NTUC Club's new e!Hub boasts 24-hour fun, food & games
THE buzz among residents in Pasir Ris these days is over a four-storey glass complex.It houses the e!Hub, Singapore's first 24-hour lifestyle and entertainment complex at Downtown East.
The $80 million hub, operated by NTUC Club, is also slated to be a food paradise with nearly half of the 38tenants being restaurants and cafes.
The rest include a supermarket, bowling and gaming arcades, a cineplex, a karaoke club, and a youth club.
When the complex opens by the first quarter of next year, Pasir Ris town is expected to be considerably lively. The fun starts from the stretch along Pasir Ris Drive12 at the Kid's Kampong to Downtown East along Pasir Ris Close.
Mr Charles Chong, Member of Parliament for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, who has been living in the estate for 29 years, is upbeat.
'With Downtown East's makeover,' he said, 'it will inject more vibrancy to the beachfront and draw more people from other estates to Pasir Ris.'
Each year, an average of 6million people visit Downtown East. It has two theme parks - Wild Wild Wet and Escape Theme Park - and two resorts offering chalet accomodation.
Though there are no immediate plans to upgrade the theme parks, NTUC Club is expecting to draw about 8 million visitors to all facilities when the e!Hub opens next year.
Mr Chng Hee Kok, NTUC Club's CEO, said: 'This (e!Hub) will be a building that never sleeps.'
The e!Hub will open two years ahead of the integrated resorts (IRs) in Sentosa and Marina Bay.
And Downtown East can be seen as Singapore's very own heartland IR, with 'everything under one roof' that includes shopping, cinemas, theme parks and resorts.
NTUC Club is unfazed by the talk of competition from the two IRs scheduled to open in 2009 and 2010.
Mr Lim Eng Lee, NTUC Club's deputy CEO and chairman, said: 'With stiffer competition, a lifestyle hub like Downtown East becomes more important and relevant.' He added that world-class facilities and entertainment will be on offer at 'affordable prices'.
Pasir Ris resident Richard Ling, 32, a sales manager, is looking forward to the new developments.
He said: 'Right now, the only cinema in the east is at Tampines Mall. It's usually full-house on weekends. I can't wait for the cineplex at the e!Hub to open.'
And when it does, a colourful 25m-high ferris wheel mounted on the side of the e!Hub will be a traffic-stopper as well, as its bright lights usher in the pearl of the east.
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