Daily Archives: July 9, 2015 (31 Articles Found)
S$6m awarded to four research programmes on energy efficiency
BCA will be awarding S$6 million to four research projects on improving the energy efficiency of buildings, announced Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee at the Urban Sustainability R&D Congress on Thurs. The projects focus on…
Zouk’s Clarke Quay entry seen as boosting business in the area
More than just dancing their hearts out at Zouk in Clarke Quay, when it opens there next year, revellers will also have the option of conveniently hopping to other clubs next door, for a full flavour of Singapore’s…
People-centric approach needed for effective urban planning, says expert
When the Singapore-KL High Speed Rail terminal in Jurong is ready, it could bring about a much bigger transient commuter population in the area, and with it, implications on how to manage emergencies involving a crowd that includes…
Root cause of latest MRT breakdown still not pinpointed
After a second round of checks yesterday night that failed to pinpoint the cause of the previous day’s massive MRT breakdown, LTA said today that it would hire an independent consultant specialising in transit power systems. The consultant…
38 months’ jail for real estate agent who cheated clients
A former real estate agent who duped two clients, a mother and daughter, into parting with their money and car was sentenced to 38 months’ jail today. Lau Wing Kuan, 40, had been convicted of three charges, one…
Brownstone EC adds to glut as applications open
The glut in the EC market is set to get worse with new launches adding a wave of supply into a housing segment where take-up has been generally lacklustre. Today, developer City Developments (CDL) said applications for The…
Unloved, unaffordable shoebox units flood property auctions
Back in their heyday several years ago, shoebox units were seen as a fail-safe and smart property investment option. But these units have since fallen from grace after policymakers unveiled measures to curb Singapore’s then-heated property market. Now,…
Prime home rents: S’pore third worst performer among 18 cities
Asia was home to the best and the worst performers in the global prime residential leasing market in Q1, with Singapore ranked third-worst after prime rents here fell 4.9 per cent in the 12 months to Mar 2015.…
Loophole in HDB lending rules makes some private apartments more affordable
In certain circumstances in which an HDB is the same price as that of a private apartment, the buyer will fail to qualify for a loan on the HDB flat but have no problem obtaining a mortgage to…
Changi’s T4 to use facial recognition technology
In a first for Changi Airport, facial recognition technology will be installed at the new T4, using one photo of passengers’ faces during check-in, immigration and boarding. This will erase the need for manual identity verification by airport…
HDB resale volume reaches highest in two years: SRX
More HDB resale flats were sold last month compared to in May, according to data compiled by SRX Property today, as prices edged up slightly. 1,709 HDB flats were sold in June, compared to 1,575 units in May,…
Property investment deals surge to $5.7b in Q2
Investment sales of property, big-ticket transactions of at least S$10 million have risen 56.7 per cent to nearly S$5.7 billion in the second quarter from S$3.63 billion in the first quarter of this year. The quarter-on-quarter surge was…
Existing homeowners will soon get a sneak peek at S’pore’s smart homes!
For a while now, we’ve been looking forward to the prospect of smart homes coming to Singapore. Earlier this year, it was announced that smart homes would be available to homeowners as soon as 2016, and it was…
‘Significant room’ for improvement for Singapore’s ageing data centres
The Republic may play host to about 50 per cent of SEA’s data centre capacity, however many data centres here are likely to be inefficient in areas such as energy and use of space, said IDA’s Assistant CEO…
Pop-up galleries, open call for new tenants at Gillman Barracks
Gillman Barracks (GB) may have been recently hit by the departure of a handful of its gallery tenants, but it has announced plans to bring in replacements and to beef up its offerings. The visual arts hub will…
R&D helped Singapore overcome key challenges: Desmond Lee
R&D has helped Singapore overcome key challenges in the past such as water and housing by providing creative and pragmatic solutions, Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee noted today at the Urban Sustainability R&D, organised by…
Heed lessons from MRT breakdowns
While commuters have come to accept train delays nowadays, what has been learnt from past experiences to avoid such an occurrence as Tues’s train disruption? While the outages in Dec 2011 led to a Committee of Inquiry, the…
Strata industrial sales down in Q2, but leasing gained momentum: Colliers
Sales of strata industrial properties continued to languish from stringent loan curbs and interest rate jitters, said Colliers Research. The number of caveats lodged dipped from 220 in 1Q2015 to 206 in 2Q2015. Developers were also neck and…
Towards shorter retail leases & innovative leasing strategies
Last year and this have been “heavy times” for residential property, with a rush of discussions and concerns about cooling in home buying sentiments, unsold stock at developer projects and newly completed homes lying vacant. In fact, the…
Efforts to freshen up S’pore River area win recognition
Once known for its touts and drunks, the Singapore River area has had its image cleaned over the past three years. Touting along Boat Quay has gone down, a pedestrian-friendly Circular Road has drawn more crowds, and murals…
Containing the flier problem
Advertising fliers stuffed in gate hinges or pushed under doors are a common phenomenon in many HDB blks. Two town councils, however, have helped their residents to deal with such fliers. They have issued boxes that are hung…
People behind the old charm
Dakota Crescent, one of Singapore’s oldest public housing estates, is a peculiar sight. Swanky condominiums tower over it on one side, and the Sports Hub looms just down the road. The low-rise estate was built by the Singapore…
More owners put properties under hammer in weak market
The lacklustre real estate sector is prompting more owners of residential and industrial properties to try their hand at auctions. There were 180 units put under the hammer in the three months to June 30, up 2.9 per…
Extra buses bring little relief to commuters
After train services broke down along two major MRT lines on Tues night, commuters found that buses could do little to help them with their journeys. Both the North-South and East-West MRT lines were down for more than…
Urbanisation specialist lists what it takes for S’pore to grow
Singapore has done well to invest in its infrastructure and plan its land use, and may wish to look to other global cities for ideas on how to map its path for future growth, a senior fellow at…
Impossible to find every flaw: SMRT chief Desmond Kuek
SMRT CEO Desmond Kuek said the operator will not be able to catch every potential fault even if it stepped up maintenance. “So one solution is to completely renew the system,” he said. Another would be to put…
Overhaul current train maintenance system
The public has heard too often that the frequent train breakdowns were due to unforeseen and unpredictable circumstances (“2 major MRT lines down for over 2 hours”; Wed). I suggest that the current maintenance programme be overhauled. Do…
Tap Gardens’ status to turn more green
The declaration of the iconic Botanic Gardens as a Unesco World Heritage Site is a testament to the country’s sustained greening efforts over 150 years, starting with a smaller focus and growing into the idea of a garden…
If SMRT lacks resources, Government should step in
SMRT Corp and LTA have been on a billion-dollar, multi-year programme to replace major operating and infrastructural assets on the NSEWL since 2011. But the suspected flaws that brought Singapore’s oldest and most heavily used lines to their…
Why hasn’t SMRT learnt from past breakdowns?
It is of great concern that train troubles continue to plague Singapore, the latest one coming after a recent fare increase. Even more astounding than the massive train breakdown however, is how, after so many incidents, recovery on…
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