Corporate Review
State land hold tremendous potential and possibilities. As the custodian of State land and properties, SLA is constantly coming up with innovative ways to creatively transform these spaces to benefit the community.
26 to 36 Orchard Road
National Development
2017 opened with the joint announcement with the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) on the acquisition of Woodlands Point and the former Woodlands Cinema at Old Woodlands Town Centre for the extension of Woodlands Checkpoint. Together with the relevant agencies, we have also been assisting affected land owners at Murai Farmway whose land was acquired for the expansion of Tengah Air Base.
"The tender at 26, 28, 30, 32 & 36 Orchard Road brought Price-Quality evaluation standards to a new level through the recognition of capital that the tenderers would invest into the properties, and introduced a new dimension to interim use planning by incorporating social good into the State property usage."
First Independent Price and Quality Tender
SLA launched its first independent Price and Quality (PQ) tender for the State properties along 26 to 36 Orchard Road in May 2017. The independent PQ tenders provided SLA greater flexibility in curating the uses and tenants at State properties, similar to previous PQ tenders conducted in collaboration with partner agencies.
Weightage accorded to non-price factors such as investment towards asset enhancement and business sustainability ensure that the successful tenderer commits funds to upkeep the State properties and inject new concepts and social good into the property.
Supporting Sustainability
SLA is constantly seeking opportunities to support Singapore’s efforts in going green. Since 2014, SLA has been working with Public Utilities Board (PUB) and Economic Development Board Singapore (EDB) on a test-bed for floating solar panels at Tengeh Reservoir. There are plans to further explore test-bedding of floating photovoltaic systems at other locations.
In line with Singapore’s electro-mobility initiative, SLA worked with Land Transport Authority (LTA), Housing & Development Board (HDB), Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and JTC Corporation (JTC) on the BlueSG electric car roll-out across the Island. As the electric cars and their charging terminals are located at carparks with Temporary Occupation Licences from SLA, SLA took the initiative to study the business model and subsequently implemented an innovative charging mechanism in 2017 for electric vehicles to park and charge within the carparks.
"In our interaction with affected owners, we strive to thoroughly understand their worries and concerns. This helps us provide the necessary assistance to guide the owners through the process."
Proactive Engagement with Residents
In June 2017, SLA proactively engaged the residents of 191 terrace houses at Lorong 3 Geylang, whose 60-year leases expire on 31 December 2020.
SLA officers went house-to-house to notify residents of the upcoming lease expiry and introduced them to the designated SLA officers who would guide them through the lease expiry process. Letters were also sent to the owners. After the house visits, SLA officers also scheduled separate sessions with each household to discuss their housing situation to ensure no one would be left without options. SLA will continue to guide the residents and owners through the lease expiry process.
West Coast Viaduct
"The space under West Coast Viaduct demonstrates that with creativity, we can transform spaces and unlock their potential to benefit the community."
14 Mornington Crescent
"We are constantly looking into new ways to engage potential tenants and showcase the unique features of our State properties. The show house at 14 Mornington Crescent allows tenants to experience it in a live-in condition and allows them to better envision the potential of the property."
COMO Dempsey
"We are constantly working on enhancing the identity of the Tanglin Village cluster. The arrival of COMO Cuisine and Dover Street Market at Dempsey Hill have further enhanced its status as one of the most unique lifestyle and retail destinations in Singapore."
SLA believes in the value of creating communities. Taking on the role of interim use master planner, we embarked on various place-making initiatives that range from converting underutilised spaces for community uses, to working with our stakeholders to inject vibrancy in the communities we manage.
Residential units at Chip Bee Gardens
Kusu Island
Lazarus Island
Turtle hatchlings on Southern Islands making their way to sea
St John’s Island
Management of Offshore Islands
SLA took over the management of ten offshore islands from Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) in March 2017. Since then, SLA has made multiple improvements to the management of the islands.
In October and November 2017, SLA organised the Kusu Pilgrimage Season (KPS) for the first time. Close to 40,000 visited the island during KPS to pay their respects at the island’s Chinese temple and Keramat. In the area of wildlife conservation, SLA collaborated with the National Parks Board (NParks) to safeguard a turtle nest until the hatchlings were safely released into the sea. SLA also worked with the Cat Welfare Society (CWS) to rescue trapped cats at Pulau Hantu.
"Chip Bee Gardens is a unique enclave made up of a tightly-knit community of local craftsmen and businesses. This was made possible by our constant engagement with the community to strengthen the estate’s identity and vibrancy."
Community-building at Chip Bee Gardens
SLA has been piloting new ways to enhance the marketability of the residential properties at Chip Bee Gardens. Its first fully-furnished residential rental show-house was completed in February 2017, and a street block of five residential terrace houses were fitted with air-conditioning, cabinets, curtains and white goods in September 2017.
Other marketing initiatives for the estate include place-making efforts such as its very first Block Party and a pop-up charity arts museum. In March 2018, 10 terrace units were fitted out showcasing the best of local and international design and a street was pedestrianised for SG Design Week District Design Dialogue Holland Village in Chip Bee Gardens. A highly-visible art mural spanning the rear of Block 43 Jalan Merah Saga was also painted. These efforts to inject vibrancy and solidify Chip Bee Gardens’ position as a maker’s village have borne fruit, as seen in the organic growth in the array and quality of tenants.
A management office was also set up as a convenient point of contact for tenants to seek assistance and provide feedback.
"Although initiated by SLA, the success of the series was made possible by the contributions from the community, which includes heritage enthusiasts, architects and people who used to live and work in these places of history."
Discovering Singapore’s Best Kept Secrets
Between July and November 2017, SLA collaborated with heritage blogger Mr Jerome Lim of "The Long and Winding Road" to conduct a series of guided visits to eight selected State properties. During the visits, participants were given rare access to the sites and an introduction to the State properties to gain a deeper understanding of their historical and architectural significance.
Beyond raising awareness of our nation's State properties and their heritage, SLA benefitted from the ideas generated by the public on possible uses for vacant State properties.
Launch of SLA’s Service Charter and inaugural Service Appreciation Day
The journey towards greater service excellence took a big step forward with the launch of SLA’s Service Charter during the Workplan Seminar on 23 March 2018. The Service Charter sets out the Service Principles and Behaviours expected of all SLA officers in serving both internal and external stakeholders. We also held SLA’s inaugural Service Appreciation Day, where Senior Management took turns to serve snacks to officers, in recognition of their service efforts.
Our commitment to being Future Ready sees us driving Geospatial innovation and 3D mapping for Virtual Singapore as part of our country’s Smart Nation vision. Our innovative solutions extend to the use of cutting-edge technology in the management of national land and property registration, as well as in our processes and service delivery to our stakeholders.
Productivity On The Go
SmartLAMD, the third-generation mobile application, was launched in April 2017, paving the way for a more mobile workforce. The revamped app runs on iPad mini and is equipped with new functions and features such as faster loading speeds and offline mode access. It is also interfaced with SLA’s Customer Feedback System. These upgrades allow the officers to perform their duties on the go, thereby raising their productivity and effectiveness.
Enhancements to State Property Information Online (SPIO)
SPIO was re-launched in September 2017. The refreshed portal is now mobile-friendly and customer-focused, offering more comprehensive and customised information. After the launch, there was close to a 200% increase in site hits within the first month. Further enhancements are in the pipeline and will be rolled out progressively.
Automated Registration of Electronically-Lodged Caveats
In August 2017, SLA enhanced our backend systems (STARS and ELS), to automate the registration of electronically-lodged caveats lodged against whole lots by purchasers and financial institution mortgagees. This initiative is in line with the overall vision to automate manual processes, thereby freeing up resources for other areas of work that are more complex in nature.
"The New OneMap was designed with the user in mind. Its new interface allows quicker access to information. The mobile friendly features also enables users to access map information in an intuitive manner on-the-go."
Launch of New OneMap
The mobile-centric New OneMap boasts a variety of base maps, location-based features such as Find Nearby which enables users to locate nearby amenities, as well as multiple modes of transport – including walking directions – for users to choose from.
"The Singapore Advanced Map enables SLA officers to visualise land data and empowers them to make accurate decisions and formulate sound policies on land management and administration."
Singapore Advanced Map
Completed in July 2017, the Singapore Advanced Map (SAM) stores, maintains, and, above all, integrates various sources of map data, 3D city models, orthophoto, point cloud data, cadastre information, topographical survey data and existing 2D Geographic Information System (GIS) data for visualisation and analysis on one single platform. This integrated platform undergirds SLA’s land administration and land management roles, as it has been deployed to provide essential information to officers for operation planning through the visualisation of State land and properties and increasing awareness of actual ground conditions, which contributes towards risk management, decision making and policy formulation.
Phase 2 of MyProperty
The portal, with a new look and feel, now allows title searches for properties under development, while corporate entities can also log in with their CorpPass identity. Plans in the pipeline include the introduction of functions which will allow property owners to update their correspondence address online and receive alerts notifying them of any dealings relating to their properties.
OneMap IdeaWorks
SLA initiated a three-month OneMap IdeaWorks campaign in July, which brought many community organisations, technologists and data scientists together to leverage geospatial information to solve every day issues. Innovative geospatial solutions were developed, with a total of nine awards handed out. At the awards ceremony, Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Law, reiterated the importance of geospatial as one of the key technologies underpinning Smart Nation initiatives.
INLIS Virtual Assistant
In September 2016, SLA’s Smart Virtual Assistant, AskJamie, was launched on the INLIS portal. Since its launch, AskJamie@INLIS has seen a healthy growth in its usage rate. On average, it now handles between 200 to 300 queries monthly, which represents approximately 10% to 15% of all queries that come through the helpdesk in a month. To enhance its functionality, the range of information which the public can obtain through self-help was expanded in September 2017. Users can now inquire about their invoice status or check on all their Purchase Orders transacted, among others, via the Virtual Assistant.
Digitisation of HDB records
Since 2016, SLA has doubled its digitisation of HDB records to 46% as at end of 2017. Estimated to complete by end 2019, the project will realise SLA’s goal of a fully digitised land-register for the whole of Singapore.