Design My Place

Group 7

School: Nanyang Polytechnic

Designated to site 7, our proposed idea is to create a central area of activities for the residents in the entire neighbourhood to gather, thus aiming to encourage a strong sense of “togetherness” brought about by the coherence and integration of a multi-purpose zone to foster a sense of belonging in the precinct, catering to the needs of the diversified. Another important aim is to create a tourism hub showcased by the rich cultural heritage in the area. There are six main features proposed in the site, namely an activity hub, hotel, Theatre of the Arts, a sky and vertical garden concept for the residential HDB, foldable night market and the canal being given a new life.

Firstly, the idea of the activity hub was inspired by the tree and further developed from our previous idea of a giant tree architectural structure. A tree consists of many branches from a strong trunk and the firm roots supporting it on the ground. As the water is absorbed by the tree, the tree eventually grows stronger from the nutrients and even more firmly rooted. This analogy explains the idea and our concept behind the multi-purpose activity hub and its architectural structure. As seen from its building, there are many protruding compartments, symbolizing the branches of the tree. The hub consists of a basement car park, glass shopping mall, cinema, library, offices and community facilities from the bottom to the top respectively as indicated by the different colour schemes shown in our model. There will be four lifts in the building in total, two catering exclusively only to the hotel guests and the two others catering to the people working in the offices as well the rest of the people. The lifts catering to the hotel guests would only allow access to the shopping mall, cinema and library while the lifts for the office staff and commoners would have access to all levels in the activity centre.

Linking by a bridge from the activity hub is a hotel catered to the tourists visiting/on vacation in Singapore. At the top of the hotel is a rooftop swimming pool, taking care of the tourists’ recreational needs. The linking bridge between the hotel and the activity centre is to facilitate the movement of people to and fro the two buildings and to enjoy the expansive views down the canal and of the city.

Right beside the canal is the Theatre of the Arts. The theatre consists of a museum and theatre halls for local plays and dramas, showcasing the rich cultural heritage and history behind the Jalan Besar area. This serves to create awareness of the history behind Jalan Besar among the younger generation living in the neighbourhood and students living in other parts of the city on school educational/excursion fieldtrips. The museum also serves as a cultural exhibit for the foreign visitors/tourists living in the hotel. The Theatre of the Arts is built in the shape of a green leaf, symbolising the hopes in our younger generation in the knowledge and preservation of our deep cultural roots in the present and future.

The existing canal is given a new life as river taxis would be introduced along the entire stretch of it. This creates a European feel and brings out the romantic ambience with the shady canopies currently along it. The canal passes through at the bottom of the two buildings, the hotel and the activities hub, thus creating another area of interest in the site. There would also be an underwater restaurant in the canal.

A sky and vertical garden concept will be introduced to the surrounding housing estates/HDB where the rooftops would all be linked. The sky community garden allows plantation of crops by the residents living in the flats below, whereby they can sell the cultivated crops at the retail store located in the shopping mall thereafter. It also creates another new space where families can gather and bond as there would be barbequing facilities at one end of the garden, away from the crops. The space can also be used for sight-seeing at any time of the day. The vertical garden at the sides of the HDB estates in this place serves as a decorative element and for a green environmental purpose.

Lastly, there would be a foldable market beside the empty grass field. It can be extended in the weekends to serve as a flea market thereafter kept/folded up when it is not in use, allowing people to have a space for kite flying and other leisure activities. Residents get to sell their own collection of items which adds into the vibrant lifestyle in the community.

In conclusion, our design concept and proposal is in place in hope to bring the site into a vibrant place deeply influenced by the strong sense of community coherence and rich cultural heritage in the Jalan Besar area.