The Central Region Today
Central Region today boasts a wide choice of housing, business locations, recreational areas and amenities. Well served by roads, highways and rail transport, residents enjoy a high quality living environment. These include an exciting range of dining, shopping and entertainment hotspots at well-loved places like Holland Village and Katong.
There is a good spread of healthcare, educational and community facilities in the region. These include major hospitals like the Singapore General Hospital and Tan Tock Seng Hospital, libraries, community clubs and some of the best schools in Singapore. There is also a bustling research hub at one-north.
There are also plenty of green spaces and parks for all to enjoy, from the popular Singapore Botanic Gardens and Bishan Park, to the buzzing East Coast Park and tranquil nature and hill parks like Labrador Nature Reserve and Mount Faber. Central region even offers offshore recreational areas like Sentosa and the southern islands.
New Lifestyle and Recreational Opportunities
Looking forward, the Central region will see exciting new developments at Kallang Riverside and Paya Lebar Central, and new sporting facilities at the Sports Hub.
Established estates like Queenstown and Bukit Merah will be further enhanced with new housing introduced. Residents can also look forward to new green spaces with new park connectors and enhanced parks.
Transport links will be strengthened with the introduction of four new rail lines and improvements to the existing road network. To enhance the identity and heritage of the region, many landmarks like the former Kallang Airport and Queenstown Market will be retained.
Over the next 10 to 15 years, residents can look forward to:
• New business and lifestyle hubs at Kallang Riverside and Paya Lebar Central
• New sporting, recreation and entertainment facilities at the Sports Hub at Kallang
• Rejuvenated neighbourhoods at Queenstown, Boon Keng and Bukit Merah
• More waterfront housing at Keppel Bay, Kallang Riverside and Tanjong Rhu, plus island living at Sentosa
• New hotels at the city fringe
• New parks and enhanced waterways
• Better transport connectivity region-wide and to the city through the new Circle Line (CCL), Downtown Line (DTL) 2 & 3 , Eastern Regional Line (ERL) and Thomson Line (TSL),
Land area: 13,150 ha
(Including Central Area Planning Areas)
Outside Central Area
Bishan
Bukit Merah
Bukit Timah
Geylang
Kallang
Marine Parade
Novena
Queenstown
Tanglin
Toa Payoh
Southern Islands
Within Central Area
Orchard
Newton
River Valley
Singapore River
Outram
Rochor
Museum
Downtown Core
Marina South
Straits View
Marina East
A Home of Choice
Today 335,400 homes
In 10-15years, another 130.900 homes planned.
Building on the Old
Familiar Places
More homes will be built in familiar places like Toa Payoh, Queenstown, Bukit Merah and Boon Keng. This will give Singaporeans more opportunities to live in established estates closer to the city.
Harmonious Hybrids
Developments like the Sandalwood in Joo Chiat show that heritage buildings can be conserved and beautifully blended with modern wings. Such integration of old and new will continue to be encouraged.
New Options
New Waterfront Housing
New public and private housing at the water’s edge will rejuvenate the old neighbourhoods at Bendemeer and former industrial sites at Keppel Bay and Kallang Riverside. On Sentosa, fast developing Sentosa Cove will offer unprecedented and unique island living.
Convenient Commutes
There will be more opportunities to live conveniently near existing MRT stations like Redhill, Toa Payoh, Boon Keng, and at future stations like Mountbatten. The detailed plan for the new Bidadari estate is also being finalised.
New Libraries & Community Facilities
Residents of the region have their pick of facilities, such as the architecturally striking and award-winning Bishan Community Library near Bishan MRT station. And the new Buona Vista Community Club is under construction. There will also be a 5,000-seat performance auditorium within the new Civic, Cultural & Retail Complex (CCRC) at one-north.
Convenient Co-location
More facilities will also be co-located. The Queensway Fire Station is already housed together with the Neighbourhood Police Centre (NPC) and 1st SCDF Division HQ. A new centre in Bukit Merah will be built by 2010 to co-locate civic institutions like the Syariah Court, the Tribunal for Maintenance of Parents and the Red Cross Home for the Disabled. Muslim residents can also look forward to an integrated Islamic Hub near Braddell which will include the MUIS HQ and a mosque.
Feeding the Community
The hawker centres at Holland Village and Tiong Bahru Market have been upgraded. Soon, Geylang Serai Market & Haig Road hawker centre will join their ranks.
Diverse Learning Opportunities
New and Upgraded Schools
Central region hosts several premier schools like Raffles Institution, Hwa Chong Institution, ACS (Independent) and new international schools like SJI International, which will have a brand new campus. Dunman High School will also expand its campus to accommodate more students under the Integrated Programme.
Under MOE’s Programme for Rebuilding and Improving Existing schools (PRIME), Manjusri Secondary School will have a new home in Kampong Ubi next to the affiliated Maha Bodhi Primary School. Similarly, Hong Wen Primary School will shift to a larger site at May Road off Bendemeer, while Kong Hwa Primary School will expand into new buildings and facilities. Cedar Girls Secondary School will also have a new home near Toa Payoh.
Places of Higher Learning
New facilities and student lodging will perk up NUS, when the new University Town is built by 2010 on the site of the former Warren Golf Course. And by 2009, the Duke Graduate Medical School at Outram NUS Medical Campus will enhance NUS’ status as a premier centre for postgraduate medical studies.
Easier Travel
Beefing up Rapid Transit
Central region residents have already enjoyed the benefit of more travel options after the opening of the North-East Line. Adding to this is the 34km Circle Line (CCL), which will be fully operational by 2010. If you are going to the East, West and North, the proposed Eastern Region Line (ERL), Downtown Line 2 and 3 (DTL2 & 3) and Thomson Line (TSL) will make your trips from the city even quicker.
A Smoother Ride
Motorists can also look forward to the completion of the final stretch of the Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway (KPE) and the proposed North South Expressway (NSE). At the same time, expect smoother traffic, thanks to the widening of major roads like Paya Lebar Road and Eunos Link and improvements at major road interchanges like Woodsville.
A Magnet for Business
Today : 15million sqm of commercial space, and approximately 600ha of
industrial land.
In 10-15years : Another 7.8 million sqm of commercial space and 60ha
of industral land planned.
A Region that Works
More people will be able to work closer to home when the new fringe centres come fully on-stream and when more developments take place in existing industrial areas in Eunos and Geylang. In the pipeline:
• New White sites and commercial developments at Kallang Riverside, Paya Lebar Central and one-north
• New Business-White sites at Lavender and MacPherson Industrial Estate will inject diversity and enhance the attractiveness of these established areas.
• Business Park and Business Park-White sites at one-north
• New Business 1 sites at Kampong Ubi Industrial Estate
• New transitional offices at Newton and Mountbatten. By providing office space on short-term leases, they will help meet the current high demand for office space on the city fringes.
A Push for Tourism
More Hotels at City Fringe
To cater to the expected growth in tourism, there will be:
• A new and varied range of resort hotels at Sentosa, like The Capella and Treasure Resort
• More hotels at the city fringe at Victoria Street, Jalan Besar and Bukit Merah, similar to the Link Hotel at Tiong Bahru
• A hotel integrated with the proposed ‘Zhongshan’ Park beside the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall at Balestier
• Boutique hotels in four black & white bungalows and heritage houses at Bukit Chermin and the Southern Ridges
• A new hotel belt along the Kallang River, as part of Kallang Riverside, and at Paya Lebar Central
Hospitals and Hospitality
More hospital sites will be made available to meet growing local demand as well as to boost Singapore’s status as a medical tourism hub.
A new hospital site has already been launched in Novena and more sites may be launched in other city fringe neighbourhoods such as Anak Bukit.
Source: URA