Managing director Sumeth Sukapanpotharam is confident Supharat Development's 150-unit freehold condominium project on Sukhumvit 68, just before the Bang Na intersection, will be well received.

Speaking at the company's sales office in front of Sukhumvit 66, where two mock-up units have been erected, Sumeth was excited about his latest endeavour.

"'Sense' is based on urban living and aimed at a new breed of buyers who appreciate compact living in a cosmopolitan area," he said.

The new BTS Skytrain link via a station currently being built at Udomsuk (Sukhumvit 103), across the street from the site, is one reason why the area is perceived as a handy spot for commuters.

Pricing his units at roughly Bt50,000 a square metre, Sumeth is reaching for mid-end buyers who are a bit more demanding than those who would go for the mass-made condominiums by Areeya and Plus Property, which are less costly.

For instance, everything about Sense's approach is different. It has a strong individualistic appearance, with sharp Asian curved roofs. Another feature is the single-loaded corridor, which makes the passageways into the six-floor building bright and airy, said the Harvard-trained architect.

The A-shape building also allows a lot of light into the middle of the structure.

The interiors of the rooms are also well thought-out. The studios, which start from 31 square metres, have a kitchen at the front and a small balcony in front of the bedroom. With 2.6-metre-tall ceilings, Sense units will look somewhat larger than many of the new mini-units coming on the market.

The one-bedroom units, which cover a built-up area from 41 square metres, are a marked improvement from the studios, being more spacious and with an optional walk-in closet facility. Although the prices do not include furniture and items such as the closet, buyers can arrange for Supharat to build them at an additional cost.

After inspecting the show units, this writer walked to the actual site two blocks away, despite the deafening din of numerous buses and trucks and choking smog belched out by dirty engines - and the heat.

But the trip was well worth the effort as it gave one an accurate feel of what it is like to be a resident in this part of town, which few developers were keen to come to before the arrival of the Skytrain links.

The entrance to the soi was colourless, save for an unshaven man who was lying on the kerb. Motorcycle taxi drivers chatted, ignoring him altogether. One assumes he must have been breathing, or some effort would have been made to remove the body.

But the sight of drunks lying in a stupor are not exclusive to Soi 68, as they can be found in just about every Bangkok soi. In most cases such nuisances would be carried off to avoid offending tourists and more civil folk.

But Soi 68 is hardly a tourist site and the residents are mostly not important enough to get municipal authorities moving. Such would not be the case in Phya Thai or Dusit districts. Hopefully this may change in the future.

The actual 316-square-wah plot on which Sense is to be built is sealed up, and piling has yet to start.

The big plus of this neighbourhood is its quaint atmosphere, and it is relatively uncluttered without horrid smells.

Unlike Sukhumvit Soi 62 to Soi 50, which is filled with packs of stray dogs and ceaseless streams of traffic, Soi 68 - being farther out - is safe from the unsavoury slums and criminal elements that lurk inside settlements housing migrant workers.

Sense is scheduled for completion in December 2008, when hopefully the Skytrain may be operational, ending the horrific construction chaos that has ruined the quality of life for thousands of people living in the area.

Itthi C Tan

The Nation