SINGAPORE \u2013 Stone seats, a reflexology pebble path, a shared pickleball court, a barbecue pit, spruced up void decks and a low rock-climbing wall \u2013 these are proposed new fixtures that Spottiswoode residents can vote for under a national-first estate renewal trial.<\/p>\n
The trial, organised by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) and Tanjong Pagar Town Council, gives residents more say in how funds are allocated, from proposing ideas to deciding on the upgrades.<\/p>\n
These six new fixtures were shortlisted from 162 ideas that were brought up during the launch of Singapore\u2019s first participatory budgeting trial in the estate in April<\/span><\/a>, following feasibility checks in May.<\/p>\n Speaking at the community exhibition showcasing the six shortlisted projects at Block 104 Spottiswoode Park Road on July 11, Tanjong Pagar GRC MP Foo Cexiang said many residents were prepared to develop their ideas into fully-fledged proposals.<\/p>\n He added this showed that residents need to be given space to suggest ideas, and that collaboration between IPS and the town council was necessary.<\/p>\n Around 400 people attended the community dinner on the sidelines of the community exhibition.<\/p>\n A $200,000 budget \u2013 which draws from the Future-Ready Society Impact Fund administered by the Tote Board \u2013 has been allocated for this exercise.<\/p>\n Among the final six proposals is the installation of stone seats at Blocks 104 and 106 to provide rest spots for the elderly and those with reduced mobility, which encourages social interactions. It is estimated to cost $10,000.<\/p>\n Another idea is the construction of a reflexology pebble path in front of Block 103, costing around $48,000, to promote low-impact physical activity among residents, especially seniors.<\/p>\n A shared pickleball court with removable nets at the existing half basketball court near Block 108 was one of the ideas, allowing residents to engage in low-impact sports while easily switching between playing pickleball and basketball.<\/p>\n It will cost about $10,000 for the conversion of the court, but a noise-control barrier could cost $80,000 if residents choose to install one later.<\/p>\n One proposal involves setting up a sheltered barbecue pit at the amphitheatre, equipped with a water point, seating and a fan, to encourage family bonding and community interactions. It will cost around $120,000.<\/p>\n Another suggestion is to spruce up void decks at Blocks 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 109 and 110 to support the hosting of events and gatherings, while strengthening social bonding. This will cost around $130,000.<\/p>\n One idea is the installation of a low child-friendly rock-climbing wall at Block 103 to promote healthy living. It will cost around $150,000.<\/p>\n Together, the six proposals would cost close to $550,000, against the $200,000 budget.<\/p>\n Therefore, each household needs to decide on the proposals it wants the most \u2013 within the budget \u2013 by casting its vote at the Spottiswoode Park Residents\u2019 Network office from July 11 to 13.<\/p>\n The results will be out in late July, and construction of the selected projects will start from late 2026.<\/p>\n For retired bank executive Low Wai Mun, 60, who has been a Spottiswoode Park resident for two decades, the shared pickleball court and the barbecue pit are facilities that she can imagine herself using. She is excited to vote in this exercise.<\/p>\n Research administrator Mithilesh Mishra, 50, said that the reflexology path will promote active living for elderly residents, while the low rock-climbing wall will be fun for children.<\/p>\n Sarada Bulchand, a 47-year-old professor who has been living in the estate for seven years, is excited to finally have a proper facility to play pickleball. At present, she plays pickleball in random open spaces across the estate.<\/p>\n Foo said that this exercise gives residents a real say and a real stake in their neighbourhood, translating to a stronger sense of ownership of the spaces they use every day.<\/p>\n Separately, the master plan for Spottiswoode Park\u2019s neighbourhood renewal plans was unveiled at the community exhibition.<\/p>\n Spottiswoode Park residents studying plans for the neighbourhood renewal programme on July 11.<\/p>\n ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Sheltered connections linking Blocks 103, 104, 106, 109 and 110 to nearby bus stops, barrier-free access ramps across the estate, and direct pedestrian and cycling links to the adjacent Rail Corridor were some of the features picked out from 26 submissions in the exercise, said IPS.<\/p>\n They were folded into the overall neighbourhood renewal plans as they involve larger structural works.<\/p>\n Other estate improvements in the master plan include upgrades to community pavilions, multi-generational fitness corners and playgrounds, as well as the construction of an estate-wide community garden.<\/p>\n Other estate improvements in the master plan include upgrades to community pavilions, multi-generational fitness corners and playgrounds, as well as the construction of an estate-wide community garden.<\/p>\n ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The neighbourhood renewal programme will only proceed if at least 75 per cent of the estate\u2019s eligible Singaporean households have voted for it.<\/p>\n At the same time, IPS noted that the remaining ideas from the participatory budgeting exercising that were not in the final shortlist were not discarded.<\/p>\n Municipal concerns including walkway lighting and recycling were passed to the Town Council, while community-programming suggestions were referred to grassroots partners for follow-up, it added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n SINGAPORE \u2013 Stone seats, a reflexology pebble path, a shared pickleball court, a barbecue pit, spruced up void decks and a low rock-climbing wall \u2013…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":68000,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-67999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67999","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=67999"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67999\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/68000"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=67999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=67999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=67999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/picture><\/div>
<\/picture><\/div>
\n
\n
Read Full Article At Source <\/a>
\n