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New homes set to be built on two sites in Simei; one near Upper Changi MRT station

2023-07-16 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-新加坡原网页

SINGAPORE - New homes are set to be built across two sites in Simei, an area in the east of Singapore that has not had new public housing in more than a decade.

On Friday, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) published a proposed amendment to its master plan that involves rezoning two land parcels in Simei Road from educational use to residential use.

The smaller plot, bounded by Simei Road and Simei Lane, currently houses Sing See Soon Floral & Landscape, a plant nursery, while the larger plot of land south of Jalan Tiga Ratus is occupied by the former Changkat Changi primary and secondary schools.

Between the two land parcels sits Parc Lumiere, a Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) project completed in 2011. The 360 units in Parc Lumiere were among the last new flats to be built in Simei.

DBSS units are built by private developers, with each development characterised by unique external features, although owners are subjected to the same regulations as Housing Board flat owners. The scheme is now defunct.

In June 2022, the land parcel housing the Changkat Changi schools – about the size of four football fields – was identified as a possible one to be developed for public housing and amenities in URA’s long-term plan review exhibition. The site is near Upper Changi MRT station on the Downtown Line.

URA’s exhibition materials said then that the authority strives to achieve a better mix of private and public housing within towns. It cited the Upper Changi Road East area, where most homes are private residences, as one that would benefit from having new public housing that encourages more social mixing.

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Ms Christine Sun, OrangeTee & Tie’s senior vice-president of research and analytics, said that should the land be used for public housing, about 450 to 500 HDB flats could be built depending on how much space is set aside for communal use, based on the proposed plot ratio of 2. The plot ratio determines how much one can build on a piece of land.

Blocks there could reach up to 24 storeys based on current building guidelines, said Ms Sun.

“Since there are many landed properties in the vicinity, the new flats will likely have good unblocked and panoramic views,” she added, noting that adding public housing in the area will be in line with the authority’s plan to ensure a balanced mix of affordable housing.

“It’s possible that many young people may want to move there since their parents could be staying in the older flats in the eastern part of Singapore such as Marine Parade and Tampines,” she said.

Mogul.sg chief research officer Nicholas Mak said the smaller land parcel in Simei Lane, with a proposed plot ratio of 2.1, has a higher chance of having private homes.

The small land size can accommodate only a small number of HDB blocks, so there are no economies of scale for the Government, he said.

Hence, Mr Mak believes it might be possible that the land will be sold to private developers to build condominium units.

Huttons Asia senior director of research Lee Sze Teck said if new HDB flats were to be built on the Simei sites, there could be pent-up demand given that the last public housing projects were completed more than a decade ago.

Another plus point for buyers is that Changi Airport is a short distance away and Simei is already built up with amenities and schools, with jobs located nearby in Changi Business Park, added Mr Lee.