The Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme, or SERS for short, is an urban

Urbanization

Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....

 redevelopment

Redevelopment

Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses.-Description:Variations on redevelopment include:* Urban infill on vacant parcels that have no existing activity but were previously developed, especially on Brownfield land, such as the redevelopment of an industrial site...

 strategy employed by the Housing and Development Board in Singapore

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...

 in maintaining and upgrading 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...

 flats in older estates in the city-state. Launched in August 1995, it involves a small selection of specific precinct

Precinct

A precinct is a space enclosed by the walls or other boundaries of a particular place or building, or by an arbitrary and imaginary line drawn around it. The term has several different uses...

s in older estates which undergo demolition

Demolition

Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use....

 and redevelopment, as opposed to upgrading

Renovation

Renovation is the process of improving a structure. Two prominent types of renovations are commercial and residential.-Process:The process of a renovation, however complex, can usually be broken down into several processes...

 of existing flats via the Main Upgrading

Main Upgrading Programme

The Main Upgrading Programme, or MUP , was formally launched in July 1990, initiating a massive physical upgrading exercise for the thousands of flats built by the Housing and Development Board in Singapore.-History:...

 and Interim Upgrading Programmes. To date, 74 SERS sites have been announced, of which 65 were completed.

All residents displaced by the redevelopment works are offered a new 99-year lease in new flats constructed nearby. These residents have the privilege to select their units prior to public release of the remaining units, are compensated financially, and are given subsidised prices for their new flats, as well as other benefits, such as the being able to purchase flats in other locations under the same benefits offered for all affecting residents who purchase the offered replacement units.

However this has attracted opposition and controversy.
The national government has power, under the Land Acquisitions Act of 1966, to carry out the Selective En Bloc scheme This power invokes the principle of eminent domain

Eminent domain

Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...

 as with most urban redevelopment projects. The Amendments to the Land Titles Act passed in 1999 allowed housing estates to be sold against some of the apartment owners' will if the majority of the owners ruled against them. Often this invoked concerns of majoritarianism

Majoritarianism

Majoritarianism is a traditional political philosophy or agenda which asserts that a majority of the population is entitled to a certain degree of primacy in society, and has the right to make decisions that affect the society...

.

List of SERS sites

Announcement	Town/Estate	Affected Block(s)		Replacement Block(s)		Status
		Street(s)	Block(s)	Street(s)	Block(s)
22 August 1995	Bukit Merah Bukit Merah Bukit Merah is a hill in Singapore. Previously, it was a much larger hill that was situated at the present site of Henderson housing estate, which lies opposite the Delta Sports Complex. There was a Chinese cemetery on the reverse side of the hill. The present Bukit Merah Secondary School and...	Boon Tiong Road / Tiong Bahru Road	2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 13			Completed
			1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 14, 15, 16			Completed
1 September 1995	Toa Payoh Toa Payoh New Town Toa Payoh New Town is the second oldest new town in Singapore, developed since 1962. It is home to the HDB Hub and hosts one of the country's three air-conditioned bus interchanges, the other two being the one in Sengkang and Ang Mo Kio...	Lorong 2 Toa Payoh	145, 147, 151, 152	Lorong 2 Toa Payoh	153-156A	Completed
8 November 1995	Bukit Merah Bukit Merah Bukit Merah is a hill in Singapore. Previously, it was a much larger hill that was situated at the present site of Henderson housing estate, which lies opposite the Delta Sports Complex. There was a Chinese cemetery on the reverse side of the hill. The present Bukit Merah Secondary School and...	Depot Road	103, 110, 111	Depot Road	103A-106B	Completed
			105, 107, 112	Depot Road	109A-112C	Completed
8 February 1996	Bukit Merah Bukit Merah Bukit Merah is a hill in Singapore. Previously, it was a much larger hill that was situated at the present site of Henderson housing estate, which lies opposite the Delta Sports Complex. There was a Chinese cemetery on the reverse side of the hill. The present Bukit Merah Secondary School and...	Redhill Road	67, 77	Lengkok Bahru / Redhill Road	63A-64, 68-70A	Completed
			71, 72	Redhill Road	73-77A	Completed
30 April 1996	Queenstown Queenstown, Singapore 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...	Forfar House / Margaret Drive	39, 6A, 6B	Stirling Road	181-184	Completed
28 May 1996	Bedok	Chai Chee Road	6, 7	Chai Chee Road	10-11	Completed
8 February 1996	Ang Mo Kio	Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1	309, 315, 316	Ang Mo Kio Street 32	350-354A	Completed
			307, 308	Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1	309A-316B	Completed
9 September 1996	Jurong West	Corporation Drive / Hu Ching Road	139-145			Completed
5 December 1996	Queenstown Queenstown, Singapore 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...	Holland Drive	18, 19	Strathmore Avenue		Completed
17 February 1997	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....	Lorong 2 Toa Payoh	89			Completed
13 February 1998	Jurong East New Town (Teban Gardens) Teban Gardens Teban Gardens is a residential precinct located in Jurong.Immediately north of Pandan Reservoir, it comprises exclusively public housing built by the JTC Corporation and Housing and Development Board.-Neighbouring Areas:...	Teban Gardens Road	12-23, 26-29	Teban Gardens Road	60, 62-65	Completed
15 January 2003	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....	Lorong 5/6 Toa Payoh	28, 30, 32, 33			Completed
24 February 2003	Tiong Bahru	Havelock Road/Taman Ho Swee	29, 31, 33			Completed
16 July 2004	Bedok Bedok Bedok is a neighbourhood in the eastern part of Singapore. Bedok New Town is the fifth Housing and Development Board new town; its development started in April 1973 and continued over some 15 years....	Bedok South Ave 3	46-50			Completed
19 July 2004	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...	Dover Road	30-32, 34-39			Completed
28 July 2004	Taman Jurong Taman Jurong Taman Jurong is a residential precinct in Jurong, Singapore. It is one of the oldest residential precincts in Singapore and a division of Jurong GRC, with the area's HDB flats under the management of Jurong Town Council and Tharman Shanmugaratnam as the area's MP.-Neighbouring Areas:-Residential...	Tao Ching Road	103, 105			Completed
28 March 2005	Clementi Clementi, Singapore Clementi is a town in Singapore, located in the west between Jurong and Dover, and commonly refers to the Housing and Development Board's housing estate of Clementi New Town. The town was named after the Governor of the Straits Settlements and High Commissioner Sir Cecil Clementi Smith. The...	Clementi Avenue 3	436-438, 445	Clementi Ave 3 (Clementi Central)	441A-441B	Completed
21 April 2005	Holland Holland Road, Singapore Holland Road is a long road in Singapore, running roughly east-west linking Clementi in the west to the Singapore Botanic Gardens where it joins Napier Road and then Orchard Road....	Holland Avenue/Drive	14-17, 22-23			Completed
25 November 2005	Serangoon Serangoon Serangoon is town situated in the central part of the city-state of Singapore, within the North-East Region. The Housing and Development Board housing estate of Serangoon New Town in Serangoon is one of the smaller new towns. Its town centre is known as Serangoon Central, and is the target of...	Upper Boon Keng Road	20			Completed
25 November 2005	Geylang Geylang Geylang is a neighbourhood in the city-state of Singapore east of the Central Area, Singapore's central business district. It is located to the east of the Singapore River, an area that locals have associated, from the days of Sir Stamford Raffles, as a Malay kampong opposite facing two islands...	Sims Drive	54, 56, 57, 59, 60, 62			Completed
29 December 2005	Commonwealth Commonwealth, Singapore Commonwealth, Singapore is a sub-zone of the Queenstown district. Commonwealth is named after the Commonwealth of Nations. Commonwealth consists of HDB flats and has two primary schools and a secondary school in the area.-External links:*...	Commonwealth Avenue	27A, 39A			Completed
29 December 2005	Queenstown Queenstown, Singapore 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...	Margaret Drive	6C			Completed
22 March 2006	Boon Lay Boon Lay Boon Lay is a residential precinct in Jurong, named after Mr , a prominent businessman in the late 19th century and early 20th century who owned the land where the precinct stands, when a requisition of 1.012km² of land from his estate was done by the war department of the then colonial government...	Boon Lay Drive	180-182, 184			Completed
22 March 2006	Boon Lay Boon Lay Boon Lay is a residential precinct in Jurong, named after Mr , a prominent businessman in the late 19th century and early 20th century who owned the land where the precinct stands, when a requisition of 1.012km² of land from his estate was done by the war department of the then colonial government...	Boon Lay Avenue	216-217, 219-220			Completed
22 March 2006	Taman Jurong Taman Jurong Taman Jurong is a residential precinct in Jurong, Singapore. It is one of the oldest residential precincts in Singapore and a division of Jurong GRC, with the area's HDB flats under the management of Jurong Town Council and Tharman Shanmugaratnam as the area's MP.-Neighbouring Areas:-Residential...	Yung Ping/Yung Kuang Road	5-10			Completed
21 April 2006	Havelock Havelock - People :* Havelock-Allan Baronets, holders of the Baronetcy* Sir Henry Havelock, , British general, active in India* Lieutenant General Sir Henry Havelock-Allan, 1st Baronet , British General, MP for Sunderland 1874–1881 and Durham South East 1885–1892 and 1895–1897 * Sir Henry...	Zion Road	88-92	Havelock Road (Havelock View)	52-58	Completed
22 June 2006	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...	Ang Mo Kio Ave 2, 3, 4	246-252			Completed
8 December 2006	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...	Ghim Moh Road	9-12, 9A, 12A	Ghim Moh Link (Ghim Moh Valley)	22-28	Completed
23 February 2007	Bukit Merah Bukit Merah Bukit Merah is a hill in Singapore. Previously, it was a much larger hill that was situated at the present site of Henderson housing estate, which lies opposite the Delta Sports Complex. There was a Chinese cemetery on the reverse side of the hill. The present Bukit Merah Secondary School and...	Silat Walk/Silat Road/Kampong Bahru	17-19, 22-31	Kim Tian Road (Kim Tian Green)	126A-126C, 127A-127D	Completed
23 February 2007	Bukit Merah Bukit Merah Bukit Merah is a hill in Singapore. Previously, it was a much larger hill that was situated at the present site of Henderson housing estate, which lies opposite the Delta Sports Complex. There was a Chinese cemetery on the reverse side of the hill. The present Bukit Merah Secondary School and...	Henderson Road	94, 96	Kim Tian Road (Kim Tian Green);	126A-126C, 127A-127D	Completed
28 June 2007	Clementi Clementi, Singapore Clementi is a town in Singapore, located in the west between Jurong and Dover, and commonly refers to the Housing and Development Board's housing estate of Clementi New Town. The town was named after the Governor of the Straits Settlements and High Commissioner Sir Cecil Clementi Smith. The...	Clementi Ave 1	401-404, 407-409	Clementi Ave 1 (Casa Clementi)	416-426	Completed
12 July 2007	Jurong East New Town (Teban Gardens) Teban Gardens Teban Gardens is a residential precinct located in Jurong.Immediately north of Pandan Reservoir, it comprises exclusively public housing built by the JTC Corporation and Housing and Development Board.-Neighbouring Areas:...	Teban Gardens Road	2-11			Completed
8 August 2008	Commonwealth Commonwealth, Singapore Commonwealth, Singapore is a sub-zone of the Queenstown district. Commonwealth is named after the Commonwealth of Nations. Commonwealth consists of HDB flats and has two primary schools and a secondary school in the area.-External links:*...	Commonwealth Drive	74-79			In Progress
8 Nov 2009	Bukit Merah Bukit Merah Bukit Merah is a hill in Singapore. Previously, it was a much larger hill that was situated at the present site of Henderson housing estate, which lies opposite the Delta Sports Complex. There was a Chinese cemetery on the reverse side of the hill. The present Bukit Merah Secondary School and...	Bukit Merah View	110, 111, 113, 114	Boon Tiong Road (Tiong Bahru View)	9A-9C,10A-10B,11B	In Progress
13 February 2011	Clementi Clementi, Singapore Clementi is a town in Singapore, located in the west between Jurong and Dover, and commonly refers to the Housing and Development Board's housing estate of Clementi New Town. The town was named after the Governor of the Straits Settlements and High Commissioner Sir Cecil Clementi Smith. The...	Clementi Ave 5	321, 322, 323			In Progress
9 November 2011	East Coast Siglap Siglap is a neighbourhood in the eastern part of Singapore established in 1955, consisting primarily of low-rise residential properties. It is part of the Bedok Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority...	East Coast Road	1, 2, 3, 4			Announced
15 November 2011	Central Rochor centre Rochor Centre is a building in Singapore built by the Housing and Development Board. It was built and completed in 1977. There are total of 4 blocks with over 180 shops, ranging from ceremonial goods to hardware, electrical appliances, beauty salons and eating outlets.A carpark for residents and...	Rochor Road	1, 2, 3, 4			Announced

External links

• e-SERS