Inclusive and Lively Neighbourhoods in Central Locations

To make Singapore a liveable, inclusive and endearing home where generations of Singaporeans can fulfil their aspirations, one of the focus areas for the Draft Master Plan 2025 is to ‘Shape a Happy Healthy City’ with inclusive and affordable homes with well-connected and accessible recreational spaces to support active lifestyles. 

Housing is an important component of Singapore’s high-quality living environment. A well-designed neighbourhood can contribute to building a stronger sense of community and belonging amongst Singaporeans. 

More homes have been planned in central locations to enable more people to enjoy the benefits such as living closer to workplaces and easy access to amenities. This is also part of ongoing efforts to introduce diverse mixed-use spaces to transform the city centre into an attractive and vibrant place to live, work and play. 

URA unveiled the plans for new neighbourhoods at Pearl’s Hill and Marina South, and featured conceptual plans for the former Keppel golf course site and Mount Pleasant at the ‘My City, My Home’ exhibition in November last year.  Preliminary plans for Bukit Timah Turf City were also showcased at the Bukit Timah Turf City exhibition in May this year. These plans seek to provide inclusive and liveable homes, and a variety of housing options island-wide in response to Singaporeans’ feedback during URA’s Long-Term Plan Review.  

Pearl’s Hill

Artist’s impression of Pearl’s Hill

Bukit Timah Turf City

 Artist’s impression of Bukit Timah Turf City’s North and South Grandstand

More Opportunities for Active Lifestyles, Well-being and Community Bonding through a Recreation Master Plan

Recreation planning has always been an integral aspect of Singapore’s land use planning; to enhance the quality of life, promote physical and mental well-being as well as to support social cohesion. 

As part of the Draft Master Plan 2025, URA and partner agencies are working on a Recreation Master Plan to imbue our city with more opportunities to support active lifestyles, wellness and community bonding. We are organising roving exhibitions to seek public feedback on proposals for recreational spaces in various neighbourhoods. 

The Recreation Master Plan roving exhibitions present proposals that were conceptualised after considering Singaporeans’ recreational aspirations and other land use needs to sustain a quality living environment for current and future generations. The proposals are guided by three strategies geared towards optimising existing assets and creating new spaces to support a multitude of recreational options around the island and in our neighbourhoods, as well as making them more inclusive for residents and visitors. 

The three strategies and key areas which URA is seeking feedback on are as follows: 

1. Enhancing recreational potential of our green and blue spaces 
   
   We will further enhance our green and blue spaces and the connectivity between these spaces through cycling and pedestrian paths, as well as our park connectors. Our coastlines can also potentially be designed to cater to different types of recreational activities. 
   
   There is potential to further tap on our natural and built heritage assets as well as existing and future developments for more recreational opportunities in areas such as Pulau Ubin, Kallang River, the Rail Corridor and the Sembawang Shipyard area. 
   
   
2. Activating underutilised spaces for recreation 
   
   To promote active lifestyles and community bonding among residents, agencies will step up efforts to creatively incorporate sports, arts, wellness and heritage activities into everyday spaces. 
   
   Agencies will also explore strategies to activate more underutilised spaces for recreation. Examples include spaces under viaducts, such as at Queensway along the Rail Corridor where the public can soon enjoy a new community space, and rooftop areas in housing estates where some are already used for community gardens today. There is also an upcoming pilot project at Dover Crescent to incorporate a jogging track and multi-purpose courts at the rooftop of a multi-storey HDB car park.  
   
   
3. Making recreation more inclusive for all  
   
   Recreational spaces will also be made more accessible and welcoming for all ages and abilities. An example is the Punggol Regional Library, the first public library in Singapore with an extensive suite of services co-created with and designed for persons with disabilities. HDB is introducing senior-friendly enhancements in our older precincts. Residents can look forward to new active ageing amenities, dementia-friendly features, mobility improvements, and more rest points along linkways for active living and social interaction. 
   
   To encourage Singaporeans to shape our recreational spaces together, agencies will continue to support ground-up initiatives to enliven public spaces through programmes such as the Lively Places Fund. Residents can tap on the fund to bring their ideas to life.  An example is the activation of a community space at Potong Pasir along the Kallang River where residents and students came together to paint the benches in the open plaza, providing a vibrant space for community bonding.

 

We welcome your feedback!

We are currently running a series of roving exhibitions to seek feedback on proposals for recreational spaces within and across neighbourhoods. Our last roving exhibition featuring recreational opportunities and projects in the Central Area is held at the URA Centre from 18 July 2024 to 30 September 2024. Do visit the exhibition and share with us your ideas to create a more inclusive and diverse range of recreational opportunities in the Central Area and beyond! 

Visit the Recreation Master Plan webpage to find out more.