Queenstown, Singapore
Encyclopedia
Queenstown1 is one of the early housing estates in Singapore
, built before Toa Payoh
and Ang Mo Kio
, and was a test bed for much of Singapore's public housing
. Queenstown is located at the central-western end of the island about five to eight kilometres from the city.
Developed by the Singapore Improvement Trust
(SIT) in the 1950s and subsequently the Housing and Development Board (HDB) in the 1960s, Queenstown is the first satellite town in Singapore. Apartments consisted of simple one-, two-, or three-room flats, typically in low-rise, walk-up blocks. Major development work was carried out during the first Five-Year Building Programme (1960–1965). A total of 19,372 dwelling units were constructed between 1952 and 1968.
to mark her coronation
in 1952. The area used to be called by the Chinese
name wu wei gang. The arterial road Queensway was officially named in 1954.
y valley
with a channel running through in a southeastern direction. On either side of this agricultural area were hill
s - feng xing and feng ling. The former was a rubber
plantation and the latter, a cemetery
also known as boh beh kang. The village in the area, with mainly Hokkien
and Teochew-speaking dwellers was also known by this name. Pre-1942, the area was inhabited by hundreds of people in attap
-roofed huts, cultivating vegetables, growing fruits and rearing pigs and chickens. Buller Camp, a British
military camp
, was also set up there until 1953 when it was cleared for the new housing estate.
In 1947, the Housing Committee of Singapore highlighted the problem of inadequate housing in Singapore. The report proposed the decentralisation of the population away from the city with the building of self-contained residential areas in the suburbs. This proposal was believed to be an influence of the New Town
movements in post-war Britain.
Queenstown was subsequently chosen by Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) as a site for housing development due to its proximity to the successful first public housing scheme in Tiong Bahru. Construction of Queenstown's first estate, Princess Margaret Estate, began in July 1952. By late 1953, a preliminary batch of 3-room flats was ready for occupation. By 1956, work on the Princess Margaret Estate (later shortened to Princess Estate) had more than 1,000 flats
comprising one, two and three-room units and 68 terrace houses. A ceremony was held in October that year for Forfar House, a 14-storey block which was a prominent landmark in those days as it was the tallest HDB flat at that point of time.
The area continued to develop as a self-contained community. Some of the facilities and amenities developed included the Town Centre and the Swimming and Sports Complex. The former was fully completed in 1969 with three cinemas
and a variety of outlets including an emporium
, a fresh food market, a maternity and child health centre, a bowling alley and a nightclub cum restaurant
. The swimming complex was completed in August 1970.
In the 1970s, the success of the new town led to the development of two nearby neighbourhoods - Buona Vista
Estate and Holland Village
, with Queenstown new town as a model. However, by the 1980s, the area had become a mature estate with a higher proportion of senior citizen
s residing in the area than elsewhere, and a gradual migration of the younger generation into other HDB new towns.
South of Queenstown is the Pasir Panjang
area (Pasir Panjang in Malay
means "long sandy beach"). The coastline was dotted with Malay
villages, the main economic activities being fishing and small scale agriculture. Only after the war, did the development of the area begin, with bungalow
s along the coastline being built in the 1950s. Today, Pasir Panjang is a popular recreational area for sea sports and facilities such as the Haw Par Villa
.
Housing Estate and the former Tanglin Camp area to the north, Alexandra Road to the east, Clementi Road to the west and the sea to the south. It covers an area of approximately 2,188 ha
. The total population (1990 census
) is 126,071 with 31,131 housing units. It consists of 16 subzones, namely: Ghim Moh
, Holland Drive, Commonwealth, Tanglin Halt, Margaret Drive, Mei Chin, Queensway, Portsdown, Buona Vista
, Singapore Polytechnic
, Dover
, National University
, Kent Ridge, Pasir Panjang
, Pasir Panjang II, and the Port
.
The main housing areas within Queenstown include:
name Lam Po Lay.
Block 39, Forfar Square, had 106 three-room-flats, four shops, and an eating house, until it was demolished in 1996 under the Selective en bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS). Currently, the new Forfar Heights consists of two 40-storey blocks (Blk 48, 52) and three 30-storey blocks (Blk 49-51). Residency was offered to residents from the old Forfar House and Blocks 6A & 6B Margaret Drive in 1996, and residents from Block 172-175 Stirling Road & Block 96 Margaret Drive in 2001. The new blocks were launched on Tree Planting Day 2005 and SERS Completion Ceremony, 6 November 2005, with guest of honour, Lee Kuan Yew
, Minister Mentor
and Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar
GRC.
The name for Forfar Heights had its origin from Forfar Square, which like most Queenstown street names, was connected to the British Royal Family
. The name Forfar comes from The Royal Burgh of Forfar, a Scottish
town near the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
Further developments in Dawson located in Princess Estate have attracted many young Singaporeans to this area in the 2000s as part of the urban renewal efforts. It was announced in 2006 that Margaret Drive will be developed into a modern district with amenities.
Due to the comparatively longer heritage of Queenstown district, local community has flourished. Various online communities such as MyQueenstown have been introduced by the local, independent parts of the district. This has certainly changed the image of the district.
Other places in the Queenstown area:
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, built before Toa Payoh
Toa Payoh
Toa Payoh is a district located in the Central Region of Singapore. It commonly refers to the Housing and Development Board housing estate of Toa Payoh New Town, one of the earliest satellite public housing estates in Singapore....
and Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio（宏茂桥） is a heartland new town located in north central Singapore, and is generally within the North-East Region. It contains many of the common features of the island nation's neighbourhoods, e.g. hawker centres, wet markets and HDB housing blocks. Singapore's Prime Minister, Lee Hsien...
, and was a test bed for much of Singapore's public housing
Public housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is owned by a government authority, which may be central or local. Social housing is an umbrella term referring to rental housing which may be owned and managed by the state, by non-profit organizations, or by a combination of the...
. Queenstown is located at the central-western end of the island about five to eight kilometres from the city.
Developed by the Singapore Improvement Trust
Singapore Improvement Trust
-History:The Singapore Improvement Trust was a government organisation set up in 1927 by the British colonial government in Singapore in response to the housing needs of the population of Singapore. At that time, many people resided in overcrowded shophouses and squatter settlements, resulting in...
(SIT) in the 1950s and subsequently the Housing and Development Board (HDB) in the 1960s, Queenstown is the first satellite town in Singapore. Apartments consisted of simple one-, two-, or three-room flats, typically in low-rise, walk-up blocks. Major development work was carried out during the first Five-Year Building Programme (1960–1965). A total of 19,372 dwelling units were constructed between 1952 and 1968.
Etymology
Queenstown was named after Queen ElizabethElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
to mark her coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
in 1952. The area used to be called by the Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
name wu wei gang. The arterial road Queensway was officially named in 1954.
History
Previously, Queenstown was a large swampSwamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
y valley
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
with a channel running through in a southeastern direction. On either side of this agricultural area were hill
Hill
A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. Hills often have a distinct summit, although in areas with scarp/dip topography a hill may refer to a particular section of flat terrain without a massive summit A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. Hills...
s - feng xing and feng ling. The former was a rubber
Rubber
Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
plantation and the latter, a cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
also known as boh beh kang. The village in the area, with mainly Hokkien
Min Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
and Teochew-speaking dwellers was also known by this name. Pre-1942, the area was inhabited by hundreds of people in attap
Nypa fruticans
Nypa fruticans, known as the attap palm , nipa palm , and mangrove palm or buah atap , buah nipah , dừa nước , Ging Pol in Sinhala in Sri Lanka and gol pata , dani . It is the only palm considered a mangrove in the Mangroves Biome...
-roofed huts, cultivating vegetables, growing fruits and rearing pigs and chickens. Buller Camp, a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
military camp
Military camp
A military camp or bivouac is a semi-permanent facility for the lodging of an army. Camps are erected when a military force travels away from a major installation or fort during training or operations, and often have the form of large campsites. In the Roman era the military camp had highly...
, was also set up there until 1953 when it was cleared for the new housing estate.
New Town
New Town may refer to:*New town, a generic name for a planned city development or expansion*In the United Kingdom, any of a specific set of towns created under various Acts of Parliament for population moved out of overcrowded conurbations-Places:...
movements in post-war Britain.
Queenstown was subsequently chosen by Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) as a site for housing development due to its proximity to the successful first public housing scheme in Tiong Bahru. Construction of Queenstown's first estate, Princess Margaret Estate, began in July 1952. By late 1953, a preliminary batch of 3-room flats was ready for occupation. By 1956, work on the Princess Margaret Estate (later shortened to Princess Estate) had more than 1,000 flats
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
comprising one, two and three-room units and 68 terrace houses. A ceremony was held in October that year for Forfar House, a 14-storey block which was a prominent landmark in those days as it was the tallest HDB flat at that point of time.
The area continued to develop as a self-contained community. Some of the facilities and amenities developed included the Town Centre and the Swimming and Sports Complex. The former was fully completed in 1969 with three cinemas
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
and a variety of outlets including an emporium
Marketplace
A marketplace is the space, actual, virtual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. The term is also used in a trademark law context to denote the actual consumer environment, ie. the 'real world' in which products and services are provided and consumed.-Marketplaces and street markets:A...
, a fresh food market, a maternity and child health centre, a bowling alley and a nightclub cum restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
. The swimming complex was completed in August 1970.
In the 1970s, the success of the new town led to the development of two nearby neighbourhoods - Buona Vista
Buona Vista
Buona Vista is a neighbourhood and subdivision of the city-state of Singapore, but is often referenced as a town. As a major subdivision, it is served by the Buona Vista MRT Station which links it up with the MRT system. It also has a bus terminal.-Geography:...
Estate and Holland Village
Holland Village, Singapore
Holland Village is a small busy enclave near the Buona Vista MRT Station close to the Queenstown area in Singapore. A popular venue for younger Singaporeans and expatriates, it is dominated by and often visited solely for its eateries and watering holes, along with some specialist shops selling...
, with Queenstown new town as a model. However, by the 1980s, the area had become a mature estate with a higher proportion of senior citizen
Senior citizen
Senior citizen is a common polite designation for an elderly person in both UK and US English, and it implies or means that the person is retired. This in turn implies or in fact means that the person is over the retirement age, which varies according to country. Synonyms include pensioner in UK...
s residing in the area than elsewhere, and a gradual migration of the younger generation into other HDB new towns.
South of Queenstown is the Pasir Panjang
Pasir Panjang
Pasir Panjang is an area in the south-western part of Singapore. It is located at the southern part of the Queenstown Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority. Kent Ridge is a topographical feature which runs through Pasir Panjang.-Etymology:The name Pasir...
area (Pasir Panjang in Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
means "long sandy beach"). The coastline was dotted with Malay
Malay people
Malays are an ethnic group of Austronesian people predominantly inhabiting the Malay Peninsula, including the southernmost parts of Thailand, the east coast of Sumatra, the coast of Borneo, and the smaller islands which lie between these locations...
villages, the main economic activities being fishing and small scale agriculture. Only after the war, did the development of the area begin, with bungalow
Bungalow
A bungalow is a type of house, with varying meanings across the world. Common features to many of these definitions include being detached, low-rise , and the use of verandahs...
s along the coastline being built in the 1950s. Today, Pasir Panjang is a popular recreational area for sea sports and facilities such as the Haw Par Villa
Haw Par Villa
Haw Par Villa is a Chinese mythological theme park in Singapore, located along Pasir Panjang Road.The park contains over 1,000 statues and 150 giant dioramas depicting scenes from Chinese folklore, legends, history and illustrations of various aspects of Confucianism...
.
Queenstown Planning Area
The Queenstown Planning Area (which includes the Queenstown Housing Estate) is bounded by the Ulu Pandan Canal, Ghim MohGhim Moh
Ghim Moh is a district in Singapore that has a reputation nationwide for attractive food at its Food Centre that distinguishes it from other food centres in Singapore. Famous stalls include beef hor fun, char kway teow, chwee kueh, mee pok, roasted meats, and xiao wan mian...
Housing Estate and the former Tanglin Camp area to the north, Alexandra Road to the east, Clementi Road to the west and the sea to the south. It covers an area of approximately 2,188 ha
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
. The total population (1990 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
) is 126,071 with 31,131 housing units. It consists of 16 subzones, namely: Ghim Moh
Ghim Moh
Ghim Moh is a district in Singapore that has a reputation nationwide for attractive food at its Food Centre that distinguishes it from other food centres in Singapore. Famous stalls include beef hor fun, char kway teow, chwee kueh, mee pok, roasted meats, and xiao wan mian...
, Holland Drive, Commonwealth, Tanglin Halt, Margaret Drive, Mei Chin, Queensway, Portsdown, Buona Vista
Buona Vista
Buona Vista is a neighbourhood and subdivision of the city-state of Singapore, but is often referenced as a town. As a major subdivision, it is served by the Buona Vista MRT Station which links it up with the MRT system. It also has a bus terminal.-Geography:...
, Singapore Polytechnic
Singapore Polytechnic
Singapore Polytechnic , the first polytechnic established in Singapore, was founded in 1954. The former campus was originally located at Prince Edward Road...
, Dover
Dover, Singapore
Dover is a relatively small neighbourhood of Singapore, located in Queenstown. It is south of Ghim Moh and north of Kent Ridge. It is often a noted location due to the sheer number of educational facilities it holds, while lying in a zone between Singapore's central business district in the Central...
, National University
NUS
NUS may refer to:* Nu Skin Enterprises* Neglected and Underutilized Species, or Neglected and Underutilized Crops* National Union of Students * National Union of Students * National Union of Students...
, Kent Ridge, Pasir Panjang
Pasir Panjang
Pasir Panjang is an area in the south-western part of Singapore. It is located at the southern part of the Queenstown Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority. Kent Ridge is a topographical feature which runs through Pasir Panjang.-Etymology:The name Pasir...
, Pasir Panjang II, and the Port
PSA
PSA may refer to:* PSA International , world's second largest port operator* PSA Peugeot Citroën, French vehicle manufacturer...
.
Main housing estates
- Princess Estate is the first sub district of the Queenstown District consists of several precincts like Strathmore, Dawson
- Duchess Estate is the second subdistrict of Queenstown district which consists of Queenstown Centre and Margaret Drive. Several blocks of 2-storey and 3-storey flats are located in this area.
- Tanglin Halt consists of rows of ten storey flats, fondly remembered as Cap Lau Cu（十楼厝）. Many of the flats in this area are currently undergoing upgrading. Several 40 storey flats are built.
- Commonwealth Estate is located near the CommonwealthCommonwealthCommonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has sometimes been synonymous with "republic."More recently it has been used for fraternal associations of some sovereign nations...
MRT station and consists of precincts like Commonwealth Close and Commonwealth Crescent. It is best known for having a fantastic view of Singapore's Downtown. - Queen's Close is a cluster of flats bounded by Mei Ling district, Portsdown Road and Alexandra Road. Queen's Crescent is now demolished.
- Mei Ling/Mei Chin is built from the excavation of two hills, Hong Lim and Hong Yin Hill which are used for cemetery purposes. It is also where Queenstown district got its name Boh Beh Kang, or a river with no source.
- Buona VistaBuona VistaBuona Vista is a neighbourhood and subdivision of the city-state of Singapore, but is often referenced as a town. As a major subdivision, it is served by the Buona Vista MRT Station which links it up with the MRT system. It also has a bus terminal.-Geography:...
is the last district built in Queenstown. However, it has developed a distinct and unique identity today that is commonly not linked with Queenstown.
Forfar Heights
Forfar House1, or Block 39, was built in 1956 by the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) as a 14-storey block (which at that time was the tallest residential building in Singapore, holding the record until the building of a 20-story block at Selegie in 1963). Also known as Chap Si Lao, it was an early part of the mixed height development of the area. The new blocks at Forfar Heights are featured with blue glazing and blue floodlights at the roof line, reminiscent of the early days, where many units were characterized by blue glass in their windows, by which the district was acquired its HokkienMin Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
name Lam Po Lay.
Block 39, Forfar Square, had 106 three-room-flats, four shops, and an eating house, until it was demolished in 1996 under the Selective en bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS). Currently, the new Forfar Heights consists of two 40-storey blocks (Blk 48, 52) and three 30-storey blocks (Blk 49-51). Residency was offered to residents from the old Forfar House and Blocks 6A & 6B Margaret Drive in 1996, and residents from Block 172-175 Stirling Road & Block 96 Margaret Drive in 2001. The new blocks were launched on Tree Planting Day 2005 and SERS Completion Ceremony, 6 November 2005, with guest of honour, Lee Kuan Yew
Lee Kuan Yew
Lee Kuan Yew, GCMG, CH is a Singaporean statesman. He was the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore, governing for three decades...
, Minister Mentor
Minister Mentor
Minister Mentor is a Singapore cabinet position created in 2004 as part of a leadership transition.The newly appointed Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong , announced Lee Kuan Yew's new title together with the naming of his Cabinet on August 12, 2004...
and Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar
Tanjong Pagar
Tanjong Pagar is a historic district located within the Central Business District in Singapore, straddling the Outram Planning Area and the Downtown Core under the Urban Redevelopment Authority's urban planning zones....
GRC.
The name for Forfar Heights had its origin from Forfar Square, which like most Queenstown street names, was connected to the British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
. The name Forfar comes from The Royal Burgh of Forfar, a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
town near the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
Demographics
Being the first satellite HDB district in Singapore, Queenstown has one of the highest proportions of elderly aged 65 and above. Many of the residents lived in smaller 2-room and 3-room flats. As a result, Queenstown earns its unwanted reputation as an "elderly district."Further developments in Dawson located in Princess Estate have attracted many young Singaporeans to this area in the 2000s as part of the urban renewal efforts. It was announced in 2006 that Margaret Drive will be developed into a modern district with amenities.
Due to the comparatively longer heritage of Queenstown district, local community has flourished. Various online communities such as MyQueenstown have been introduced by the local, independent parts of the district. This has certainly changed the image of the district.
Other amenities
- Alexandra HospitalAlexandra HospitalAlexandra Hospital is a 400-bed hospital located in the south-western part of Singapore. Nestled in a 110,000 square metre land, the hospital is a picture of tranquil setting, lined with mostly colonial style buildings built since the late 1930s...
- Anchorpoint Shopping CentreAnchorpoint Shopping CentreAnchorpoint Shopping Centre is a shopping mall on Alexandra Road in Queenstown, Singapore. It is located in the heart of the Alexandra estate and serves the immediate precincts of Alexandra and Queenstown and the residents of The Anchorage located behind the shopping mall.Opened since 1997, it...
- IKEA, Singapore (see also IKEAIKEAIKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
) - MDIS UniCampusManagement Development Institute of SingaporeThe Management Development Institute of Singapore , founded in 1956, is Singapore's oldestnot-for-profit professional institute for lifelong learning....
- Queenstown Fire Station
- Queenstown MRT StationQueenstown MRT StationQueenstown MRT Station ' is an above-ground Mass Rapid Transit station on the East West MRT Line in Singapore. It is located in the Queenstown district and is sandwiched between the 38-storey Queens condominium and the new 43-storey HDB flats on the opposite side of the track...
- Queenstown Neighbourhood Police Centre
- Queensway Shopping CentreQueensway Shopping CentreQueensway Shopping Centre is a shopping centre in Queenstown, Singapore. Queensway Shopping Centre contains jeans, sports, male fashion, opticians and photocopy shops...