About S$9.5 million will be spent to rejuvenate Yishun Central’s landscape.
It is a joint effort involving government agencies and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital to remake the heartland into a vibrant place for residents.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Thursday to mark the start of landscape transformation in Yishun.
The Yishun Pond is set to undergo a facelift to become part of a waterfront park for the area’s residents and the nearby Khoo Teck Puat Hospital’s patients.
Liak Teng Lit, CEO of Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, described the new makeover.
“It will be covered with trees, and there will be shrubs and flowering plants. And of course there will be nicely done up footpaths for people to jog, people to walk and also it’s a barrier-free access.”
The new features are expected benefit patients of the nearby Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.
An overhead bridge will also be built to connect Yishun Pond to Yishun Park to make it easier for people to cross between the green spaces.
The bridge will be connected to a three-storey lookout tower that offers visitors a panoramic view of the pond.
The project is part of national water agency PUB’s Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters Programme to create new spaces for community bonding opportunities.
Dr Maliki Osman, Parliamentary Secretary, National Development Ministry said, “When you have these new things which people may not have seen before, it becomes talking points. It becomes opportunities for people to actually discuss, share – the old folks may be able to share with the younger ones: “We used to have this, now it’s coming back, it’s wonderful.”
The transformation is expected to be completed by end-2011.
Source : Channel NewsAsia – 9 Sep 2010