Town councils unveil five-year master plans
Active ageing focus in Jalan Besar while Chua Chu Kang and Hong Kah North aim to be 'eco-town'
Elderly-friendly amenities such as ramps, lifts and additional fitness corners are on the cards for Housing Board estates in Jalan Besar GRC, to meet the needs of its ageing population.
Another key development slated for these estates are mixed-generational facilities such as a park with a playground for the young and pebbled paths, commonly used for reflexology, for seniors.
These are among several major amenities in the new five-year master plan for the group representation constituency in central Singapore, unveiled by the Jalan Besar Town Council on its website yesterday.
In the north, many of the prospective improvements are geared towards families with growing children in Chua Chu Kang GRC and single-seat Hong Kah North.
One highlight of the five-year master plan for the two constituencies, run by the Chua Chu Kang Town Council, is a "mega playground" in Keat Hong. It posted a picture of the plan on its website yesterday.
Augmenting it is a video of the GRC's four MPs describing the major projects.
JALAN BESAR
Active ageing is a key focus of the new master plan, said Mr Heng Chee How, who is part of the four-member Jalan Besar GRC.
"In our town, we have many seniors. We want them to age actively, age successfully and age happily. This is something we want to put an effort in," he added in the video.
For example, in the Rochor and Outram estates specifically, those aged 65 and older make up more than 20 per cent of all residents.
More than 150 projects are in the pipeline. Dr Lily Neo, the town council's chairman, urged residents to continue giving feedback and suggestions to improve the estates.
"In the next five years, you will see some of your ideas become a reality," she said in the video.
The other two MPs in the GRC, which has a total of 106,578 voters, are Ms Denise Phua and Professor Yaacob Ibrahim.
CHUA CHU KANG GRC, HONG KAH NORTH SMC
Apart from building more active living facilities, the four-member Chua Chu Kang GRC and Hong Kah North single-member constituency have set their sights on becoming an "eco-town", with green features such as solar panels and community gardens.
The Ministry for the Environment and Water Resources has earmarked Chua Chu Kang Town to be transformed into an eco-town, it said in a statement yesterday.
Planned green initiatives include a new park in Bukit Gombak and the installation of solar panels on the roofs of almost 600 buildings.
More than 9,000 ageing flats will also be upgraded, with plans to replace or enhance more than 1,000 lifts in the HDB estates.
There are 103,231 voters in the GRC, whose MPs include Health Minister Gan Kim Yong, Ms Low Yen Ling, Mr Zaqy Mohamad and Mr Yee Chia Hsing.
There are 23,519 electors in Hong Kah North SMC, run by Dr Amy Khor.
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