National

In 1976, then Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew said: "We do not intend to let the population drift away from the city centre because of the high price of land. It would be wasteful to have such a city. We must retain that unique feature of the Singapore that we have known for so long, a city bustling with life from the crack of drawn to past midnight, one which throbs with life and vitality."

Prefiguring developments like Chinatown Complex and Rochor Centre, Mr Lee added that the government would "have more areas like Tanjong Pagar Plaza, with a swimming pool (Yan Kit) nearby, a garden and green space (like Duxton Plain Park) and a community centre (Tanjong Pagar)."

This vision of housing within the city centre took the form of high-rise, modern mixed-use developments by the Housing and Development Board (HDB). Not only meant as new homes and rehousing for people who lived in 'slums' or 'unsafe' properties, they would also accommodate street hawkers and market stalls from the various bazaars and city alleys, popular at that time. This was enacted using the Land Acquisition Act, passed by parliament some time after indepedence in October 1966. This led to a peak of more than 18,000 resettled households between 1980 and 1981, up from under 400 cases in 1960.

Residents affected by the land acquisition received cash grants, which following a revised act in 1973, fixed the compensation amount for acquired land at the market value. On top of that, affected families received priority in flat allocation priority under the HDB's Home Ownership Scheme.

These steps in making city living accessible, first and foremost to the area's original residents, is a stark contrast to the exorbitant prices of recent Marina Bay projects. While developments such as Chinatown Complex and Tanjong Pagar Plaza act to keep the city active at all times of the day, Marina Bay's residential properties, in contrast again, face low occupancy which leaves its streets empty after working hours.

In and around these HDB projects built between the late 1960s and early 1980s, perhaps we still see spaces which are representative of Singapore, its development, and the aspirations of its people. It is important, therefore, that the the concept of a national or collective space not be limited to the glamorous architecture found around the reclaimed land of Marina Bay, and Mr Lee's idea of a Singapore city be kept in mind.