A TOWN COUNCIL COMPLEX

Abstract

SCENARIO Singapore is an Asian society which has inherited her laws, form of government, administrative practices and educational systems from the West. Over the last few years, her style of government has been towards more open consultations and public debates on national policies including television coverage during parliamentary proceedings. With the passing of the Town Council Act in 1988, the emphasis is on residents' participation in the management of their own towns thereby reducing the role of the government in the day-to-day lives of Singaporeans. There is therefore a need for the Town Council to be established as a civic focus befitting its role as a place where the governed and the government can be seen to interact and as a place which the residents can identify with. This thesis attempts to study the relationships between architecture, government and people by utilising as a design vehicle, the Town Coucil Complex for the town of Clementi. The challenges are to provide and symbolise open access to government in the architecture of civic buildings, to create an identity by establishing a network of significant buildings and public places in the town and an appropriate building in the cultural context of Singaporeans. STATEMENT OF ISSUES A Civic Centre/Town Council Complex will form the Civic Focus of the town addressing the following issues: URBAN ISSUE a) A Civic Focus for the town can provide MONUMENTALITY in the town and still provide a conducive environment for fostering community interaction through its activities; ARCHITECTURAL ISSUES b) A Civic Focus for the people can enhance ACCESSIBILITY to the process of government thus increasing political awareness among the people; c) A Civic Focus is a formal and visual expression of our cultural values. OBJECTIVES OF THESIS a) to investigate the formal urban and architectural implications of the political orders of our times; b) to investigate how architectural devices can be employed to resolve the conflicting interests between Accessibility and Monumentality in Civic buildings; c) to demonstrate that a building is not only a reflection of the role an instituition plays in society but also how society itself is organised.