CONDOMINIUM HOUSING DEVELOPMENT IN SINGAPORE : FACTORS INFLUENCING ITS PLANNING AND DESIGN

Abstract

The contribution of condominium type housing to the urban development in Singapore has long been recognised. The condominium policy was introduced by the Government in the early 1970s with the main planning objectives of maximising land use and improving communal environment in private housing estates. This housing type catered to the increasing housing demand of the middle income family from the very beginning of its introduction. It has been a popular private housing form for the middle and even upper income groups. Now condominium units are estimated to be more than half of the total housing units completed by the private sector. Because of its importance, many studies on this form of housing development have been conducted. Most of them, however, are concentrated on the quantitative aspects. Little appraisal has been made on the qualitative aspects, particularly on condominium housing planning and design. As condominium development was largely guided by the statutory controls, this study will examine its development in relation to these controls. The current study will first trace the architectural development of condominium housing in Singapore in the past three decades with specific regard to the physical environment of this housing type. Then, it will focus on housing intensity to give a basic assessment of condominium development. For this purpose, this study will examine how the housing intensity is controlled by legislation and how it is applied in the design programme. Finally, the impact of the statutory control on the architectural development of condominium housing will be discussed through the analysis of selected samples of condominiums in order to highlight the key factors influencing condominium planning and design. Derived from Western experience, the condominium housing concept emphasises on communal living in private housing estate. In contrast to most traditional housing types, communal living is accepted as a unique characteristic in condominium concept. Thus, condominium concept in terms of multi-family living is regarded as a feasible means to solve the problem of sprawling land use and lack of communal living in the traditional housing market. However, problems also result easily from the imbalance of communal and private living in the residential estate. Through reviewing the origin and growth of condominium type housing in Singapore, the condominium concept will be elaborated within the local context. The legal system has played an important part in condominium policy. Two regulations are considered essential in Singapore: the condominium planning Guidelines and the general housing density control. On the one hand, the condominium planning Guidelines set the standards for building coverage, communal open space, building distance and setback from site boundary and even the building height to length ratio in order to stipulate the key factors related to housing intensity in detail. On the other hand, the general housing density control imposes necessary restrictions to the building height and the overall physical bulkiness on a certain plot in order to control overall development of condominium type housing within the entire urban structure. They jointly constitute the macroscopic and microscopic controls for condominium housing intensity, thus in a large measure affecting condominium living environment. With the use of a set of meticulous guidelines, a pattern of relationship between buildings, open spaces and circulation in condominium site layout is formulated, which is proven to be effective by both old and new developments in Singapore. Generally, housing blocks are grouped in various clusters in accordance with the site conditions; the main communal open space including the swimming pool and the club house is usually encircled by the housing clusters for easy access for the residents; and the vehicle circulation serving the surface or basement carpark is placed along the site boundary for the prompt approach to housing blocks. These statutory controls have been reviewed periodically in the process of the development of the whole nation. Influenced by three versions of Condominium Planning Guidelines, condominium development can be classified into three generations from 1974 to 1984, from 1985 to 1993 and after 1993 respectively. The three generations show clearly changes in condominium development pattern in Singapore in terms of the intensity. Building coverage increases gradually due to the relaxation of building coverage controls. It causes the plot ratios of recent medium and high-rise developments to rise from 2.0 to 3.0. The average household density of condominium developments was 60 units per hectare in the first generation, 100 units per hectare in the second generation and 150 units per hectare in the third generation, which undoubtedly implies significant changes in both condominium private and communal living environment. Planning and design standards in condominium statutory controls were adjusted with the aim of maximising land use. The most significant changes were the reduction of minimum building spacing and the substitution of gross plot ratio control for the residential density control. The former has given rise to greater variety of housing arrangement in terms of height to width ratio as well as height to length ratio. The latter allows greater flexibility in design and planning of the unit type. This provides a greater challenge in unit design. In general, the trend was to provide smaller unit size. For example, in the first and second generations, the 3-bedroom flats usually range from 120-200 sqm, whereas in the third generation, 3-bedroom flats are common to be 110-140 sqm. Besides the reduction of unit size, the plot ratio computation also affected the design of the unit, as the floor area of balcony is included in the floor area computation. It has discouraged the provision of large balconies overlaid in the block. Consequently, the number of units increases and led to a greater variety of the block layout. In the meantime, these imply a higher demand for communal facilities. The primary aim of this study, thus, is to examine the overall impact of the planning statutory controls on condominium development in the past 30 years in Singapore. This thesis consists of six parts. Chapter 1 provides a framework of housing development in Singapore with regard to the role of condominium housing policy. Chapter 2 introduces the scope and methodology of research. Chapter 3 is an overview of condominium development in Singapore. Chapter 4 and 5 will study the development of condominium planning Guidelines and the general housing intensity control, and their impact on condominium planning and design. Some tentative conclusions will be drawn in Chapter 6.