The future of Mount Pleasant

The inevitable has happened - soon, much of the historic Old Police Academy in the Mount Pleasant area will be demolished for an HDB estate.

The Old Police Academy opened in 1929 as the Police Depot, then was renamed the Police Training School (below) in 1945, and the Police Academy in 1969. It was the primary training facility for the Police until the Home Team Academy opened in 2006 at Old Choa Chu Kang Road.

Credit: Remember Singapore.

When plans for Mount Pleasant MRT Station were announced with the rest of the Thomson-East Coast Line in 2012, I already knew the physical heritage of the Mount Pleasant area was on borrowed time.

The arrival of an MRT station to an undeveloped area always means future intensive development - that is the only way the construction of billion-dollar infrastructure can be justified. It is only a matter of time before the development takes place. In the case of the Mount Pleasant area, it will take up to 15 years - the first flats go on sale in five years.

When plans for the 33-hectare HDB estate were released, I hurriedly studied maps showing the layout of development.

Credit: The Straits Times.

Fortunately, it seems effort has been put into ensuring the estate avoids much of the natural heritage of the area. The forest surrounding the colonial bungalows and the Heritage Road known as Mount Pleasant Road will be untouched.

More importantly, the Hokkien cemetery known as Kopi Sua (below) lying to the west of the estate will also be untouched - for now. In fact, the original plan had called for the road network of the estate to cut through the cemetery, but was later revised to allow access via Onraet Road instead, avoiding the cemetery.

I have a keen interest in the fate of Kopi Sua, because my paternal grandfather rests there. For the time being, he - and I - can rest easy.

Looking ahead, there is still the unresolved issue of the Circle Line’s Bukit Brown MRT Station to the north of the Mount Pleasant area.

Presently, Bukit Brown MRT Station remains a “shell”, to be activated and open in the future when the area is more intensively developed. This involves the fate of much of Bukit Brown Cemetery, which to me has far, far greater heritage value than the Old Police Academy.

Connaught Drive

A stretch of prime road in Singapore will be fully pedestrianised as the Government looks to make the civic district more people-friendly.

Connaught Drive and Anderson Bridge will be closed to motorists, allowing pedestrians to walk more easily between the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM), Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, the National Gallery Singapore and The Arts House.

Connaught Drive, formerly known as New Esplanade Road, is a good candidate for pedestrianisation. Vehicular traffic is not heavy, and it’s lined by tall, beautiful trees - it would make for a scenic walkway.

A hundred years ago, Connaught Drive was already bordered by old, tall angsana trees. In the evenings, rich Europeans took first their horse carriages, and then as the Motor Age came, their motor cars, through Connaught Drive.

Bottom picture credit: Google Maps.

It’s fitting that by the end of December, the road will be returned to pedestrians.

Moving Dakota Crescent

“If we’re interested in building a strong society with tight-knit communities, we should be paying special attention to the way we preserve and rebuild communities if we have to move them.”

A CNA Insider article on the impact of relocation on Dakota Crescent’s senior citizens.

Credit: Channel NewsAsia.

A sober reminder that when urban resettlement takes place, it is lives - not digits on a spreadsheet - that are irrevocably affected.

And the little things do matter - like the negative effect of not having the original community centre move with the elderly to the new site, or not catering a large enough void deck for gatherings and funerals, or failing to take into account how a simple 10-minute walk to key amenities can be a monumental challenge for an 80-year-old with weak legs.

As Singapore ages in both infrastructure and population, more old estates will undergo redevelopment and resettlement, and more senior citizens will have to uproot and move. Hopefully, the authorities will learn from the mistakes made at 52 Cassia Crescent.