Making Moulmein `a better place to live`

February 2011
Moulmein
UPDATE
Tanjong Pagar
Town Council
Making Moulmein
‘a better place to live’
In his office in the MICA Building, RADM(NS) Lui Tuck Yew talked about past and
future projects in his constituency ... and the importance of neighbourliness.
O
ver the past five years, almost all the HDB
blocks in Moulmein that did not have lifts
that stop on every floor, got them. “Many
of the precincts actually hit above 90% in terms
of the total responses for the lift upgrading programme. I think that goes to show how much this
programme is welcomed by the people,” Mr Lui
said.
Residents also welcomed the upgrading of the
Tekka Centre. Even getting into the car park is
easier with congestion on Buffalo Road reduced.
And it’s easier to find a space with differentiated
pricing. Now you pay $1 for a half- hour’s parking
during the day, but that goes down to 50 cents in
the evening.
“It helps to turn over traffic more quickly during
the day, while people are not affected who come
for dinner or visit parents after work,” he said. He
thought the stall-holders and the NEA deserved a
big thank-you for the part they played in bringing
about all the changes.
Although many improvements have been made
in all the estates, Mr Lui feels that there will always
be scope for more linkways, drop-off porches, fitness
corners and improvement for barrier-free access.
Upgrading private estates
RADM(NS) Lui Tuck Yew, Minister for Information,
Communications & the Arts, MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC
(Moulmein)
Private estates won’t be left out of the upgrading.
Apart from nominating four to five neighbourhoods for the Estate Upgrading Programme
(EUP), he has, for example, put in proposals to
make improvements to the playgrounds in private
estates. “Because that is outside the scope of even
the new Interim EUP, we approached the National
Parks and they have agreed to improve five of the
Adding buzz to Balestier’s
heritage-rich district
playgrounds in our private estates,” he said.
Working with different agencies for the maintenance and improvement of private property can be
a problem. “So we started the Hotline for Private
Estates, or HOPE. Now, instead of having to call
different agencies – the NEA, PUB, LTA and so
on – a resident can call just one number,” he said. It
cuts out the hassle of trying to find the right person
to talk to.
HOPE has been under trial for over a year with
funding from the Ministry of Finance.
Community bonding
“But it is not just the physical infrastructure that
we need to be concerned with,” he said. “It’s not
just the amenities and social hygiene. We need to
encourage a deeper sense of community, a greater
sense of bonding.”
He wants more programmes that complement
the CDC’s activities and help the needy, the out-ofwork and the elderly who lack family support.
“About two years ago we introduced a programme for them in the Pek Kio area. We give
them a number of vouchers each month that they
can use at the Pek Kio market. For $2 they can get
a good meal,” he said. The hawkers in turn can
redeem the vouchers from the CCC.
“Eighty percent of the hawker stalls in the
market have come on board this scheme!”
Talking about events organized by the NCs, he
said he was pleased the way the RCs and NCs were
working together. Trips to the Universal Studios
here, the Flyer, the Helix bridge and the Marina
Barrage have been organised so that residents from
– continued on page 5
Sun Yat Sen villa
Z
The old Sun Yat Sen villa. The park will lead
to it, between the new high-rise hotels.
hongshan Park is a common
name for Chinese parks in
honour of the “Father of
modern China”, Sun Yat-sen, known
in Chinese as Sun Zhongshan.
Now Singapore will have such a
park, between Balestier and the Sun
Yat Sen villa on Ah Hood Road.
The park will be built and maintained by niche property developer
Hiap Hoe and SuperBowl Holdings
as part of their development of two
hotels and an office block on the site
shown to the right.
1
Moulmein Update
Menjadikan Moulmein ‘tempat yang
lebih baik untuk didiami’
Di pejabat beliau di Bangunan MICA, Laksamana Pertama (Kerahan) Lui Tuck Yew
bercakap mengenai projek-projek pada masa lalu dan masa depan di kawasan undi
beliau… dan peri pentingnya semangat kejiranan.
D
alam masa lima tahun yang lalu, hampir
semua blok HDB di Moulmein yang tidak
mempunyai lif yang berhenti di setiap
tingkat, telah mendapat kemudahan ini. “Banyak
keputusan pengundian mencapai paras sokongan
yang lebih daripada 90%. Saya fikir itu menunjukkan betapa program ini mendapat sambutan
baik penduduk,” kata Encik Lui.
Penduduk juga mengalu-alukan peningkatan
Pusat Tekka. Para pemandu kereta kini mendapati
lebih mudah untuk memasuki tempat letak kereta
kerana kesesakan di Buffalo Road telah menjadi
kurang.
Walaupun banyak pembaikan telah dibuat di
semua estet, Encik Lui berasa akan sentiasa ada
skop untuk membina lebih banyak laluan penghubung, anjung untuk menurunkan penumpang,
sudut senaman dan akses bebas halangan yang
lebih baik.
Peningkatan estet privet
Estet-estet privet tidak akan diabaikan. Beliau
telah menamakan empat atau lima kejiranan untuk
Program Peningkatan Estet dan NParks telah bersetuju untuk memperbaiki lima taman permainan
kanak-kanak di estet-estet privet.
Bekerja dengan agensi-agensi yang berlainan
untuk penyenggaraan dan pembaikan hartanah
privet boleh menimbulkan masalah. “Oleh itu kami
telah mulakan Hotline untuk Estet-estet Privet,
atau HOPE. Sekarang, seorang penduduk tidak
perlu menghubungi agensi-agensi yang berlainan
– NEA, PUB, LTA dan sebagainya – dia boleh memanggil satu nombor sahaja,” kata beliau.
“Tetapi kita tidak setakat memberi perhatian
kepada infrastruktur fizikal sahaja,” kata beliau.
“Kita perlu menggalakkan semangat masyarakat
yang lebih tebal.”
Beliau berkata beliau gembira dengan cara
Jawatankuasa-jawatankuasa Penduduk dan
Jawatankuasa-jawatankuasa Kejiranan bekerjasama. Lawatan ke tempat-tempat menarik telah
dianjurkan agar penduduk dari kawasan perumahan awam dan estet privet dapat berseronok
bersama.
Banyak projek baru
Berita besar untuk Moulmein adalah Balai Rakyat
Pek Kio yang baru. Dan menurut Encik Lui, ia
akan dibina dengan kemudahan yang lebih banyak
daripada biasa. Ia akan berkongsi dewan sukan
dalam bangunan dengan Sekolah Rendah Farrer
Park. “Pada siang hari, sekolah tersebut akan
mendapat keutamaan menggunakan dewan sukan,
dan pada waktu malam, penduduk akan dapat
menggunakannya!” kata Encik Lui.
Satu lagi perkara yang akan membawa perbezaan besar adalah pembinaan MRT yang sedang
dijalankan. Dengan siapnya laluan Downtown Line
Two dan laluan Circle, penduduk Moulmein akan
mempunyai empat laluan MRT yang berkhidmat
kepada mereka.
Encik Lui berkata bahawa satu lagi projek yang
beliau nantikan adalah pembangunan Zhongshan
Park di sebelah villa Sun Yat Sen. Sebagai sebuah
kemudahan tambahan yang dialu-alukan di kawasan Balestier, taman ini akan menarik perhatian
orang ramai kepada villa tersebut – dan villa itu
sendiri akan dilengkapi dengan bahan-bahan pameran baru.
Jiran baik
Beliau berceritakan tentang masa beliau dibesarkan
di Tiong Bahru dalam zaman di mana pintu rumah
sentiasa terbuka, pesta-pesta disambut bersama,
jiran tetangga mengawasi anak satu sama lain, dan
seorang jiran tidak berasa keberatan meminjam secawan gula pasir daripada jiran sebelah. “Terdapat
banyak semangat tolong menolong,” kata beliau.
Oleh itu, apakah yang dapat dilakukan untuk
menjadikan Moulmein seperti itu? “Yang penting adalah anda perlu tahu jiran tetangga anda,
berkenalan dengan mereka dan tolong-menolong
antara satu sama lain,” kata beliau.
Oleh kerana sukar bagi para pemimpin akar
umbi menjejak setiap orang, beliau fikir bahawa
jiran tetangga harus mengambil tahu keadaan
satu sama lain. “Kadang kala orang malu untuk
meminta tolong. Oleh itu, jika anda perhatikan
satu perubahan dalam keadaan jiran anda –
misalnya, apabila si pencari nafkah kehilangan
pekerjaan atau menemui kemalangan – anda harus
memberitahu kami, bercakap dengan pemimpin
akar umbi anda, agar kami dapat datang melawat
dan membantu jika boleh.
“Mengambil berat. Bersedia menolong. Apabila
kita sampai ke peringkat suasana demikian,
Moulmein akan menjadi sebuah tempat yang lebih
baik untuk didiami,” kata beliau.
RESIDENTS’
REPORTS
Mr George Yeo lives on
the ninth floor in Block 10
Gloucester Road.”I did
not stay on a lift level so
it was quite inconvenient
for me. If I was carrying
something heavy, it was
hard work,” he said. He
thought everyone in his
block, especially the elderly, were very happy
when the LUP took place. “Before, when you
bought something and arranged for it to be
delivered, they would say, ‘Are you staying at a
lift floor?’ and if you said, ‘No,’ then there would
quote higher, something like $5 per floor extra.
Lifts that stop on every floor are a great convenience for everyone.”
Mr Leo Nyam has been
living in the Ah Hood
Gardens for over 20
years. He thinks the
sheltered linkways are
very good. “When it’s
rainy, it’s very convenient. I can walk all the
way to the bus stop
under cover.” He likes
his estate. “It’s peaceful.. and you don’t feel
crowded here.” He’s 27, but his uncle, who lives
in the next block, is 71. He showed us the pavilion where his uncle comes to sit and watch the
world go by. “He has trouble with his knees,”
he said. Making the estate barrier free had
been a tremendous help for his uncle.
Mr Richard Wong and his
dog live in Block 104 Jalan
Dusun. He thinks the
covered linkways are the
greatest improvement the
Town Council has made
to the estate.He said he
found the drop-off porch
at Block 106 very handy.
“I don’t use it very often,
but when it’s raining, yes.
Before, if I didn’t have an
umbrella, I’d just have to
run for it. Very difficult
after you’ve been marketing with your wife!”
Growing
together
More than plants are growing in this
community garden. Tended with care and
hard work, the bonds between resident
gardeners are growing as fast as their
flowers and vegetables.
B
efore their community garden became official, residents were already cultivating land
to the west of their houses.
So, as soon as the Moulmein Goldhill NC was
formed, the Goldhill Gardening Club was founded.
With the help of NParks and the SLA, their garden
became official... and started winning prizes!
It has attracted over sixty members, but only
2
about 20 are active in the garden. As you can see
from our photos, it’s hard work!
Club members grow herbs, flowers, vegetables
and fruit. A project taking a lot of effort at the
moment is building a Japanese rock garden.
There are many great things about gardening.
Choosing what you want to grow is one. Watching
it grow is even better. Sharing what you’ve grown
with friends – that’s an amazing pleasure.
REPORT CARD
for Moulmein Division
HDB Programmes
Lift Upgrading at Blks 661-664 Buffalo Road
Lift Upgrading at Blks 41-43 Cambridge Road
Lift Upgrading at Blk 9 Gloucester Road
Lift Upgrading at Blks 44 and 46 Owen Road
Lift Upgrading at Blk 50 Dorset Road
Lift Upgrading at Blks 51-53 Kent Road
Town Council Improvement Works
Lift Upgrading at Blks 668 Chander Road, 49 Dorset Road,
54 Kent Road and 10 Gloucester Road,
Barrier Free Access at Blks 101-106 Ah Hood Gardens
Barrier Free Access at Blk 48 and 48A Dorset Road
Barrier Free Access at Blks 681-685 Race Course Road/Tessensohn Road
Barrier Free Access at Blks 101-108 Jln Rajah
Barrier Free Access at Blks 41- 47 Cambridge Road
Barrier Free Access at Blks 671A/B and 672A/B Klang Lane
Barrier Free Access at Blks 11-15 Farrer Park Road
Barrier Free Access at Blks 51-54 Kent Road
Covered Linkway from Blk 9 Gloucester Road to Farrer Park MRT
Covered Linkway from Blk 37A to 38 Cambridge Road
Covered Linkway from Blk 14A Farrer Park Road to Farrer Park MRT
Covered Linkway from Blk 681 Race Course Road to Farrer Park MRT
Covered Linkway from Blk 52 Kent Road to Kent Road
Covered Linkway from Blk 1 Thomson Road to Blk 2 Balestier Road
Drop-off Porch at Blk 106 Jalan Dusun
Drop-off Porch at Blk 668 Chander Road
Drop-off Porch at Blk 38 Cambridge Road
Fitness corner at Blk 672 Klang Lane
Fitness corner at 12 Farrer Park Road
Fitness corner at Blk 69 Moulmein Road
Fitness corner at Blk 47 Owen Road
Fitness corner at Blk 51 Kent Road
Playground Upgrading at Blk 10 Gloucester Road
Playground Upgrading at Blks 41/44 Cambridge Road
Jogging track at Blk 51 Kent Road
Amenities improved by other branches of Govt
Hawker Upgrading at Blk 665 Buffalo Road
Hawker Upgrading at Blk 41A Cambridge Road
3
Moulmein Update
RESIDENTS’
REPORTS
Mr Subramaniam lives in
Block 668 Chander Road.
“It’s a good place to live. But
a bit crowded on Sundays!
The Town Council does a
good job trying to keep it
clean – but the rubbish is
thrown down faster than
anyone can clean it up.” His
lift used to stop on the seventh and eleventh floors, but for two years now
it has been stopping on every floor. “It’s great.
We have very long corridors in this block, but
they don’t seem so long when you don’t have a
flight of stairs to start or end your walk.And it
makes a big difference for the elderly.”
Mr Rajaraajan lives on the
seventh floor of Block 49
Dorset Road. That was really
the worst floor before the
TC-LUP. He had to climb
two flights up or down to
catch the lift. And he was,
and is, an avid cyclist. “If I
leave my bike on the ground
floor, it gets stolen. So I
have to bring it up to my
house and put it inside. Before, if I wanted to go
cycling, I had to carry it and climb down two
floors. Once I slipped and fell onto my bicycle
and injured my knee.” Not many people realise
that an LUP can prevent cycling accidents.
“With the lift stopping on our floor, going out
for a ride is much easier now. And safer!”
Mr Poh Kok Heng, who
runs the Hougang 209
stall selling fishball and
minced meat noodles,
thinks the atmosphere
is very good in the new
Tekka Centre and so is
the standard of hygiene.
“Before renovation the
place was quite dirty and
stuffy and used to smell,
but now it is more airy,”
he said.
Mrs Harbans, a tour guide
who works around Little
India is very happy with
the new Tekka Centre. “The
washrooms are a lot cleaner
now. Now there is a cleaner
also.” She has been eating
at the Anna Thosai Stall for
years. She thinks that the
prices are still pretty much
the same, and reasonable. She always buys fruit
here. “Tekka Market is an interesting place and
is very old. You can shop for clothes, jewellery,
everything. The shopkeepers are friendly too. I
hope they keep it forever!”
The New Look of Tekka
Everyone is pleased. The HUP gave Singapore’s leading wet market and food centre a
new edge and the LUP made all the blocks an even more convenient place to live!
T
he New Look Tekka has lifts that stop at
every floor, new tiling in the lobbies – and
a bright new coat of paint. The food centre
and market are brighter, airier, cleaner and more
comfortable – with wider aisles, more fans and new
lighting, seating, wiring and drainage.
Mr I.S. Kamal has
been running the
Madina Muslim
Food stall in Tekka
Centre for nine
years. He is happy
that the place is
cleaner now and
is hopeful that
business will pick
up as the economy
picks up.
4
Moulmein Update
‘a better place to live’
– continued from page one
both the heartlands and private estates can have
a good time together. “I think this will bring a
deeper sense of community.”
Moving forward...
The big news for Moulmein is the new Pek Kio
CC. And according to Mr Lui it will be built
with more facilities than usual – because it will
share an indoor sports hall with Farrer Park
Primary School. “During the day, the school will
get priority to use the sports hall and CC facilities, and in the evening and on weekends, the
residents will get it!” Mr Lui said,
“Within the CC we may have facilities and
after-school programmes that will be of benefit
to the students.” He thinks the relationship
between the school and CC can be symbiotic.
“There are many exciting possibilities.”
Another thing that will make a big difference
for many is the current MRT construction. With
Downtown Line Two and the Circle line coming
up, Moulmein residents will have four lines
serving them. “At first the construction might
cause some inconvenience, but once completed,
commuting will be a lot easier for everyone,” he
said.
Many projects in the pipeline
Besides the MRT lines, we are also well served
with hospitals in the Constituency. Apart from
Kandang Kerbau, Tan Tock Seng, Ren Chi, and
Thomson Medical Centre, two more private hospitals will be built at Farrer Park and Novena.
Mr Lui said that another project he was
looking forward to was the Zhongshan Park
development beside the Sun Yat Sen villa. A
welcome addition to the Balestier area, the park
will draw attention to the villa – and the villa
itself will be fitted with new exhibits
When asked what pleased him the most
during his time as MP for Moulmein, Mr Lui
said it was seeing people coming together to
work for a cause. He gave as an example the
Goldhill NC community garden, now attracting
many residents and visitors. “All thanks to a
small group of passionate people.”
In the years ahead, he thinks we need to try
and bring younger people together, especially
young parents and non-citizens. “Because of the
makeup of the constituency, we have many residents who are not Singaporeans, and we need to
bring them out and help them integrate into our
society.”
Turning neighbours into friends
O
ur candid photos were taken one morning
at the Kent Road fitness corner. They show
two things: (a) that the exercise equipment
installed by the Town Council is used and appreciated; and (b) that when people go down to exercise
they tend to chat with each other and form the kind
of friendships that build real neighbourhoods.
5
On the personal side
He talked about growing up in Tiong Bahru
in an era where doors were left open, festivals
celebrated together, neighbours watched over
each others’ kids, and no one thought twice
before going next door for a cup of sugar.
“There was a lot of give and take,” he said.
“It’s not like that nowadays, unfortunately.”
So what can be done to make Moulmein a
better place? “Beyond keeping the place clean,
beyond being considerate, what matters is getting to know your neighbours, befriending them
and helping each other out,” he said.
Because it’s hard for the grassroots leaders to
keep track of everyone, all the time, he thinks
that neighbours should look out for each other.
“Sometimes people are shy to ask for help. So,
if you notice a change in conditions at your
neighbour’s – for instance, when the breadwinner loses his job or has an accident – you should
come and tell us, speak to your grassroots
leaders, so that we can pay a visit and help if
possible.
“Showing concern. Being ready to help.
When we reach that kind of an environment,
Moulmein will be a better place to live,” he said.
Moulmein Update
Moulmein is a division
in Tanjong Pagar GRC
The following blocks are in this division:
EX
AY
SW
ES
PR
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew
)
IE
(P
MSON RD
THO
Tanjong Pagar
ISL
AN
D
Minister for Information,
Communications & the Arts,
MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC,
holds a weekly Meet-the-People Session
every Monday at 8.00pm
(except Public Holidays)
BRADDELL RD
at Block 10 Gloucester
Rd #01-51
Telephone 5293 0592.
R
PE
UP
PAN
RADM(NS) Lui Tuck Yew
661-665 Buffalo Rd; 668 Chander Rd; 11-15 Farrer Park;
671,671A-B,672,672A-B Klang Lane; 681,682, 684,685 Race
Course Rd; 683 Tessensohn Rd; 677 Rangoon Rd; 678 Perumal
Rd; 69 Moulmein Rd; 51-54 Kent Rd; 37,37A,38,39,39A,40
Cambridge Rd; 48, 48A,49,50 Dorset Rd; 25,44-47 Owen
Rd; 41,41A,42,43 Cambridge Rd; 9,10 Gloucester Rd; 1,1A
Thomson Rd; 2,2A Balestier Rd; 101,103 Ah Hood Rd;
102,104,106 Jln Dusun, 101-108 Jln Rajah.
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