GENTRIFICATION: IMPACTS ON HOLLAND VILLAGE'S RESIDENTS AND RETAILERS

Abstract

Singapore, a sovereign city-state and island country located in Southeast Asia, started off with a land area of 581.5km2 in 1960s. Despite the growth in land area, land scarcity remains an important issue for Singapore to address, especially with the expectation of its population hitting 6.9million by 2030. As such, the application of gentrification becomes increasingly crucial in Singapore’s context. In the case of Singapore, gentrification is the result from the work of government bodies, conducted through various public policies such as government land sale (GLS), HDB revitalization and renewal policies and improvement in infrastructure. Holland Village, a notable town known for its rich heritage and strong neighborhood identity has undergone such government-planned gentrification in recent years. Benefits of gentrification are easily observed through the changes in the rental of the commercial space in the area and the prices of the residential properties in areas that undergone gentrification. However, as gentrification involves introducing gentrifiers and reforms, which are often drastic, to the built environment, some argues that gentrification is an opposing force to identity and its heritage. Due to gentrification, Holland Village now consist of a new generation of residents and retailers and there is a growing gap between their perception of Holland Village from the old generation of residents and retailers. While new retailers and residents are welcomed to the area, there is a need to integrate the two crowds in order to ensure the old generation do not get forced out of the area due to the change in atmosphere. This can be done through promoting heritage and culture to the new generation and an increased in communication between relevant authorities and the old generation to avoid making drastic changes that can have significant impact to Holland Village’s heritage and culture.