PLACE- MAKING AND GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION IN THE MARKETPLACES IN SINGAPORE ( A CASE STUDY OF THREE HISTORIC MARKETPLACES IN SINGAPORE)

Abstract

In the age of modernization, a substantial amount of history has been erased from the urban fabric of Singapore in the name of progress and development. The significance of the marketplace brings us back to the founding days of Singapore where markets were the backbone of support and livelihood of people. Today, marketplaces continue to be important centers for social interaction and community bonding and the bread- and- butter for many stall vendors who depend on their business for survival. The society is characterized by erasure, demolition and forgetting such that “ forgetting to remember” is a permanent condition of Singapore” Lee Tzu Pheng, My Country and My People, 1980 The marketplaces’ transformations have been simultaneous with Singapore’s development and progress. In the past, hawkers sprout up spontaneously along streets, setting up stalls in any space they could find. Today, streets are clean of itinerant hawkers who are relocated into proper markets under strict regulations. Despite improving the conditions of the marketplace, these pragmatic decisions have resulted in a systemized and ordered definition of a market today. This dissertation aims to discuss the importance of sense of place in the marketplaces of Singapore . Today, a market is perceived as a market by itself, more often than not, as a market building which is independent of its surrounding activities which constitute to a marketplace. A marketplace, on the other hand, consists of activities which establish relationships with one another and exist as a network of associations. Current and contemporary design thinking of the market perceives it as a singular entity, instead of looking at it in the macro aspect, as a marketplace. Through case studies of marketplaces which have undergone significant changes and transformation, it would explore the conditions of marketplaces, its design considerations and impacts on users. It is of crucial importance that architects are aware of current design limitations and its effect on sense of place, such that the key to place- making in the design and planning of marketplaces is highlighted. Many factors have impacts on sense of place down to its most micro aspect of spatial planning which emphasizes the human experience in the marketplace.