Success of CBD Incentive Scheme in Rejuvenating Singapore's City Centre
Ministry of National DevelopmentSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the effectiveness of the Central Business District Incentive (CBDI) Scheme and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on urban rejuvenation. Miss Cheng Li Hui asked about the progress of converting office developments to mixed-use spaces and how work-from-home trends have influenced urban planning. Minister for National Development Mr Desmond Lee responded that 12 outline applications have been received under the CBDI, with eight receiving in-principle approval to enhance CBD liveability. He stated that the pandemic has accelerated decentralization efforts to bring jobs and amenities closer to homes in regional centres like Jurong Lake District and Paya Lebar Central. The government remains committed to monitoring market trends to ensure that urban development strategies stay relevant to evolving work-life patterns.
Transcript
45 Miss Cheng Li Hui asked the Minister for National Development (a) whether the CBD Incentive Scheme to help rejuvenate the CBD has been successful; (b) whether the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the rejuvenation of Singapore's city centre through the increase in conversion of office developments to mixed-use developments; (c) what is the proportion of mixed-use developments in the CBD; and (d) whether the COVID-19 pandemic and work-from-home trends have affected Singapore's urban development and, if so, how.
Mr Desmond Lee: In 2019, URA introduced the Central Business District Incentive Scheme (CBDI) to encourage the conversion of existing, older office buildings in the CBD into mixed-use developments, so as to inject a larger live-in population and greater amenity mix to rejuvenate the CBD.
To date, URA has received 12 outline applications under the CBDI, of which eight have been given in-principle approval. When completed, the mixed-use developments would provide a wider diversity of uses, enable better connectivity and create a more intimate, people-friendly environment, so that our CBD will not only be a place to work, but also a vibrant place to live and play in.
COVID-19 has further accelerated the rise of digitalisation and telecommuting, with trends like work-from-home and work-away-from office taking shape. These trends provide a stronger impetus to our existing efforts on decentralisation, to bring jobs and amenities closer to homes, and strengthen the development of regional centres, such as Jurong Lake District, one-north and Paya Lebar Central.
We will continue to monitor the market trends and needs, engage developers and industry professionals and review our plans to ensure that they stay relevant.