Area the size of Marina Bay will be transformed with homes, hotels, shops, eateries and offices linked to MRT via walkways and waterways
EXTREME makeovers do not come more dramatic than this.
In an ambitious plan unveiled yesterday, a large swathe of Jurong will be redeveloped and rebranded the Jurong Lake District.
The 350ha area affected is similar in size to Marina Bay, and will boast all the elements of a vibrant mini-metropolis.
That means new high-rises, hotels, apartments, shops, food places and offices as well as no end of water-related recreational pursuits, with everything linked to MRT stations via walkways and waterways.
Unveiling the plans yesterday, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan described Jurong as somewhat under-recognised, 'a gem yet to be uncovered and refined'.
Among Singapore's public housing estates, Jurong has been something of an ugly duckling, its factories giving the place a decidedly industrial-town feel. This is an image it will shed in the next 10 to 15 years as the new plans come to life.
Reinventing Jurong is a challenge, Mr Mah acknowledged. 'But we want to show that this is not pie in the sky, it's something real,' he said.
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1 comment:
Jurong ‘Lake District’ should be eco-friendly
Source : The Straits Times, Apr 8, 2008
I REFER to last Saturday’s article, ‘Jurong’s massive make-over’, in which Jurong is slated to be developed into a regional business hub, to be dubbed ‘Jurong Lake District’.
I applaud the Government for yet another effort to decentralise business centres so commuting time will be reduced. At the same time, I appeal to the planning authorities to use this opportunity to infuse sustainable concepts into this project.
We hear of Singapore co-operating with China to build eco-cities. And we know many landscape and architectural planners no longer have the criterion of aesthetics as their key focus. Designing a city that is liveable, lively and ‘alive’, so it can exist sustainably by adopting environment-friendly eco-principles, is now a calling for these planners.
We have seen the price of oil rocket. And we have read how consumers’ tastes in public projects have changed to allow projects that are socially and environmentally responsible. Many would thus agree that cost savings will be higher if the Jurong Lake District is intelligently designed from the beginning to be sustainable, rather than introducing corrective measures when pressure to do so, for what-ever reason, is applied.
Let’s walk the talk about building eco-cities here. No doubt it is a huge challenge, but if planners cannot do it now, then they won’t know how to do it in the near future - when sustainability becomes an absolute necessity.
Poh Wei Leong
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