Sengkang Central: Not your typical integrated development

It is not just a typical integrated development that combines the MRT station and bus interchange with shops and amenities, Sengkang Central has now become a unique gathering place and new focal point for residents. Founding Director of MKPL Architects, Siew Man Kok, shares why such integrated hubs are becoming more important and how these are shaping our landscape and social fabric. 

You call the Sengkang Central a community intersection. What makes this integrated mixed-use development different from others?

Man Kok: It is the placement and accessibility of interconnected amenities and uses such as the hawker centre, community club, childcare centre, playground and public spaces, and the overall design of the place that makes this place special, offering a unique quality and ambience that entices people to want to dwell longer. 

When entering Sengkang Grand Mall, one immediately notices the signages that reflect the unique mix of co-located uses here. 

Coming out from Buangkok MRT Station, the covered walkway to the mall is designed to blend seamlessly with the development so your experience already begins from the MRT station. Because of the adjacency of the amenities and shops, there are many things you can do here. When I visited the place, it was very vibrant. There is a lot of public seating provided. It is a place not just for people to shop and eat or be there for a transactional purpose. It is also a place to gather and hang around. Even though most of the space is naturally ventilated, we designed for it to feel cool and comfortable to walk around. 

Sengkang Central is a mixed-use residential and commercial site with 700 residential apartments, a hawker centre, community club, childcare centre, retail shops, combined with the MRT station and bus interchange. Part of the development is open such as its Grand Mall. 

Another interesting aspect of this site is the generous park space we created in front of the mall. We saw the opportunity to use the site to connect and extend people’s experience from the nearby Compassvale Ancilla Park and decided to provide more green space so that people can enjoy more of the public realm.

An aerial perspective showing the future park space in front of the development. Image: MKPL Architects. 

There was a lot of thought put into where to place the uses, considering how people would use these amenities as part of their daily routines. Tell us more.

Man Kok: If you place interrelated uses at the right places, they will become a great convenience and service to people. For example, if you send your children to the childcare centre, you would naturally need a place to wait or may want to have breakfast with your children first. So, the hawker centre is located close to the childcare centre. In addition, we placed the kitchen studio within the community centre next to the hawker centre to create potential programming opportunities. Hawkers could be engaged to conduct culinary classes in the community centre in future. 

A fitness station located along the landscaped ramp leading to the hawker centre.

Co-location is also about the accessibility of amenities and how they connect with each other. For example, we designed for the hawker centre to be accessible by lift, escalator, or a staircase from the junction so that anyone coming from anywhere around the development can access the hawker centre easily. We also connected the park to the hawker centre through a landscaped ramp. You can exercise in the park in the morning and then head to the hawker centre for breakfast. Along the landscaped ramp, we have fitness stations to give people more options. 

Beyond placing interrelated activities together, we also looked at the visibility of amenities. We designed the internal atrium to look like an indoor street. The hawker centre is designed to be highly visible, with a good view into the atrium. When you walk around this atrium, you can see the many things that are happening and know where the community and childcare centres are. The dance studio in the community centre is also designed to face outwards so that people can look in to see the dance classes.

The atrium space at Sengkang Grand Mall is lively and vibrant, with the hawker centre and other shops visible from all angles. 

One thing that stands out from this development are its generous public spaces. What are important lessons learnt in providing public spaces for such integrated developments? 

Man Kok: When you design a public space, make sure it is generous. For example, when I designed One Holland Village, I had intended for it to also have extensive public spaces. With a lot of public seating and a variety of free spaces provided, the place has become very vibrant and engaging. Many people go there just to hang around, with the flexibility to make these spaces feel like their own. Besides being required to leave by 10pm, there are no other rules. 

One Holland Village has become popular with residents and visitors, with its pet-friendly provision and active programming of its public spaces. 

What is interesting is that many of these spaces are naturally ventilated. It is not true that Singaporeans do not like naturally ventilated environments. You just have to design the spaces to be very comfortable.  

Sengkang Central and One Holland Village have shown that providing generous and well-designed public spaces have made these places more popular and that means the shops and restaurants enjoy greater footfall. This benefits businesses, people and the larger neighbourhood. 

Beyond the size of public spaces, considering the right scale is also important in relating to the site and its context. For public spaces in suburban neighbourhoods, you need to create a different kind of atmosphere and vibe than those in areas like Orchard Road or even One Holland Village. 

What is one important challenge we should address in shaping more of such integrated hubs in future?

Man Kok: It is important to have a common vision of the integrated development that is supported by all the stakeholders and key government agencies involved in the project. It would be good if there can be a lead agency or party driving the vision and implementation of key details especially in managing different requirements and priorities. 

Urban design becomes even more important in bringing together the diverse uses to create seamless and engaging experiences that will ultimately benefit residents and the larger community. 

The playground near Sengkang Central’s entrance is well used, attracting both adults and children. 

The Recreation Master Plan seeks to create more active streets and recreational options for us to stay healthy and connected. What would you like to see more of?

Man Kok: Currently, many of our housing estates have very similar recreational amenities provided such as a playground, pavilions etc. But imagine if some of our housing estates offer more varieties of playgrounds with differentiated themes or activities -- it might attract parents with children or families to want to visit different neighbourhoods because of the more diverse offerings in each of our housing estates. 

We should also look at how to curate and interlink our various recreational nodes into a richer and more diverse network of different offerings. This network can link up Park Connector Networks, neighbourhood parks, regional parks, playgrounds, play fields, sports facilities, and social amenities like Community Clubs or Sports Clubs, supported by public transport and F&B outlets. Such networks can offer new recreational options for Singaporeans and encourage them to get to know our city better.