slow-down. “We are catering to expatriates and Cambodians alike, particularly families, and have already had a lot of interest,” the spokesman said.
Pool and weight room opened to members on Oct 1. The rest of “Cambodia’s first shopping mall” is scheduled to open by the end of the year, said Samuel Tay, Parkway’s director.
The city’s only fast-food style hamburger restaurant, Lucky Burger, and a massage parlor with 30 rooms are among businesses set to open in the mall.
The netting for a 24-lane golf-driving range is in place on the roof of the five-story building. Also planned are Western and Japanese restaurants, a department store, an ice-cream parlor and a 32-lane bowling alley.
The new fitness facility joins an already crowded scene: There are at least six health clubs in the city which have been jockeying for customers with enough cash to afford monthly fees. The Hotel Le Royale offered customers free tickets to try out their facilities last month, and the city’s oldest facility, The International Youth Club, has recently come out with a new advertising campaign to boost its image.
The result of all the competition may be good news for consumers with exercise shoes to test. Monthly fees at gyms around the city run at around $60 per month; the Parkway is offering groups of ten or more memberships at $30 per month.
