The Concept Plan 2011 Focus Group on “Sustainability and Identity” announced its preliminary recommendations and sought feedback from the public on its draft proposals at a public forum today.

The focus group on “Sustainability and Identity” is one of two focus groups appointed by the Urban Redevelopment Authority as part of the Concept Plan 2011 review public consultation exercise to discuss four key issues - Quality of Life, Ageing, Sustainability and Identity - that will shape our live, work and play environment in the coming years. See Annex A for more information about the focus group.

The focus group aspires for a Green Singapore and an Endearing Home for All. To achieve this, the focus group felt that Singapore needs to be a home that is endearing, enchanting and inspiring to all Singaporeans and residents. To ensure that our home remains this way far into the future, the focus group felt that we must also strive to maintain a home that is environmentally and socially sustainable.

The focus group thus announced two key thrusts to meet this challenge – (a) building a sustainable city, and (b) making Singapore an endearing home. The key recommendations from the focus group are featured below. See Annex B for details on the recommendations.

(A) BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE CITY

For Singapore to be a highly liveable city, the focus group felt that we need to build a sustainable city where we are all geared up for sustainable living.

Strengthening our green infrastructure

‘Greening’ the building lifecycle

1. ‘Green’ the entire lifecycle of a building from planning and design, resources used, to operations and maintenance.
2. Have more policies and incentives to encourage the ‘greening’ of building lifecycles.
3. Include sustainability building considerations as criteria for award in land tenders.
4. Encourage more owners to retrofit their existing buildings with green features.

Promoting ‘green’ mobility

1. Public transport, walking or cycling should be our default means to get around.
2. Encourage greater use of public transport by making it even more convenient, frequent, and comfortable, along with cheaper fares and season passes.
3. Discourage private transport by reviewing car parking policies, such as reducing parking lots, or charging higher parking fees in the city and town centres.
4. Provide a dedicated network of cycling lanes and complementary facilities.

‘Greening’ our habits

1. All should become ‘green’ citizens and make recycling and reducing waste part of our daily lives.
2. Deploy an island-wide recycling infrastructure at community level to make recycling convenient.
3. Strengthen programmes to inculcate a ‘green’ mindset and raise public awareness about recycling and reducing waste.

Foster more sharing and ownership of ‘green’ practices

Empowering the community to go green

1. Empower residents to take ownership and improve our living environment.
2. Grow demand for green products and cleaner or renewable energy.
3. Have a reliable accreditation system for ‘green’ products to encourage ‘green’ consumerism.
4. Share ‘green’ knowledge and tools amongst grassroots, non-government organisations, schools and businesses.
5. Recognise our ‘green’ heroes.

(B) MAKING SINGAPORE AN ENDEARING HOME

The focus group felt that we must make Singapore an endearing home to our people, a place where we feel connected and have a strong sense of belonging to.

Cherishing and keeping the places we love

1. Introduce a Heritage Charter jointly formulated by the public, private and people sector to guide the types of activities and uses allowed in heritage areas.
2. Keep significant buildings, iconic structures and spaces in our housing estates as physical anchors of our collective social memories.
3. Recognise and protect more of our marine biodiversity.

Enriching the experience of our built and natural heritage

1. Introduce more live-in population to our heritage districts.
2. Enliven places with activities and events to strengthen connections to our built and natural heritage.
3. Play up unique features and identity of our parks to provide varied experiences.
4. Tell the story of historic districts and local areas of identity through signages and storyboards.
5. Add sculptures and public art in our parks and housing estates.
6. Retain or reintroduce town squares within town centres and housing estates.

Greater community involvement in shaping an endearing Singapore

1. Engage schools and non-government organisations to work with local communities to strengthen local identity.
2. Foster partnerships between residents, non-government organisations, businesses to cherish and improve our endearing spaces.
3. Set up place management frameworks for government agencies to work with stakeholders to manage and guide the evolution of endearing neighbourhoods.
4. Encourage community and stakeholders to take ownership of endearing places.

SEEKING VIEWS FROM THE PUBLIC

Besides giving their feedback at the public forum, members of the public can give their feedback on the focus group’s preliminary recommendations online via this website: http://spring.ura.gov.sg/conceptplan2011/publicforum/.

The focus group will then fine tune its recommendations before submitting its final report to the URA. The final report will be taken into consideration in the drawing up of the Concept Plan 2011. The draft Concept Plan 2011 will be exhibited in the second half of 2011 where public feedback will be sought on the Plan before it is finalised.