HDB has to 'keep up with aspirations of Singaporeans': Lee Kuan Yew

TODAY, 5 Nov 2012

While the transformation and changes have been "remarkable", the country's public housing has to keep pace with the rising aspirations of Singaporeans.

This, former Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew says, will ensure that Singapore's older estates and flats do not fall behind newer ones, in both facilities and design.

Speaking yesterday at a community event to celebrate the completion of seven new blocks of replacement flats at Havelock View, Mr Lee noted how Tanjong Pagar residents have benefitted from a wide range of estate renewal programmes, even though the constituency is one of the oldest public housing estates in Singapore.

And these upgrading programmes have improved the overall living environment in Tanjong Pagar, with residents enjoying a better quality of life than before, added Mr Lee.

The 1,218 units at Havelock View were designated as replacement flats under the Housing Board's Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme for those who previously lived at Blocks 88 to 92 Zion Road, which were built in 1973. Standing between 25 and 40 storeys high, some higher floor units at Havelock View boast views of Orchard Road and the Botanic Gardens.

A total of 600 units were taken up by former Zion Road residents, while the remaining were offered for sale under HDB's Sale of Balance Flat exercises.

An HDB survey of 256 households found that residents were generally satisfied with the project. Close to eight in 10 of the respondents (79.3 per cent) were satisfied with the overall flat design, while almost nine in 10 were pleased with the facilities in the precinct.

While the HDB has made a difference in people's lives, allowing Singaporeans to own a home, Mr Lee cautioned owners against selling their homes for a profit thinking that they can buy or rent another one, as these are assets that will appreciate in value year after year.

For those who held on to their homes, their property values have gone up by many folds, he said.

"This was the plan which we had from the very beginning, to give everybody a home at cost or below cost and as development takes place, everybody gets a lift, all boats rise as the tide rises," added Mr Lee.

Despite yesterday evening's rain, Mr Lee, along with other Members of Parliament of Tanjong Pagar, participated in the annual Tree Planting Day in the group representation constituency - a tradition that first began in 1963.

Recounting how he was determined to "green up" Singapore, after remembering the tall grey concrete towers and tarmac roads of Hong Kong, Mr Lee said it led to a new department being set up, which is now known as National Parks Board.

He added, "The job is never ending. The difference between Singapore and other cities is obvious. When you drive through from the airport into town you have a canopy of rain trees spreading their branches across the road. The trees, shrubs and creeping ivy on the walls are also greened up to give that sense of freshness and refreshes the spirit."

Even as authorities here do more to spruce up the estates, Mr Lee also urged Singaporeans to uphold the value of good neighbourliness. "If neighbours don't cooperate to keep a bond of ownership of the place, it will not succeed," he added.