Confusion over use of interim state-owned sites

Some people upset when govt reclaims areas it has leased
By Siau Ming En, The Straits Times, 5 Apr 2012

IN FEBRUARY, when some Toh Yi residents learnt that their estate's recreational facilities would give way to new studio apartments, they flipped.

They petitioned the HDB to put the flats elsewhere. After all, the facilities - a basketball court, jogging track and garden - were built there only last year.

In fact, the recreational facilities were not meant to last in the first place.

The Toh Yi site is one of thousands of areas that the Government leases out on a temporary basis.

The land authorities, responding to The Straits Times' queries, said these are state-owned sites that the Government has no immediate plans to develop.

Altogether, they account for more than 14,000ha of land area - about one-fifth of Singapore - and at least 5,000 properties, used by individuals and groups from both the private and public sectors.

For the private sector, state properties managed by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) are typically rented out in three-year cycles.

'Rather than leave them vacant pending development, renting them out is a more productive use of these resources,' an SLA spokesman said.

The Toh Yi site, which the HDB manages, falls under a different category - land that has been designated for public use.

The SLA, which manages the majority of land owned by the Government with input from other agencies such as the Housing Board and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), said that since 2003, it has leased out 270 sites for community use.

Some examples include the open spaces at Punggol Field Walk and Tanjong Rhu Road.

The land authorities said sites such as these are assessed for their compatibility with surrounding land uses and potential impact on noise, traffic and parking.

Vacant green spaces in housing areas, for instance, may be used to build gardens or playgrounds, the URA said.

The tenures for these sites that are used for recreational purposes in the interim can range from a few months to years.

In the Toh Yi case, the HDB said the site was leased to the estate's Citizens Consultative Committee for recreational use, to be reviewed annually.

In these arrangements, a temporary occupation licence is usually issued. Signs are then put up to indicate that the areas are for interim use only.

There was no such sign posted in the Toh Yi estate.

The HDB said it would send a reminder telling all licensees to put up their signs, if they had not done so yet.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa, the deputy chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for National Development and Environment, said people may not be aware of what interim lands are.

That is why they become upset when the space is claimed by the Government.

'But so far, the interim facilities built on the vacant land here have maximised land use, especially after weighing in the cost of building these interim facilities,' Mr Liang said.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh, an MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, suggested that the Government could explore 'creative ways' - such as building new facilities indoors, or on rooftops - when interim land with recreational amenities are scheduled for development.

Of the hundreds of interim sites used for recreational purposes, Singaporeans may find the parks that have been built in these areas most familiar.

Managed by the National Parks Board, the 18 green spaces range from inconspicuous grassy plots to expansive fields such as the bare grassland at Wilkinson Road.

Altogether, they cover more than 250ha, and most of them have signs that clearly mark them as interim parks.

One of these is the Jalan Geneng Interim Park, found at the end of Jalan Geneng in Hougang. It has stone seats, an exercise corner and two children's playground rides.

'It's comfortable and much safer compared with the drains and bushes here before this park was built,' said Ms Molly Ng, 80, who has been living in Jalan Geneng for more than 30 years.

Joggers around Punggol Field also said they appreciated the open space there.

'I see kids playing in the open field and people flying kites here on the weekends,' said engineer Jennifer Uy, 30.

'It'll be a waste for it to go.'