Andrew Loh
Have you heard of Watercove Ville? You probably have not. Watercove Ville is a new housing development by Bukit Sembawang Estates Limited (BSEL). BSEL was in the rubber plantations business before it turned to property development. The company is reported to be the largest house builder in Singapore now. Its developments are very popular, going by the sales figures. According to its website, it has “fully sold” Luxus Hill, Verdure, Parc Mondrian and Mimosa Terrace. The website also promises to launch at least another four new developments, including Watercove Ville.
What is it about Watercove Ville that makes it special and different from the rest? The site for the development is located beside Sembawang Park in the northern part of Singapore – right by the beach, actually. It is beachfront living for those who can afford it, and work it seems has already started. “Another prestigious freehold development…” a signboard at the site declares.
The plan is for 80 freehold, “exclusive strata houses with basement carpark, swimming pool and clubhouse facilities” to be built there. “Daily conveniences, good food and country clubs,” describes the company’s website, “are just a short drive away.”
All is well – until you consider the implications of having such exclusive housing in an area which is known for its serenity and its wonderful spread of natural environment, together with its historical past. According to the NParks website, “Sembawang Park is a tranquil park with distinct blue dice design, situated in the north of Singapore facing [the] Johore straits.” The park is “one of the few remaining natural beaches of Singapore.” Its historical links to colonial times include the Beaulieu House, the Sembawang jetty and the remains of the 1920s Seletar Pier. “The Sembawang Shipyard to the west of the park was a British Naval Base from 1938 to 1968,” says NParks. “The park is also surrounded by other places of historical interest like the Admiralty House, Kampong Wak Hassan, Masjid Petempatan Melayu Sembawang and Sembawang memorial.”
Indeed, Sembawang Park is one of the last vestiges of our past which is accessible to everyone. Its lush greenery and natural tranquility attract those who seek solace and refuge from the relentless humdrum of city life. Now, this is being threatened by the development of beachfront housing. Work on the site has not gone full-scale yet but undoubtedly will soon. As it is, the nearby Sembawang Shipyard already disturbs the quiet of the park with its machinery and engines humming 24-hours everyday. The new Watercove Ville is located at the eastern part of the area. Sembawang Park, it seems, will soon be sandwiched between two sources of noise – from the shipyard in the west and from construction work at the Watercove site in the east.
Those who wish to get away from the hustle and bustle of the rat race will soon have one less sanctuary to turn to.
In our quest to provide dream homes and housing, let us be mindful that we should consider the needs of the wider population, and not just the few who can afford to pay for such “luxurious” homes. This is especially so in land-scarce Singapore where natural environment is disappearing fast under the assault of “housing development”. It makes one wonder how bad the situation will further deteriorate as we head towards a 6.5 million people population.
I truly dread the day when Watercove Ville is finally completed. It will mean that even our limited space of silence, solitude and tranquility can be sold to the highest bidder, or are only for those who can pay for it.
According to this report, “More than half the buyers of some recent luxury property projects have been foreigners, helping to drive property prices in the city-state to their highest level in six years.”
Will Watercove Ville also see the same fate in that foreigners will end up buying most of the units? But that would be beside the point. I would rather we left these rustic, natural environment as they are – and not be seduced by “luxury homes” which come at the expense of sanctuaries which provide much needed respite from the hectic life we lead in this city.
For now, 80 “prestigious” houses threaten to deprive Singaporeans of the sanctuary that is Sembawang Park.
Is Watercove Ville the first of many “prestigious” housing developments which will spring up along that coast in the north?
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Some pictures and a slideshow of Sembawang Park:
HDB prices are prestigious enough!!
I so happen to be converting to islam and marrying a malay gal.
I intend to migrate to Malaysia JB where i think can own a bungalow with a View of the Sea and a Golf Course and i will only be paying a small sum of money for it using money i withdraw from my ‘bank’ ;) .
currently, i face a longkang view also very smelly wan dirty brown water.
Sorry everyone for the following diversion. Just read some of the comments above and can’t help myself anymore. BTW, great article Andrew, thank you.
KopitiamApek, I am calling you out right now, are you or are you not one of those agents planted by the PAP to counter anti-Gov sentiments online? If you are please come out and say it, none of us I believe will have any qualms taking you on on any issue but damm if I can sit here and see the likes of those spew their venom freely while pretending to be a man on the street expressing their own views while feasting on the teat of the party. If you are willing to step out into the open then by all means borrow those knuckle dusters that LKY seems to love so much and we can throw hands on any topic of your choice at any time if not for the love of humanity please go back to Stomp. I will even sweeten the deal for you: If you are indeed a PAP agent,admit it now in public and I will give you my full details to submit to your gestapo officers as a dissident. Put that in your pipe and smoke it (in the yellow box of course).
It’s a matter of time that, there will be only a forest at the central where the golf clubs are, and a rain forest located at the Botanic Garden, a tourist spot.
The rest will be “clean & green, neat & tidy” neighborhood parks which are easier to “manage & control” – just like the people.
67) True Patriot Down South
No, I am not.
57) Andrew loh
/////Over at Yishun Park, the SAFRA Club was sited inside the park itself, effectively reducing the size of the park in half. Now with the Khoo Teck Puat hospital coming up, ////
Both these facilities are not sited in land zoned for parks.
They are sited in wooded undeveloped areas which are not park areas in land use planning.
The recreational/park zone has been left intact from the early planning days of Yishun Town.
Take an example of Marina East and Marina South. Over the past 2 decades, a jungle has grwon in these huge tracks of reclaimed land, but that does not mean they are meant to be parks.
60) plopp
/////What does TOC think of starting an awareness movement against Watercove ////
Then you may need a awareness movement similarly for every proposed development in the East Coast area, most of them are just across the beautiful East Coat Park seperated only by the highway. By comparison they are much closer to the East Coast Park than Watercove is to Sembawang Park.
53) Lamb
Thank you.
54) Budamaxx1952
//// It’s obvious from your postings on this thread that you are not a nature-lover; i guess the city-ghettoes and dumps must be the places where you find your peace and tranquility /////
Yours is rather a unusual statement. If you understood where I am coming from in this debate, you would have arrive at a quite different conclusion.
I am happiest when with nature.
I find tranquility at parks, at the beach which I love most, as the sound of waves is the most soothing thing on earth to me.
////I agree with Andrew that the Sembawang Park region is one of the most peaceful and tranquil areas of Singapore, and this area should be reserved for the needs of the majority of the population/////
I agree with that too, and I am certain the park is in no way threatened by extinction. It will be around for our children, and our children’ schidren to enjoy.
////From what i know Sembawang Shipyard is slated to move to Jurong Shipyard (the report was in the papers a few years back) and the whole area, from Sembawang DRC(drug rehabilitation centre) to Sembawang Park is going to be built-up with condominiums and housing estates; it’s obvious that Sembawang Park is going to be missing from our map in a decade or so ////
On the contrary, Semb Park will be integrated into this seafront park and become a larger green area in the North. The condos will be located away from the beach just like in the East Coast, and the beach will be a public park for all to enjoy.
64) kingfisher
You are correct. The Pasir Gudong industrail area is one source of pollution. And unlike in SG whereby we can do something about it, we have absolutely no control over that.
Places like Ponggol, Pasir Ris, Sengakang and Sembawang are affected.
The recent health warning against swimming at Pasir Ris is a problem waiting to happen.
Singapore has effectively eliminated its last source of pollution into the straits with the opening of the Change Water Reclamation Plant, and decomissioning of the sewage plants sited in the north, and with it, we no longer discharge effluent into the straits.
However, the source of pollution into the straits continues, and it is not from Singapore.
Looks like a prime investment site – i wanna buy! How much do you think the psf will go for??
#67,
How does it improve the debate here by character assassination? Character assassination is a common fallacy in arguments. Name calling has been and still is a dirty and a filthy habit used often by LKY. Does everybody who just disagrees with TOC or Andrew Loh become a PAP agent? Arguments have to be built on premises and syllogisms. I don’t see any logic and basis in yours.Stick to the content or else become like LKY whom you are supposed to hate.
Hi white raven(71)
/// How does it improve the debate here by character assissination?///
Surely nobody is assassinating anybody’s character here?
I enjoyed reading ” True Patriot Down South ” (67) piece of satire and humour on “KopitiamApek” especially the “feasting on the teat of the party” part
Not everyone is in the category of debate like when Arix, rwkc, smallvice585 etc etc make their appearance on TOC to debate
Lets not take things so seriously
When time to get serious lets get serious
But in between surely there’s time for fun and humour, i believe
I live 10 minutes walk from the sea front at Marine Parade. And I have been to the above park at Semb on weekdays.
On a weekday the beach at Marine Parade is a pretty tranquail place. And if you walk along the beach towards the lagoon and beyond or towards the City, it can be as tranquil as the Semb place, even on weekends
What I’m trying to say is that the proximity of a big housing estate to a park does not always make a place less tranquil.
And the numbers — assuming an average of 8 persons (including servants) a hse, that is an extra 640 people. And an average of 8 is on the high side based on personal experience. More like 6.
And it is likely that on weekdays 80-140 of these will be at work. They hve to pay for the hses.
If I didn’t live at another tranquail place on weekdays, I’d be tempted to call the developer tomorrow to enquire.
I never tot of living there because of the proximity to the yards.
Is anyone aware that sinkeepore has a disproportionate area of golf courses for its small land size? Many of these courses can be converted into public parks or even new HDB estates, and sinkapore will be less congested.
Of course, the rich minority will be angry with that.
KopitiamApek
post #75 on October 9th, 2009 10.07 pm
////It is a very sorry state of mind to be in when one degerate into such victim way of thinking.
Then there is no hope for anything.////
experience is a great teacher, experiences shape thoughts & influence minds.
maybe the term “cautious optimism” is borne out of such experiences too? ;)
From what I know, the units for the Watercove project is not for sale to foreigners. It is only for Singaporeans.
@KopitiamApek
you should buy yourself more kopi to keep yourself awake and read the article properly, apek. Having seen the whole gaga of this story , I still dont get the point of being so worked up and “complaining” about someone’s mistake of the story , when the fault lies with you. The issue of this story is basically … the worries of the so-called luxurious living condo beside the sembawang park (Wak Hassan Drive) might be distrubing the quiet and peaceful nature of the park, by the people living in the new condo. It might be possible that the condo may be imposing on the park by noise of the cars and people commuting day-in day-out near the park. The whole idea of the story is summerized by the title: “prestigious homes” – but at what cost (cost of destruction of “quiet nature” where the sembawang park is currently located). It is so simple, and you try to complicate things. What for?
I grow up (pun intended) in Sembawang and have been there for >40 years. What u have written goes to show your ignorance of the area and subjective agenda. I can only think residential developments are good for folks living in the area, allowing more people to be able to share in the nature it has to offer. My only hope is that the garment does not over do it to the extend that it becomes another “down town east”, which only destroys peaceful surroundings.