Considerations in Granting Approval for Redevelopment

Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Minister for National Development (a) what criteria does the Government use before granting approvals for single-house land plots to be redeveloped and sub-divided into multiple-unit developments such as condominiums; (b) how does the Government ensure that such approvals for new developments do not adversely affect the liveability of estates by creating strains on the local infrastructure such as traffic congestion or parking place shortages along the local access roads; and (c) for the Kovan/Hillside/Rosyth estates, how will the Government manage redevelopment so as to alleviate the current traffic congestion and parking crunches along local access roads and minimise such problems in the future.

Mr Khaw Boon Wan: There are planning rules governing such development. Briefly, only single-house land plots in estates not safeguarded as Landed Housing Areas but are zoned for non-landed residential use, can be developed into flats and condominiums. In addition, the allowable development intensity of these estates, which is reflected in the Master Plan, will have taken into account the capacity of local infrastructure and potential amenity impact on existing residents.

More recently, the URA has introduced additional guidelines to evaluate redevelopment proposals for non-landed housing. Since last November, proposals for new flat developments must have a minimum site area of 1,000 square metres. This requirement ensures that there is sufficient space for landscaping and communal facilities, such as car parks, to meet the needs of residents. This requirement also facilitates the design of more open spaces within and between developments.

In addition to having a minimum site area, the URA will also examine the height, bulk and intensity of a proposed development to ensure liveability of the estate. The URA will guide developers if necessary to improve their proposals before planning approval is granted. In some cases, developers may also be required to carry out detailed traffic impact studies and adopt traffic improvement measures to avert potential congestion.

For low-density residential areas, the URA has found it necessary to also cap the maximum number of units that can be allowed for flat and condominium developments. This cap ensures that the redevelopment will be at a pace and density that the local road infrastructure can accommodate. The URA and LTA are studying whether an even more stringent cap is needed specifically for the Kovan, Hillside and Rosyth area, similar to what was done for Telok Kurau.

We will monitor the situation and update the guidelines where necessary to ensure that new flats and condos can happily co-exist with landed houses in the area.

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