Bigger homes, co-working spaces in public libraries among ideas for new urban normal

THERE is room to explore whether current residential unit configurations and sizes are suitable for the home to be a refuge in times of crisis, or conducive for new living and working patterns, the Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) said.

Housing towns and neighbourhoods could also be made even more self-sufficient, with improved connectivity especially for the ageing population.

"Homes need to accommodate new roles of being a place for refuge and for work", in light of the shift towards hybrid modes of study and working due to the Covid-19 pandemic, wrote CLC, a division of Singapore's Ministry of National Development (MND), in a commentary published on Monday.

Homes and their immediate vicinities are likely to continue taking centre stage in urban living, as they have doubled up as spaces of work and learning amid lockdowns across cities. This has put pressure on the well-being and cohesion within and between households, CLC noted.

Its commentary posited ideas on how towns, buildings and living spaces in general can be planned and designed for better health outcomes and encourage healthy lifestyles in the new urban normal, from a built environment and infrastructure perspective.

In Singapore, over the years, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) has changed the structure of residential units, moving structural components to the sides and allowing internal walls to be removable. "This gives greater flexibility for residents to create new spaces, such as a study area in the home," CLC said.

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Providing larger units may also be an immediate idea to increase space in homes. However, this needs to be balanced with higher building costs that may then affect housing affordability, the centre added.

Other ways to reduce stresses in the near term and boost well-being include lower-cost, flexible solutions that work with existing resources in the neighbourhood, CLC suggested.

For example, pay-per-use work booths have been introduced, by property technology company REinvent, in selected malls and are equipped with a desk, Wi-Fi, power sockets and other amenities.

There is also potential to tap on or retrofit existing neighbourhood spaces, such as public libraries and residents committee centres, to serve as co-working spaces, CLC said. Commercial co-working spaces have become more popular, but most are located within or near the central business district and regional centres.

Singapore's public housing towns are already designed to be self-sufficient, with easy access to shops, schools, and social and recreational facilities, with an abundance of greenery.

That said, there is still an opportunity to "explore what other kinds of decentralised facilities we need and to start providing for them", noted Richard Hoo, chief infrastructure planning officer at MND and deputy CEO at the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

This may include providing conducive workspaces, more public spaces, and appropriately sized commercial nodes even in private residential neighbourhoods, CLC suggested.

Within towns, connectivity can also be improved to provide the growing senior population with important incidental physical activity, mental stimulation and social connection. Existing parameters for connectivity, such as a 10-minute walk, should be planned with an older demographic in mind, serving seniors living in both public and private housing neighbourhoods, CLC said.

When it comes to decentralisation, approaches to planning will need to be flexible, as it is difficult to predict the exact shifts in lifestyles and economic activity that will be sustained after the pandemic.

Therefore, more optionality and flexibility should be incorporated into plans as cities pursue polycentric development, the centre noted.

One way to do this is by introducing more mixed-use planning and developments in suitable areas. Flexibility can be adopted in plans for polycentres, even for generally mono-use land zoned for industry and business parks, it added.

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