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New homes, parks on cards after air base moves

SINGAPORE — New residential areas, parks, schools, community facilities and job clusters for residents in the north-eastern and eastern parts of the island. These are some of the “exciting possibilities” thrown up by the relocation of Paya Lebar Air Base, the Ministry of National Development (MND) said yesterday in response to TODAY’s queries.

View of Kaki Bukit industrial estate / Bartley underpass. Photo: Ernest Chua

View of Kaki Bukit industrial estate / Bartley underpass. Photo: Ernest Chua

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SINGAPORE — New residential areas, parks, schools, community facilities and job clusters for residents in the north-eastern and eastern parts of the island. These are some of the “exciting possibilities” thrown up by the relocation of Paya Lebar Air Base, the Ministry of National Development (MND) said yesterday in response to TODAY’s queries.

Apart from freeing up 800 hectares of land, the relocation could also see height restrictions removed for surrounding estates such as Toa Payoh, Hougang, Sengkang, Punggol, Bedok and Tampines — giving rise to more development possibilities, be it in the form of taller residential buildings or towering office skyscrapers.

Currently, the tallest flats in these areas are the 40-storey Toa Payoh Crest and 42-storey The Peak @ Toa Payoh.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that over the next two decades, the air base will be moved from Paya Lebar to Changi.

Adding that the relocation is a “large-scale endeavour and will take time to realise”, the MND nevertheless said that the “large size of the site and its fairly central location give rise to many exciting possibilities for new developments to enhance the living environment in the eastern part of Singapore”. It added that new transport corridors across the land currently occupied by the airbase could potentially be created, enhancing connectivity for residents in the area to commute to the city and the western part of the island.

The specific development plans will be shaped over time to “support development options for future generations of Singaporeans”, MND added.

Analysts have estimated that the area which the Paya Lebar Airbase sits on could potentially house at least 60,000 new homes.

The airbase is currently flanked by the industrial areas of Ubi Avenue, Defu Lane and Kaki Bukit to the West and residential estates such as Tampines and Pasir Ris to the East. It is also on the fringes of fast-growing Punggol and Sengkang new towns.

The planned Cross Island Line (CRL) could pass through estates near the area such as Hougang and Pasir Ris.

Analysts cited older flats in the Chai Chee/Bedok area, two-storey shophouses in the Kovan area and industrial buildings in the Paya Lebar area as some potential places for redevelopment.

Mr Colin Tan, Head of Research and Consultancy at Suntec Real Estate Consultants, said: “There are also shophouses in the Serangoon/Hougang area that are getting older and they may catch the eye of private developers now that higher properties can be built.”

Mr Tan said that there is “great potential” for the area to be “an alternate employment hub” to the Central Business District if it is combined with the neighbouring Tampines area. “There is the potential of a mega hub that is greater than Woodlands and the Jurong Lake district,” he added.

Chris International Director Chris Koh said that the industrial properties around the airbase in Paya Lebar have leases of between 30 to 60 years.

“These properties can be taken back by the authorities when the lease is up and without the current height restrictions, they can be very attractive locations based on the infrastructure that has been building up in the area,” said Mr Koh. “The road structures were built with the expected high population in mind, so it will not be difficult to develop the area around it.”

ERA Key Executive Officer Eugene Lim allayed concerns that all low-rise blocks, especially those that are built below their potential plot ratio due to existing height restrictions, may be put on enbloc sale. “Based on urban planning principles, there will always be variations in height... so I think the worry is unfounded,” he said.

More details on the redevelopment of the areas affected by the relocation of Paya Lebar Airbase could be shared by the Government when the Land Use Master Plan is unveiled later this year.

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