Emilyn Yap, Business Times 2 Feb 10;
SINGAPORE's physical landscape looks set to undergo big changes some 10 to 20 years down the road - Tanjong Pagar could become a new bustling waterfront district after the port moves, and land banks could be created underground.
These are just two of several possible developments, following recommendations from the Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) to improve Singapore's land productivity. ESC also proposed that the government support more intensive use of industrial land, more flexible use of land where needed, and offer more business locations.'Our land use strategies and infrastructure will support ESC's new economic strategies, in particular to make Singapore a better place not just to work but also for Singaporeans to live and play,' said Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education Grace Fu yesterday. She is also co-chair of the sub-committee looking at higher land productivity for future growth.
One suggestion poised to create buzz is the redevelopment of port land at Tanjong Pagar, Keppel and Pulau Brani to create a new waterfront district. This could happen after the port's lease at terminals expire in 2027.
Comparable in size to Marina Bay, the area would allow the business district to grow and could accommodate homes, hotels and other recreational facilities. 'We are quite excited about the potential,' Ms Fu said. 'What form it will take is something that we will work on but of course it has to be relevant to the time when we will be developing it . . . We are not looking at developing it anytime soon.'
The ESC also recommended that the government study the feasibility of having a consolidated port at Tuas, as part of Concept Plan 2011.
According to Real Estate Developers Association of Singapore CEO Steven Choo, discussions on relocating the port in Tanjong Pagar have been going on for some time. While the suggestion is not new, 'I think it is certainly very good timing,' he said.
It is too soon to predict the proposal's impact on developers, he added. 'When you see some of these ideas translated to the concept plan and then cascaded down to the master plan provisions, then I think it becomes clearer.'
Market watchers have been anticipating the remaking of Tanjong Pagar for some time, said DTZ executive director Ong Choon Fah, pointing out that it 'makes sense' to consolidate ports where the land cost is not so expensive.
Besides recycling land, the government can also create new space. ESC suggested that it add to its land bank by creating basement space at the same time that it develops underground infrastructure such as rail networks. 'We are limited in terms of land, but I think we are not limited in terms of imagination and creativity,' Ms Fu noted.
ESC also proposed that the government develop a subterranean land rights and valuation framework, establish a national geology office and draw up an underground master plan so that spaces above and under ground are 'synergised'. There should also be investment in research and development on creating subterranean space.
The government has ventured into underground projects in the last few years. Construction of the Jurong Rock Cavern, an oil storage facility below the seabed, is ongoing. JTC Corporation is also embarking on soil and rock investigations at Kent Ridge for the possible creation of an underground science city.
In addition, ESC raised the need for the government to step up the rejuvenation of mature industrial estates, and intensify the use of existing industrial land. It could offer incentives and grants to encourage the private sector to pioneer innovative plant layouts which would minimise land take-up.
In this respect, JTC has been working on several new concepts for factories. One involves the use of a giant hoist to move bulky goods even to high floors, allowing developers to build taller facilities with smaller footprints.
Colliers International industrial director Tan Boon Leong suggested that the government could take the lead in building prototypes for innovative facilities. 'If it proves to be successful, then everyone would want to go for it,' he said.
ESC also proposed that the government study targeted ways to widen land use flexibility. This would be useful as lines between certain business activities blur.
DTZ's Mrs Ong supported this recommendation. The use of industrial space has changed in the last few years and more knowledge-based activities are taking place there, she observed. Some companies also like to co-locate various functions, such as R&D and sales, she added.
ESC further noted that there should be greater choice and diversity in business locations for various types of companies. For instance, the government can provide incubator spaces for SMEs and start-ups and new estates for industries.
ESC proposes new waterfront city, nuclear energy
Joanne Chan/Lin JiaMei, Channel NewsAsia 1 Feb 10;
SINGAPORE: The Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) on Monday gave extensive recommendations to ensure energy sustainability and the full optimisation of Singapore's land space, given the island-state's limited resources.
Among the plans is a new waterfront city at Tanjong Pagar, currently a port area comprising Keppel and Pulau Brani. The current port lease in the area expires in 2027.
The land area is similar in size to Marina Bay and the committee believes it can potentially allow for a substantial expansion of the business district, integrated with waterfront housing, hotels and other lifestyle attractions.
Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for National Development and co-chair of ESC Sub-committee On Land, said: "This piece of land, I think will give us lots of elements to work on. We're quite excited about the potential. It is large, it is well-located, so we believe that it offers us opportunities to create economic, social, recreational, tourism opportunities."
The committee said there is also a need for an underground master plan. It said the government should catalyse the development of underground space over the next decade. The committee also emphasized a need to develop subterranean land rights, a valuation framework and to establish a national geology office.
Ms Fu said: "The government can take the lead by creating basement spaces, in conjunction with new infrastructure development. We can create land bank, underground land bank, especially around our rail system. Also, we'd like to develop an underground masterplan to ensure that underground and above ground are synergised and optimised."
The "hard" infrastructure aside, there is also a strong push for Singapore to provide the best quality of life in Asia. And this involves growing the arts and entertainment scene by developing economically and socially vibrant districts, such as Bugis.
Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Information, Communications & Arts Minister and co-chair of ESC Sub-Committee On Global City, said: "Singapore features very well on the global competitiveness indices, as a place to do business, as a place for the economy to grow and so on.
"Where, I think, we have room to improve further, is actually on the softer issues, the softer aspects - the cultural areas, the arts - as well as to make this place an even more liveable city."
Mr Lui said Singapore should develop by 2020 at least five world-class institutions in diverse fields such as arts, design and fashion.
Besides land constraints, Singapore also faces energy resource constraints. The committee suggested that Singapore study the feasibility of using nuclear energy in the long term, an idea which Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in 2008 said he "hasn't ruled out".
The ESC said the option could help meet base load electricity demand as well as Singapore's energy security in the long run.
In the medium term, the committee suggested Singapore should explore coal and electricity imports to diversify its energy sources. Importing energy will also free up valuable land in the country.
- CNA/yb/ir
Focus on providing best quality of life over next decade
Uma Shankari, Business Times 2 Feb 10;
SINGAPORE should aim to provide the best quality of life in Asia over the next 10 years as it looks to become a distinctive global city.
It should also become a leading cultural capital and attract and nurture a diverse pool of talent, the Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) said yesterday when releasing its report.
Singapore's ability to grow and succeed will ultimately depend on the talent and drive of its people, said Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts.
'Singapore features very well on the global competitiveness indices as a place to do business, as a place for economic growth,' he said. 'Where I think we have room to improve is actually the softer aspects, such as culture and the arts, as well as making this place an even more liveable city.'
RAdm Lui co-chaired the sub-committee that was tasked with coming up with proposals to make Singapore a leading global city.
Among other suggestions, the ESC report calls on the government to invest in 'cutting-edge' sustainable development strategies, technologies, and research and development projects to create distinct eco-precincts.
Singapore should also develop new urban planning solutions to expand the range of districts offering different lifestyle options - as has been done at Punggol, the Jurong Lake District and Marina Bay.
The report said that such strategies could be carried out collaboratively with private-sector players to develop new expertise in architecture, engineering and building design that could become a competitive advantage for companies bidding to develop new cities in Asia.
The report also said that Singapore has to come up with an expanded and well integrated public transport system through the Land Transport Masterplan. 'This is a major investment that will improve Singapore's convenience and connectivity.'
Economic activity has to be decentralised across the island through the creation of new commercial nodes outside the Central Area to ease congestion in the central business district and bring jobs closer to homes, the ESC said.
The report also suggests developing economically and socially vibrant districts in Bras Basah-Bugis, Orchard Road, Singapore River and conserved historic areas.
Home, the place we want to be
Ansley Ng, Today Online 2 Feb 10;
SINGAPORE - It is a vision more than a decade in the making. And in its latest update, the Republic's "global city" masterplan features grand new developments and the most rounded perspective yet.
From a new waterfront city at Tanjong Pagar and eco-townships, to hosting "pinnacle global events" and nurturing professional expertise among corporate leaders and fashion designers alike - these are ways to make this a place where people want to be, according to the Economic Strategies Committee (ESC).
The panel, significantly, went beyond the hard economics of workforce upgrading and corporate development, to highlight the idea of a "distinctive global city and endearing home" as a third broad priority for the next decade.
"Why should liveability, culture and the arts feature so prominently?" Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Lui Tuck Yew asked rhetorically.
Singapore, he continued, has done "very well" in global surveys as a place to do business in. But "there is room to improve further on the softer issues like the cultural areas, the arts, as well as to make this an even more liveable city," added Mr Lui, who chairs the sub-committee on becoming a leading global city.
The goal, said the ESC, is to continue attracting top talent from around the world, and to get Singaporeans who venture abroad to stay emotionally attached to their homeland.
In this respect, the fundamental aims have not altered much, though the vision has gained more dimension over the years. In 1997, then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong urged Singaporeans to welcome foreign talent, saying this "must become a cosmopolitan, global city ... where people from many lands can feel at home".
A 2000 report outlined the strategies to turn Singapore into a "global arts city" - "one of the top cities in the world to live, work and play in", with a climate "conducive to creative and knowledge-based industries and talent".
In more recent years, the focus has also turned to shaping a liveable, sustainable city; while last year, the Republic made it to the top 10 of Forbes' list of culture capitals, alongside the likes of Glasgow and Barcelona.
And in its report released yesterday, the ESC noted that with 35 per cent of the resident workforce projected to hold a degree by 2020, a new "talent ecosystem" and more opportunities for people to develop "thought leadership" must be in place. Simply being a meeting point for enterprise, talent, cultures and ideas, it added, "will be a source of competitiveness and growth in its own right" for Singapore.
Are Singaporeans ready for the next stage of evolution as a global city?
Dr Terence Chong of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies said: "If it's for the upper and middle classes, then it is well and good. (But) there are also many Singaporeans who do not consume the arts or F1 races, or do not see the economic benefits of it. These people may not be so enthusiastic." What is needed is more arts education, he said, while aknowledging the outreach the National Arts Council was doing.
But heartlanders will reap many tangible benefits of the global city, from living in a place with the "best quality of life in Asia" - in Mr Lui's words - to having jobs closer to home as commercial hubs are decentralised. Added Mr Lui: "Top companies will bring a range of jobs and opportunities available to Singaporeans to stretch their potential and connect with international talent worldwide."
Network of underground cities, linked by rail
Teo Xuanwei, Today Online 2 Feb 10;
SINGAPORE - In the not-too-distant future, Singapore could have a network of underground cities, possibly linked by rail.
This was one of the Economic Strategies Committee's (ESC) recommendations - that investment be pumped into the development of underground space over the next decade - as the Government continues to find ways around the problem of space limitations in land-scarce Singapore.
The aim is to add to the Republic's "land bank" as demand for space increases in tandem with economic growth, Senior Minister of State (National Development) Grace Fu said at a press conference yesterday.
"Just as Singapore has reclaimed land in advance to support economic growth in the past, our sub-committee recommends that the government acts early to catalyse the development of underground space," said Ms Fu, who co-chairs the ESC sub-committee tasked to study land productivity.
An underground masterplan should be developed to ensure that space-use above and below ground are "synergised" and "better integrated" with surrounding developments, such as the rail network.
It also recommended the setting up of a national geology office to collate underground information, and setting up a subterranean legal and valuation framework.
The recommendation was welcomed by National University of Singapore geography professor David Higgitt, who described geology as a "neglected discipline" due to the island's limited natural resources.
"However, a national geology office is an important component of plans to develop underground space and a vital complement to structural engineering," he told MediaCorp.
"The geology of Singapore is complex and rock conditions can vary markedly over short distances. Understanding the controls on these variations and their implications for development is a necessary step."
In other recommendations, the committee said that industrial land, which takes up a "significant percentage" of Singapore's land stock, should be used more intensely or recycled.
For instance, the Government could incentivise private manufacturing firms to design more efficient plant layouts through grants, said Ms Fu.
Mature industrial estates should also be diverted for use by "higher value-added activities", similar to how companies such as Hyflux and Caterpillar are based at Kallang and Jalan Tukang now.
To support the ESC's new macro-economic strategies, urban-planning in the next 10 to 20 years will have to factor in making Singapore "the best home for businesses and people", she added.
The former can look forward to integrated locations, which facilitate whole value chain activities. For example, promising SMEs will be housed at suitable "incubator" spaces that support development.
As for workers, the sub-committee suggested distributing economic activities across the island so that jobs are found closer to homes.
This way, people can enjoy a better quality of life, said Ms Fu.
Tg Pagar set to be next waterfront city
Jessica Cheam, Straits Times 2 Feb 10;
EVEN as Singapore's iconic Marina Bay nears completion, its next waterfront city has been identified: Tanjong Pagar.
Right now, it is home to cranes and rows of stacked containers waiting to be loaded onto ships calling at one of the world's busiest ports.
But come 2027, when port operator PSA Corporation's lease on the land expires, the prime waterfront space should become home to skyscrapers of another sort.
The Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) yesterday called for Tanjong Pagar to be transformed into a waterfront city catering for the expansion of Singapore's business district and boasting apartments, hotels, and lifestyle and tourism facilities.
'This area is very attractive, it is just at the fringe of the city, the size is comparable to another Marina Bay and it can offer immense opportunities to support future growth,' said Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu yesterday.
Because of its proximity to the Central Business District, Sentosa and universities, Tanjong Pagar 'will give us lots of elements to work on and we're quite excited about the potential', she added.
However, details are not ready at the moment as the Government is not looking at developing it any time soon.
Ms Fu, who co-chaired the ESC sub-committee on higher land productivity for future growth, said this is all part of the committee's push to make the most productive use of Singapore's land.
This is especially since Singapore's competitiveness will in future rest on being 'a global city and a meeting point in Asia for enterprise, talent, cultures and ideas'.
The idea is make each piece of land work harder and examine how land use should be reconfigured to support the new economic strategies for the country.
For example, more incentives and grants could be given to encourage the private sector to pilot innovative plant layouts for key manufacturing sectors to minimise the use of land, she said.
'We will also have to progressively step up the rejuvenation of mature industrial estates and at the more macro level... recycle land to support new economic activities,' she added.
Another look may also be taken at industrial spaces which one cannot imagine could be used for other purposes.
Lorong Halus, for example, used to be just a dumping ground for rubbish, but is now home to wildlife.
'So we would try not to imagine Tuas as it is now, but rather a place where we could find a congregation of not just economic (or) industrial activities but hopefully residential and recreational as well - a much more pleasant place and a place for the birds as well!' Ms Fu quipped.
'We are limited in terms of land but I think we are not limited in terms of imagination and creativity.'
Commenting on the plans for Tanjong Pagar, Mr Steven Choo, chief executive of the Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore, said they will add a new dimension to land-scarce Singapore.
However, he also noted that this is a long-term vision which will not have much impact on the current market over the next few years.
'But eventually I'm sure it will open up more options, more quality living, offices, accommodation, and more variety to our urban landscape,' he said.
Singapore Institute of Architects president Ashvinkumar Kantilal said the plans were 'very pragmatic, typical of the Singapore approach'.
The location already boasts Sentosa, residential estates, and a shopping and office hub, and will present a great planning opportunity 'when the time comes', he added.
Need more space? Let's go underground
Straits Times 2 Feb 10;
ONE innovative solution to meeting the nation's expected shortage of land is to go underground and carve out spaces.
These subterranean land banks would be located mainly near transport hubs, according to the Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) report yesterday.
As Singapore plans ahead for a city that 'remains extremely liveable even as we grow, we have to make more efficient use of our land (and)... this will call for bold and imaginative urban planning and redevelopment', said the report.
Senior Minister of State for National Development Grace Fu expanded on the idea yesterday, saying that the Government has to identify new industrial estates to serve new industries.
It could create basement spaces with new underground infrastructure, and land banks around our rail network, said Ms Fu, who co-chairs the ESC sub-committee on land.
She said the Government has found 'tremendous potential for us to create infrastructure underground already' during the process of developing the rail system.
'This means that there's land that can be created underground. We may not need to tap (it) any time soon but if we're to do it, as we are developing the infrastructure underground, it's getting the land ready for us,' she said.
The Government also wants to develop a masterplan to ensure that underground and ground spaces are developed in sync with each other to ensure that the maximum potential is realised. It is setting up the National Geology Office to collate information on underground development.
The Government will also develop a subterranean legal and valuation framework that will benefit private and public sector efforts in developing underground spaces, added Ms Fu.
Investment will be pumped into research and development and cavern level test beds to gain experience in underground development.
Going underground is not alien to Singapore. The industrial developer and landlord, JTC Corporation, has started work on the first phase of the Jurong Rock Cavern, the first underground oil storage facility to be built in South-east Asia.
Industry observers said yesterday that going underground is challenging from a cost viewpoint.
Mr Ashvinkumar Kantilal, president of the Singapore Institute of Architects, said developers only go into basements when required because of the cost.
'The uses of these underground spaces also have to be very specific,' he said.
Perhaps a leap in technology will lower costs to allow Singapore to maximise the potential of such spaces, he added.
JESSICA CHEAM
Tanjong PAGAR - waterfront city
by Teo Xuanwei, Today Online 2 Feb 10;
Singapore could eventually have a new waterfront city to add to the crown jewel it now has in Marina Bay.
That is, if the Government takes up the Economic Strategies Committee's recommendation to redevelop the port at Tanjong Pagar into a business district - complete with waterfront housing, hotels, lifestyle and tourism uses - when the lease expires in 2027.
The "prime land" currently occupied by the Tanjong Pagar, Keppel and Pulau Brani port terminals, which is comparable to the size of Marina Bay, "can offer immense opportunities to support future growth", said Senior Minister of State (National Development) Grace Fu.
The ESC is suggesting that under the Concept Plan 2011, the Government studies the feasibility of eventually consolidating all port activities at Tuas. This will reap greater economies of scale both in terms of land use and port operations, said the sub-committee on enhancing land productivity.
Architect Tay Kheng Soon agreed with the suggestion. He told MediaCorp that "the time has come" to move the Tanjong Pagar port. But he was less sure about plans to construct a new waterfront city.
"Right now, you have a lot of trucks coming through the business district because of the port, so we should move the port away and free up the land," said Mr Tay, Akitek Tenggara's principal partner.
But whether a new waterfront city or the expansion of the Tuas port should go ahead should be studied closer.
"This limitless expansion of residential properties is all premised on a growth economy. Is it absolutely sure the economy is going to grow? If not, then we better start re-thinking fundamentally," he said.