33.0 Our Tampines Hub

Singapore has got to be one of the best places in the world to live.  For anyone wanting to live in Asia and likes or can tolerate the tropical climate and is comfortable to communicate in English, Mandarin or Bahasa Indonesia/Melayu, the country should be high on you list of best places to live!

One of the key factors in making it the quality location it is, the good governance which puts a high emphasis on City Planning.  The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), the National Parks Board, the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the Public Works and Housing Development Board (HDB) to name a few are all world class. 

With the shortage of land and growing population the government has had to innovate in the city planning to continue to improve and accommodate the population’s needs. Singapore has a long history of developing new products from Hawker Centers, Community Centers, Public Housing, Integrated Resorts and the latest the Community Hubs.  

So what is a Community Hub?  In short it might be described as putting all the community amenities that Sinapore has developed into one site compacted and developing vertically.  This not only requires some sound planning to integrate and separate but also to take advantage of shared facilities, but it can only be possible with a strong central government that can make critical policy decisions to integrate all the various agencies for the better good of the population!

Artist Impression Our Tampines Hub (Source: Straits Times Internet)

I first visited the the new Bedok Hub a few days ago and walked away impressed but after just visiting the Our Tampines Hub, I didn’t want to leave!  It’s a marvel of government serving the community and sensitive to the tropics, the culture of Singapore, and basic everyday constantly evolving Singapore lifestyle.

The biggest question I walked away with is how can it be paid for and if it can be paid by government taxes, why can’t more places in the world also deliver such amenities?  Taxes are not excessively high in Singapore compared to the likes of Canada and Scandinavian Countries, but such high quality amenities can be sustainable!

So lets take a quick look at what's in the Hub, how is it organized and conceived and what are end spaces like and how are they used?  First the all inclusiveness can be see but by large sign board at the ground level that lists all the facilities.  

List of Facilities at My Hub Tampines

The development is situated about 400m from the Tampines MRT Station and about 200m from the Tampines Bus Interchange. It is connected to the Tampines Park in the West and surrounded by a sea of HDB (government built, citizen owned public housing). 

location map connecting transport to housing

                                        

According to SHEVS IFT Consultants Pte Ltd website and measurement on Google Earth, the following is data on the development:

• Site Area:  ~5.5 ha
• Development GFA: 120,000 m2
• Cost: S$500 million
• Stadium Seating: 5,000

The site is in Tampines North which according to the URA 2013 Master Plan flyer, when fully developed it will provide about 21,000 homes.  Based on 4 persons per home on average this amounts to a population of about 84,000 people which the Hub is to serve locally, but on top of this anyone in Singapore is welcome to use the facilities. According to Wikipedia Tampines has a population of  261,230 and a density of 13,000/km2.

The development can be reduced to a very simple conceptual diagram which is what makes it so easy to understand for the users.  It is conceptually a Field (football stadium) adjacent to a covered Plaza /Mall with public facilities/activities surrounding and connecting and orienting to them, hence integrating all the social, educational and recreational amenities are under one roof.

Our Tampines Hub reduced to a Conceptual Diagram

A quick walk through of the development you can see the variety of activities, quality of the space and use of the spaces.  This is without doubt community facilities unmatched anywhere I have seen!  

The following photos are limited to evening photos and during the Holiday Season so fully decorated with lights for an enhanced festive feel.  A Google search on Our Tampines Hub images will lead you to an abundance of images and information, but best to explore on your own!

Prominent View from Tampines Bus Interchange

Main approach view.  Roof top terrace canopy roof covers the swimming pool.

View down main mall / covered Festive Plaza. Tropical Singapore covered open spaces have become standard.

Festive Plaza with holidays entertainment.

Open air mall terraces direct access to sport halls.

One of the sports halls at the upper level.

View from upper level of open air mall to stadium field and all the facilities that surround and look on to the field such as library and roof garden.

View to various mall levels with activities such as children's play area and roof top garden and jogging track.

Hawker center is adjacent to the Festival Plaza putting Singaporean's passion for food at the heart of the community center.

One of 3 roof top pools, this one covered and roof structure make the unique feature on the main elevation.

Ground Level covered walk way direct connection to bus stop.

Ground Level direct entry to the stadium.

Front view from showing the library and other facilities that enclose the football stadium. 

Main entry to mall and Festive Plaza with roof canopy for covered swimming pool making a powerful entry piece.

Our Hub Tampines Website Link.

Jiwa Studio
Singapore, December 2017