9,000 homes up for grabs in Singapore’s southern waterfront

In National Day speech, prime minister goes into detail on ambitious coastal redevelopment scheme

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s plans to transform Singapore’s southern coastline are being concretised.

As one of the first Greater Southern Waterfront (GSW) developments, a site covering the former Keppel Club golf course will play host to around 9,000 residential properties, the premier announced in his National Day rally speech Sunday.

The area will offer a mix of Housing and Development Board (HDB) units as well as private housing with waterfront promenades, greenery, and open spaces.

“And that is just the start, because there is space and land for public and private housing elsewhere in the GSW too. With GSW the size of two Punggols, you get a sense of the possibilities. Think of it as Punggol by the Bay,” the premier stated in his speech.

The lease of the Keppel Club site, set near two MRT stations and the Labrador Nature Reserve, is expiring in two years.

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First publicised in his 2013 National Day rally speech, GSW refers to a 30-kilometre, 2,000-hectare stretch of coastal land from the Gardens by the Bay East to Pasir Panjang, an area six times the size of Marina Bay.

The GSW plans will be executed as a series of live-work-play developments, the Keppel Club area being the ‘live’ component. “We will develop more office space in the GSW, like this one, which is Mapletree Business City, will bring in more jobs. People can work near where they live, and live near where they work. This will create life and activity both during the day and at night.”

With the play component, or “the fun part,” as the premier puts it, authorities will be overseeing the redevelopment of two decommissioned power stations in Pasir Panjang. The project will take inspiration from the conversion of the former St James Power Station into a nightlife destination.

The prime minister also envisions the redevelopment of Pulau Brani into a resort after the impending move of the PSA terminal in the island to Tuas. “We will build new attractions on Brani, just like we have Universal Studios on Sentosa,” Lee said.

Plans are also afoot to revitalise Sentosa’s beach areas and expand its nature and heritage trails, to “keep its island character.”

The city’s green areas will benefit from greater connectivity with linkages planned between West Coast Park and East Coast Park as well as connections from Rail Corridor to Sentosa.