Joanne Chan Channel NewsAsia 15 Feb 11;
SINGAPORE: Singapore's latest national project, Gardens by the Bay, overcame funding difficulties to reach its first milestone on Tuesday with the capping of one of its two giant conservatories, the Flower Dome.
The project faced rising construction costs when work started in 2007, leading overall cost to increase by more than 10 percent to over S$1 billion.
But with more public and private funding and the use of cost-efficient technology, the project was able to take off, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.
"We managed to do some value engineering, bring the cost down slightly and then ask for more funds. And I think the Finance Ministry was very understanding and managed to give us the funds. And we're also of course going for corporate sponsorships," he said.
For example, the Kingfisher Lake - one of two main lakes in Gardens by the Bay - was sponsored a million dollars by Japanese company Kikkoman last year.
Securing the final glass panel of the Flower Dome conservatory on Tuesday, Mr Mah described the "Capping-Up" ceremony as a milestone in a "long journey".
He said that the Flower Dome, along with the second conservatory the Cloud Forest, are not just "architectural icons" but an "amalgamation of architectural, environmental engineering and horticultural excellence."
The Flower Dome will feature Mediterranean-type plants, while the Cloud Forest, which is under construction, will mirror tropical high elevation regions like those in South America and Mount Kinabalu in Sabah.
The two conservatories were designed with environmental sustainability in mind, applying cutting-edge technologies that provide energy-efficient solutions in cooling.
The facade of the 1.2-hectare Flower Dome is made up of 3,300 special glass panels, which let in the sunlight while keeping the heat out. This allows the conservatory to mimic the cool-dry climate of the Mediterranean.
To ensure energy efficiency, only areas occupied by plants and visitors will be cooled.
The conservatory is divided into smaller gardens featuring plants such as poppy flowers from California and Cat's Paw plants from Australia. One of the gardens - the Flower Field - will have changing displays including tulips and lavender.
The conservatory will also have an event space which can be rented out for weddings and other functions. There will also be two restaurants within the conservatory - one serving Mediterranean cuisine and the other, Chinese.
The Flower Dome is part of Bay South - the first of three gardens in Gardens by the Bay.
Construction for Bay South is expected to be completed by November, and opened to the public in June next year.
Explaining the time difference, Mr Mah said the plants need time to grow.
NParks says previews of Bay South will be arranged for organised groups from February next year.
It adds that the preview period will help the Gardens ease into its operations and allow the public to provide feedback.
The public will also get a sneak peek of the Flower Dome in November this year, during the World Orchid Conference.
- CNA/ir
Gardens on the Bay on track to bloom next year
Funding issues overcome by 'value engineering'
by Joanne Chan Today Online 16 Feb 11;
SINGAPORE - Initially budgeted at about $893 million, rising construction costs saw the bill for Singapore's showpiece project Gardens by the Bay ballooning to more than $1 billion.
But, thanks to cost-efficient technology and more private and public funding, the 101-hectare showpiece project - which marked its first milestone yesterday - is on track for full completion by the middle of next year.
At a ceremony to cap one of its two giant conservatories - the Flower Dome - National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan revealed the initial funding difficulties which had to be overcome. For instance, Bay South, the first of three gardens to be built, had to grapple with a 30-per-cent rise in construction costs when work started in June 2007.
Said Mr Mah: "We managed to do some value engineering, bring the cost down slightly and then ask for more funds. And I think the Finance Ministry was very understanding and managed to give us the funds."
Mr Mah said the project was also targeting corporate sponsorships. For example, last year, Japanese company Kikkoman sponsored $1 million for one of the lakes in the project.
With the funding obstacle out of the way, Singaporeans will get a sneak peek of the Flower Dome in November during the World Orchid Conference.
The conservatory mimics the cool-dry conditions found in regions such as the Mediterranean. It is divided into smaller gardens and features plants such as poppy flowers from California and Cat's Paw plants from Australia.
There will also be two restaurants within the conservatory serving Mediterranean and Chinese cuisine respectively.
To achieve the temperature of between 23 and 25 degrees Celsius, cutting-edge technologies were used.
The project's chief executive Dr Kiat W Tan said: "The glass is a very highly researched piece of equipment and membrane. It screens out enough of the heat and lets in all types of light - the different wavelengths that allow plants to grow to their optimum."
The two conservatories - with the second named as the Cloud Forest - were designed with environmental sustainability in mind and Mr Mah described them as not just "architectural icons". They were an "amalgamation of architectural, environmental engineering and horticultural excellence", said Mr Mah.
Construction for Bay South is also expected to be completed by November but it will only be open to the public in June next year as the plants need time to grow.
NParks said previews of Bay South would be arranged for organised groups from February next year.
It added that the preview period would help the Gardens ease into its operations and allow the public to provide feedback.
Giant dome to play home to cool plants
Feature at upcoming Gardens by the Bay will be open to visitors in November
Straits Times 16 Feb 11;
A CAVERNOUS glass dome on the sprawling construction site of the Gardens by the Bay is set to become Singapore's newest tourist attraction.
The 1.2ha dome - slightly larger than the size of two football fields - is 38m high, and its interior is cooled to temperatures of between 17 deg C and 25 deg C.
This replicates the cool-dry climate of the Mediterranean and semi-arid subtropical regions such as South Africa and parts of Europe, and will house a variety of plants, ranging from olive and bottle trees to tulips and grape vines.
The dome will open to visitors for the first time during the World Orchid Conference in November. Its official opening will be in June next year, together with the Bay South Gardens, one of the Gardens by the Bay's three parts.
At an event yesterday to mark the completion of the dome's exterior, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said it was a milestone of 'the crown jewel of the downtown Marina Bay'.
Asked why the dome would officially open only six months after it is ready, he said that it takes time for the plants to mature and settle into their new environment.
A second dome, which replicates a cool-moist climate found in high-elevation areas such as South America, is also on track to open in June.
Both domes will house about 226,000 plants from every continent except Antarctica.
JESSICA LIM
