1
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
J U LY – S EP T E M B ER
A N e w s l e t t e r F o r SL A ’ s P a r t n e r s
SLA maps on the go!
6
2
Breathing new life
into old estates 3
Forging partnerships:
SLA hosts GITEX forum 7
Boats ahoy!
2
Property Watch
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
In this issue, LAND features a property that is available for tender in October. Log on to www.spio.sla.gov.sg to view the
property or call our SPIO hotline at 6323 9154 to arrange for a site visit.
Former Ulu Pandan Camp
Address
:100, Ulu Pandan Road
Former use :Military camp
GFA
:Approx 6,382 sqm
Site Area :44,643 sqm
Tenure
:3+3+3 years
Guide rental:To be tendered
Tender period : Oct/Nov 2007
Approved use : Commercial
school/foreign systems school,
Hot
Picks
students’ hostel, childcare/student
care/ kindergarten, home for the aged,
martial arts/judo/fencing/archery
school, sports school, adventure camp
Boats ahoy!
by Violetta Wong
T
Artists Deborah Tan, Jacqui-Rae
and Cassandra Hale and the
public folded paper boats and
released them into the former public
pool. According to Lasalle, this
exhibition sought to “explore the
re-occupation of a disused public
space for a different non-functional
purpose to make new moments in
social memory. The making of this
artwork also expresses the interdependence of the public on each
other as they come together for the
purpose of filling the abandoned
pool with paper boats.”
Said an NAC spokesperson: “The site was chosen by
NAC in discussion with the curator, Milenko Prvacki,
dean of visual arts at Lasalle. The
project was about disused spaces
and shared memories, and River
Valley Swimming Complex was
very compelling as a space where
many Singaporeans grew up and
identified with.”
The complex has also been used
for other events. For instance,
it was used for a corporate
function where the entire pool
was covered up and levelled to
create a stage.
Photo by courtesy of Lasalle College
of the Arts & National Arts Council
he former River Valley Swimming Complex came alive
for an experiential art event recently. The Lasalle
College of the Arts, together with
the National Arts Council (NAC),
held a paper boat exhibition there
on 26 August 2007, as part of the
Singapore Arts Show.
The SLA issues Non-Renewable
Temporary Occupation Licences
(NRTOL) for use of vacant State
properties for a short fixed term. So the next time you are thinking
of an interesting venue to hold
your event, why not consider
Paper boats with messages penned on them give
The exhibition at tracted 50 participants an experience to remember.
State properties? Visit SLA’s
participants who were encouraged
website at http://www.sla.gov.sg
to pen short notes of their memories of the swimming (Rental of State Land) to download an application
complex before releasing them into the pool.
form.
SLA’S VISION, MISSION AND CORE VALUES
Vision
Mission
Core Values
To be a world-class
land authority.
To optimise land resources
for the economic and social
development of Singapore.
• Nation First
• People Organisation
• Innovation and Dynamism
For updating of particulars, as well as enquiries on subscription,
please contact Margaret Chee at Tel: 6325 7180 or
Email: [email protected]
We would like to hear your views and suggestions! Email us at
[email protected] to tell us what you want to read in Land!
Copyright © is held by SLA. All rights reserved. The contents of Land
may be reproduced subject to approval by SLA.
• Always Delighting Customers
• Integrity and Professionalism
Advisory Committee Chairman:Simon Ong
Advisory Committee
:Ng Siau Yong, Gaw Seng Suan, Wong Chooi Ling
Chief Editor
:Susan Koh
Contributing Writers
:Violetta Wong, Margaret Chee,
Low Chiew Leng
Designed by
:Pagesetters Services Pte Ltd
8 Shenton Way #26-01 Singapore 068811 Tel: (65) 6323 9829 Fax: (65) 6323 9937
[email protected] www.sla.gov.sg A Statutory Board of the Ministry of Law
Land is a quarterly publication by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), available in print and on SLA’s website (www.sla.gov.sg).
The name Land and the masthead design of an imaginary skyline against a vast landscape reflect SLA’s role in creating value
through innovative uses of State lands and buildings.
Latest Happenings
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
Differential Premium
System adjusted
Breathing
new life into
old estates
D
evelopers and owners would have noted that from 18
July 2007, the Differential Premium System has been
adjusted for the lifting of State title restrictions involving
change of use and/or increase in intensity. This follows
the revision of the Development Charge (DC) system —
Government will now peg the amount of DC or DP based on
70% of the enhancement in land value.
Premium for remnant state land
The basis of charging 50% of the full value for remnant
State land will remain unchanged notwithstanding the
revision to the Development Charge (DC) system and
correspondingly, the Table of DC Rates. Accordingly, SLA
will apply a factor of 5/7 to the new revised Table of DC
Rates (i.e. Table of DC Rate x 5/7 x size of remnant State
land x plot ratio) when computing the premium to be paid
for remnant State land. However, using the Table of DC
Rates to ascertain the premium applies only to standard
cases. In other suitable cases, the premium payable may
be determined using other methods. Visit www.sla.gov.sg
for more information.
3
by Hoon Sung Long and Foo Kee Yong
N
ot only is SLA in charge of State land and
properties, it also plays a part in the Estate
Upgrading Programme (EUP) that breathes new
life to older estates. A distinct identity and theme is
given to the estates. Through this programme, State
land has been converted to Interim Parks for the
residents’ recreational needs and short-cuts have
been constructed on strips of State land to provide
residents with greater convenience.
Officers from SLA’s Land Asset Management
Services (LAMS) attend night meetings, site
meetings and residents’ dialogues or forums held
mostly on weekends or Sundays for every EUP.
This year, two upgrading programs were completed.
At Tanjong Katong, the state land beside Katong
Swimming Complex was converted to an interim
park and the Geylang Park Connector was beautified
with street prints on the jogging tracks.
Over at Fengshan, major road and drainage works
were carried out. Vacant State land at the junction
of Bedok Road and Upper Changi Road was
released for a public car park. A street soccer court
and temporary dog run on State land at Jalan Pari
Burong.
Surveyors measure almost everything, from fetuccine to satay!
A measure of success
by Tan Hua Seng
T
he wet and cloudy weather was hardly the perfect
setting for an outdoor barbeque, but it did little
to dampen the spirits of those attempting to set
the record for the world’s longest satay, one of the
highlights of the Singapore Food Festival 2007.
Officers from Survey Services (SS) were engaged
to measure the final length of what was potentially
the longest stick of marinated meat in the world.
Who would have thought it possible to have a
barbeque smack in the midst of Shenton Way! Even
tourists joined in to stoke the flame that eventually
grilled the world’s longest satay at 140.020m!
So far, SS has been called to action in a number
of world record attempts in Singapore, from the
largest pizza to the longest fetuccine!
Each EUP is typically completed within three years.
SLA provides advice on ownership of the land and
ensures that no remnant land is created as a result
of the proposed land use. We will also help seek
the relevant authorities’ approval for the use of
State land and locate the maintenance agent for any
facilities found on the land.
SM Goh presents Mr Lewis Koh, SLA Deputy Director (LAMS),
with a token of appreciation.
4
Extra Mile
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
Survey Services
plays mentor
Providing the ultimate
experience for
surveyors on the move
by Lee Siok Tin
It was a good experience not
only for the students but also for me.
The students were eager to learn
from us and to find out as much as
they could about the organisation
and our Survey Department.
— VICTOR KHOO
T
Field work facinates one
of the students on
attachment to Survey
Services.
he Survey Services team
proactively supports the work
attachment programme run by
Hwa Chong Institution, playing
host to three students. From
20 to 24 August 2007, Ngaw
Lytien, Lee Keng Boon and
Xie Qingyun were attached
to the various teams in Survey
Services to observe the work
done.
They spent a day observing how cadastral jobs
from Registered Surveyors were processed, and
were introduced to the various functions of the
Infrastructure team. The students even had some
hands-on field work where they were introduced to
levelling and GPS survey work. As a bonus, they
witnessed the creativity of survey services staff at
SLA’s in-house I-Cube convention.
The students enjoyed an eye-opening experience,
although they felt that the attachment period was too
short. Survey Services created a roster for various staff
members to mentor them. Victor Khoo, Rashid Noor,
Derick Tan and Joan Lee all rose to the challenge and
enjoyed the chance to interact with the students.
Said Victor: “It was a good experience not only for
the students but also for me. The students were
eager to learn from us and to find out as much as
they could about the organisation and our Survey
Department.”
In a similar vein, SLA officers were mentored when
they joined private survey companies to gain a better
understanding of their operations and concerns.
Ms Juliana Goh, Ms Mitsy Ng and Mr Omar
Mohammed were attached to three private survey
companies — Lee Boon Haw Registered Surveyors,
Tang Tuck Kim Registered Surveyors and United
Surveyors for two weeks in June 2007.
by Derick Tan
Comics by Miel
I
just found an ISN marker and need its coordinates
urgently to process my job on-site. However, I do
not have access to the internet to get this information.
What should I do?”
Many of our Registered Surveyors — more than a
hundred in Singapore — regularly face this question.
SLA strives to meet the operational needs of these
surveyors. It developed a new service called SLA
Mobile Services — a suite of mobile solutions that
gives surveyors instant access to survey control
point information through their mobile phones
wherever they are, without having to access the
internet.
Chief Surveyor Soh Kheng Peng said: “This move
will bring SLA closer to its vision of providing
a complete, world-class survey and mapping
infrastructure. We hope that SLA eventually will
be able to provide the utmost convenience to
our customers with faster response times and
access to the latest survey control points in SLA’s
database.”
Kudos
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
Helping
to make
Singapore safe
by Margaret Chee
I
llegal immigrants and smugglers often use the
western coastline of Singapore as a landing. SLA
stepped in to help tighten security by providing
regular patrol and clearing thick overgrown
vegetation on the large tracts of reclaimed land at
Tuas fronting the shoreline.
For these efforts and more, SLA won the National
Community Safety and Security Programme Award
for 2007. The ceremony was held at the Home
Team Academy on 18 July 2007, graced by Deputy
Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs, Mr
Wong Kan Seng. SLA is a member of the Coastline
Security Watch Group formed by the Nanyang
Neighbourhood Police Centre.
5
SLA bags
two awards
by Margaret Chee
D
eputy Chief Executive Vincent Hoong (below right)
received one of the Total Defence Awards from
Minister of State for Defence, Assoc Prof Koo Tsai Kee
on 25 July 2007. This was for the Meritorious Defence
Partner Award category. Besides that, SLA bagged a
Home Team NS Award for Employers, Commendation.
The awards are to honour employers and civil resource
owners who have demonstrated strong support and made
significant contributions towards National Service and
Total Defence. Minister for Defence, Mr Teo Chee Hean,
also graced the ceremony held at Shangri La Hotel.
SLA also erects signboards that say: “State land,
No Trespassing” — required for enforcement
action by the Police. Permission is given to the
Police to erect high security fencing on State land
fronting the shoreline as a measure to prevent
illegal immigrants from landing and smuggling
activities in the vicinity.
Quack, quack, quack down
the Singapore River
By Violetta Wong
Picture courtesy of Festival Square Circle Pte Ltd
T
h e fa m o u s S C S Gre at
Singapore Duck Race was held
for the seventh year running on 9
September 2007 at the Singapore
River. What made this year’s race
particularly significant was that
it was the last time the cute
duckies would float down the
Singapore River.
The race had a huge turnout of
participants. Besides the race,
there was also a carnival with lots
of fun, food and games for all to
enjoy, such as a lucky draw, hourly
giveaways, kids’ activities and a
children’s colouring contest.
Open-air entertainment added
to the atmosphere, with special
appearances by Singapore Idol
finalist Paul TwoHill and the
cast from the local movie 881.
The public feasted their eyes on
belly dancers who moved and
grooved to the beat seamlessly
as well.
And of course, everyone had fun
cheering on the yellow ducks.
6
Our Feature
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
SLA maps on the go!
by Low Chiew Leng
updated and reliable map source
than SLA. We are confident that our
map software will henceforth provide
more data, and the most secure,
punctual, and comfortable navigation
experience for our customers who
use our wide range of software for
PDAs, PCs, mobile phones or in car
navigation hardware.”
F
rustrated with navigational devices
that just don’t provide maps
accurately enough to give proper
navigation instructions? Or tired of
fiddling with devices so cumbersome
that the time taken to operate them
could have brought you to your
destination? Fret no more. SLA has,
for the first time, given map software
provider, MapKing (Singapore) Pte Ltd
the licensing rights to put SLA base
maps on their Personal Navigation
Device and Pocket PC devices.
As the national mapping authority,
SLA has the most number of data
and attributes such as building
outlines, carpark locations and
MRT networks. It also has the
highest density of road and traffic
network, the most updated and
complete set of addresses, Points
of Interest (POI), police stations,
ATMs, restaurants, etc. In fact, the
frequent quarterly updating captures
over 300 alterations made to roads
each month, on high resolution and
multiple layers to allow fast and
accurate plotting for reading and
control.
Mr Lim added: “We are very pleased
to seal a win-win collaboration with
MapKing. We view this as a good
opportunity to generate more public
awareness of and make available high
accuracy and precise map data and
information to the public.”
SLA also provides its base maps
online. The public can get the most
authoritative map-based information
from the internet through its latest
por t a l , w w w. ma p.gov. sg . T he
portal now contains three services,
LandQuer y and StreetMap @
Singapore, which were launched
last year. The latest addition, a
wi-fi service called wireless@sg,
allows users to find some 5,000
wireless@sg coverage island-wide.
By providing the search key, for
example a building name, users
will be able to pinpoint the exact
locations within the building that
provides wireless access.
Mr Lim said: “Our eventual aim is
to provide a common map interface
for all the government’s online map
services for easier public access.
The public will experience greater
convenience when searching for
map services online. The latest
initiative is a start.”
To access these services, please
visit www.map.gov.sg.
Come next year, MapKing and SLA
will also roll out a no-frills PDA map
search for free download by the
public. This basic map application
offers map view but without navigation
or routing functions. SLA’s Head
of Land Information Centre, Mr Lim
Ming Khai said: “The purpose of this
free map application is to allow the
public to have a set of SLA maps
on their mobile devices as well and
make map data freely accessible to
the public.”
MapKing realises the advantage of
using SLA’s base map information.
Its spokesperson, Mr Matthew Chua
said: “There is not a more accurate,
SLA’s tie-up with MapKing will give online map services for the public’s convenience.
Special Positioning
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
7
Sharing at the
Asia-Pacific
Forum
by Lee Siok Tin and Victor Khoo
T
he use of spatial information is becoming increasingly
important in designing whole-of-government policies.
Singapore was privileged to be one of the five countries
that spoke at the 13th Permanent Committee on GIS
Infrastructure for Asia and the Pacific (PCGIAP) held in
Seoul, Korea from the 12 to 14 June 2007.
PCGIAP is a forum for nations from Asia and the Pacific
to participate and share experiences in areas related to
spatial information and data infrastructure. A workshop on
Spatial Enablement of Government and NSDI (National
Spatial Database Infrastructure) Policy Implications was
conducted. Presentations ranged from the development
of National GIS usage in Korea, to an overview of how the
Australian government uses spatial information.
Various speakers and committee members of PCGIAP at the Seoul
meeting.
Mr Peter Holland, President of PCGIAP, outlined
the direction and goals of the workshop. Singapore
introduced the role of the Singapore Land Authority in
the land administration of the country, and highlighted
the various electronic initiatives by Chief Surveyor to
modernise cadastral survey processes. Projects like the
switch from the bearing and distance method to the use
of coordinates in cadastral survey were presented.
Also introduced were the INLIS service (which provides
land information through an internet portal), and SLA’s
SiReNT service — Singapore’s geographical reference
infrastructure, which is maintained by Survey Services.
Lessons learnt in SLA’s journey towards a modernised
Cadastral Survey System were also shared.
Forging partnerships:
SLA hosts GITEX Forum
by Lee Weijian
G
eoff Zeiss — one of the
foremost experts in Geographic
Information System (GIS) — will
be flying in from the USA to be a
guest speaker at the third Land
Data Hub Geospatial Information &
Technology Forum (GITEX) Forum
on 31 October 2007.
SLA had successfully hosted two
of these forums on 10 April and 26
July 2007. GITEX caters specially
to the Singapore geospatial
community and is held quarterly.
Having noticed the lack of an
established geospatial forum for
the local GIS community, SLA
took the initiative to organise GITEX
to bring together GIS professionals
and users. We aim to provide a
venue for knowledge sharing; to
inform the local GIS community on
the latest trends and developments
in the GIS industry; and to provide a
platform for networking among GIS
professionals and users.
The response to the forums was
overwhelming! In the first one,
60 vacancies were filled within
two weeks. Our co-host, Defence
Science and Technology Agency
(DSTA) provided a larger venue to
support a turnout of more than 150
participants.
Experts from government agencies
and key industry players touched
on topics like Land Data Hub’s
LandNet data sharing platform,
D i f fe re nti a l G P S net wor k —
SiReNT, and new developments in
the geospatial industry. Feedback
from the forum participants was
encouraging. We achieved an
approval rating of over 80 %
for both forums. Par ticipants
indicated that the forum was useful
and relevant to them, and actively
suggested more topics that would
interest them in future. We will
seriously review the feedback and
suggestions and strive to improve
the quality of the next forum.
The GITEX forum is open to
all Land Data Hub members,
government agencies, academia
and invited industry players. If
you are interested in participating
in future GITEX forums, please
contact the organiser at email:
[email protected]; or DID:
63239158.
8
Nip Tuck
SINGAPORE LAND AUTHORITY
Ubin Green House educates
and excites visiors to take
care of the environment.
Pulau Ubin goes Green
by Margaret Chee
S
omething is buzzing at Pulau
Ubin and it’s certainly not
the mozzies or bees. For visitors
to the last ‘kampung’ (village) in
Singapore, it’s not easy to miss the
latest addition — the Ubin Green
House at 34 Pulau Ubin.
With a gross floor area of about 107
sqm and land area of close to 200
sqm, the Ubin Green House has
been in operation since February
this year. For the uninitiated,
the Ubin Green House is an
environment hub that serves as
an on-going permanent exhibition
centre to educate Pulau Ubin
residents and more importantly,
visitors, on the need to reduce,
reuse and recycle. Said Mr Grant
Pereira, Head of Green Volunteers
Network: “Instead of giving talks
in schools, we want something
both physical and material to show
Singaporeans that it is possible to
live a greener lifestyle.”
What a transformation!
The Green Volunteers Network
is the volunteer arm of the nonprofit organisation, the Singapore
Environment Council (SEC). The
SEC was interested to use 34 Pulau
Ubin as a volunteer eco centre where
members of the public can partner with
Before the restoration…
the hub to host exhibitions and green
awareness programmes. Mr Pereira
explained how they chanced upon
and selected this natural setting: “I
am a regular visitor to Singapore’s
last remaining natural island, and I
noticed this dilapidated house right
in the town centre making it an ideal
location for an eco-centre.”
SLA was quick to step in to help the
Green Volunteers Network achieve
their environment hub dream. “As
we are a non-profit Non-Government
Organisation (NGO) with limited
funds, we were put on the fast track
and did not have to wait. SLA was
also very helpful in securing the
site and supportive of our proposed
green house,” said a visibly pleased
Mr Pereira. The tenancy is for an
initial term of three years and is
renewable on terms up to 2012.
So has the public warmed up to
the Ubin Green House? Mr Pereira
exclaimed: “The response has
been fantastic! Few people realise
that rustic Ubin receives 300,000
to 350,000 visitors a year. And
being at a strategic location, we
have a constant stream of visitors.
Other than walk-in visitors, we
also organise special eco camps
for schools and disadvantaged
groups. In fact, just recently,
we took 40 people from various
schools under the Movement
for the Intellectually Disabled
Singapore for a nature walk.”
To date, Ubin Green House is the
only green hub in Singapore, which
makes it unique and definitely worth
a visit. Mr Pereira is therefore, keen
to perpetuate the mission of the
SEC to care for and protect the
environment. “We would really
like to open another green hub
in mainland Singapore, that is, if
SLA is prepared to support with
a location,” he proposed with a
twinkle in his eye.
Ubin Green House is managed fully by volunteers. It is open on weekends and public holidays from 11.00 am to 5.30 pm.