Stallholders at Jurong West Hawker Centre to be relocated after operator declines to renew lease

SINGAPORE — Stallholders at the Jurong West Hawker Centre will be moved elsewhere after the centre's operator announced on Tuesday (May 5) that it will not be renewing its lease. The National Environment Agency (NEA) said it will work with stallholders on relocation from Wednesday and will seek a new operator for the centre.

NEA said in a media statement that the two-storey hawker centre and market in Jurong West Street 61, which opened in October 2017 with Hawker Management as its first operator, will be closed after Aug 6 for the place to be “enhanced” and re-opened in the second half of 2021.

Listed company Koufu Group, which owns Hawker Management, said in a media release that it would waive rent for stallholders from June until its three-year term expires on Aug 6. Eligible stallholders will also be offered a S$1,000 relocation fee.

One stallholder, Ms Toh Yan Ling, 25, who has been running a stall selling handmade fries since January, said that she was shocked when she and her partner were informed of the news.

“Before the circuit breaker, we knew the contract would be taken over by someone else but we didn’t know that things would end up like this," she said when TODAY paid a visit to the centre on Tuesday.

"It was very sudden. We didn’t expect that we would be asked to move out.

“But I guess it makes sense to get out of this place because there’s really no crowd. Look around, all these shops have been closed since last year,” she added, pointing to the stalls beside and opposite hers, most of which had their shutters down.

Ms Toh and her partner will explore setting up their business elsewhere.

In its media release, Koufu said the decision was made as operations at the hawker centre did not meet its expectations. The hawker centre is also the only one managed by Koufu, which runs food courts, cafes and restaurants.

“Hawker Management has been seen to be putting in the necessary resources to bring vibrancy to Jurong West Hawker Centre and support the local hawker trade. Despite Hawker Management’s efforts, the results did not meet our ideal performance standards,” Koufu said.

“Koufu, as a public listed company, has an obligation to safeguard our shareholders’ interests, therefore we have made the difficult decision to exit upon expiry of the contract in August 2020 to focus efforts on other aspects of our business.”

Ms Andrea Han, the senior brand and marketing manager of Koufu told TODAY that the decision not to renew the lease was made early last month and the Covid-19 outbreak was not a factor in the company’s decision.

She said that several investments had been made to “rejuvenate” the hawker centre but to no avail.

“Location is one thing. It’s not a very ideal location. It’s not near the Mass Rapid Transit station, it’s not very convenient," she added. "The people who come here are usually only the residents. We do have other competition as well. There are many other affordable hawker centres and coffee shops around.”

Neighbouring Pioneer Mall features eateries such as a McDonald's and a food court run by Koufu.

A food court in neighbouring Pioneer Mall was noticably busier than Jurong West Hawker Centre when TODAY visited on May 5, 2020. Photo: Natasha Meah/TODAY

When TODAY visited the Jurong West Hawker Centre at 5pm on Tuesday, only six stalls were open and three customers were seen buying food.

Ms Esther Chia, 48, who has been running a wanton noodle stall at the hawker centre since its opening, said that the hawker centre was successful only for its first two months.

“When it first opened, there was some excitement. All the stalls were taken up and people were looking forward to trying the new food. But it all quickly died down due to bad management, starting off with the selection of stalls,” said Ms Chia.

She said that many of the hawkers were “young and inexperienced”.

“Their food and service just couldn’t make it. People who came to eat found that the food was not up to standard, the price was expensive and most of all, there is an air-conditioned Koufu food court nearby,” she said.

As a result, only 14 out of the 34 hawker stalls remain occupied while 10 of the 14 wet market stalls are occupied.

In October 2018, TODAY reported that 12 hawkers at the centre had submitted a petition in opposition to a fee of 20 cents for each returned tray. About a week later, Hawker Management announced that customers had to pay a refundable deposit of 20 cents instead for each tray.

“Making the customers pay made the situation even worse because the customers were very put off by it,” said Ms Chia.

“If you want to do it in a relatively new hawker centre that doesn't even have the customer base yet, at least the business must be good. You don't come to such a deserted hawker centre where hawkers are struggling to make ends meet and still add this on,” she said.

RELOCATING STALLHOLDERS

Koufu added that it will continue to manage the hawker centre until the end of its term and will work with NEA to relocate stallholders to the agency’s hawker centres and markets or Koufu’s food courts or coffee shops.

Koufu chief operating officer Choo Teck Chuan said: “We greatly appreciate and thank all stallholders who have been with us thus far, and we will work closely with the NEA to facilitate and ensure a smooth transition for everyone.”

NEA said it will work with relevant agencies to assist the stallholders who need financial assistance or wish to change jobs.

Existing stallholders will be invited to return to the hawker centre when it reopens and NEA will share more details later.

Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources Amy Khor said: “NEA’s immediate priority is to work with Hawker Management to ensure that the incumbent stallholders will be well taken care of during this period of transition and to assist all to find a stall to continue their hawker trade if they wish to.”

NEA will also “seek new ideas from operators to enhance the centre’s operations and offerings, and to better meet the needs of the residents”.

As part of the exercise, it will conduct public consultations to gather suggestions from the community and work with stakeholders. It may also renovate the hawker centre to enhance its layout.