Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Depending on one's perspective, this re-genesis may be interpreted as a form of 're-making'
or 'un-making'. Re-made from a fi lthy working waterway, the waterfront has become one of
Singapore's most thriving leisure and commercial landscapes today. Land uses have also been
reconfi gured, with low-cost residences giving way to condominiums, service apartments
and hotels.
Government planning agencies such as the URA (Urban Redevelopment Board) and STB
(Singapore Tourism Board) see this shift as necessary in Singapore's self-marketing as a global
city. A Singapore River Experience Guide Plan was devised in 2002 to turn the waterfront
into a world-class entertainment destination with careful attention paid to its entertainment,
retail and architectural offerings. World-renowned brands such as Britain's Ministry of Sound
and the Crazy Horse cabaret from Paris, as well as countless international food and retail stars
were introduced as part of the waterfront's revamped image. In a joint press release by the
URA and STB, it was emphasised that the new development plans 'will add to the precinct's
overall appeal and augment [Singapore's] international standing as an exciting, dynamic and
vibrant city and a leading events and entertainment capital in Asia' (URA, 2008). This is in
keeping with the latest thrust of the larger Master Plan (the latest draft was released in 2008)
which envisions that, by 2020, Singapore will become a city that is 'distinctive in its ability
to offer a unique combination of economic opportunity, vibrant lifestyle and quality envi-
ronment, for a cosmopolitan population' (
The Straits Times
, 24 May 2008).
The government's effort at marketing the waterfront as world class has been comple-
mented by private sector developments. For example, the warehouses of Clarke Quay have
been redeveloped by CapitaLand (a property developer) with new retail and entertainment
outlets, avant-garde all-weather contraptions and trendy street furniture. The redevelopment
plan was conceptualised by UK-based Alsop Architects. Right opposite Clarke Quay, two
blocks of low-cost public housing were demolished to make way for the Merchant Court
Hotel and Central, a lifestyle-oriented retail mall famous for its variety of Japanese and
Korean retail and food outlets.
This new image of an 'otherworldly' Singapore River has been received by tourists and
locals differently (see also Ooi, 2007). Many tourists are dismayed by what they regard to be
a decimation of history and identity. For these visitors, urban waterfronts around the world
look much like each other, a symptom of deworldment (hyper-commercialisation) and
unworldment (loss of uniqueness). As a South African tourist whom I interviewed said: 'It is
very important for tourists like us to experience this place differently from other places.
There is really no point seeing the same things. The government should sustain the culture
along the Singapore River.'
The unmaking of the Singapore River may be attributed to its 'Westernisation'. Indeed
the river has been designed along the lines of waterfronts in Western cities rather than Asian
ones. The URA's guide plans, for example, featured Paseo del Rio (San Antonio, Texas) and
the Seine (Paris) as models that Singapore can learn from. Press reports similarly reveal
Western prototypes favoured by local planners including Sydney's Darling Harbourside,
Miami's Coco Walk and Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. A common tourist response to
these changes is that the waterfront looks 'too Western' and has 'forgotten its heritage'. These
views are not unfounded when we consider how all the original elements of the River have
disappeared - teeming bumboats, trading activities and coolie workers on the docks. Only
the shophouses and warehouses have remained, but redevelopment and adaptive reuse have
totally transformed their architectural facades and identity. As an American visitor opined:
'There's defi nitely not enough to describe the history [of the river]. I don't see Singapore's
history at all when I'm here.'
