Source: my Paper

SINGAPOREANS can expect more public housing of high quality and great height – like the landmark The Pinnacle@Duxton – to replace old flats, as long as the nation continues to grow and do well, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said yesterday. So, flat prices can be expected to continue rising as Singapore’s economy improves, he added.

The Housing Board will continue to build affordable homes and the Government will help young couples own their first flats, so that “each generation of Singaporeans will continue to have a stake in the nation”, he said. But Singaporeans should not seek to make a quick buck out of the resale of HDB flats or make speculative buys, he warned.

Speaking at a ceremony of the handing over of keys to the residents of The Pinnacle@ Duxton flats,MM Lee called the estate of 50-storey blocks with 1,800 units a “significant milestone”.

It is the tallest HDB development in Singapore, the first whose design was picked through an international competition, and the only one with one of the world’s longest continuous sky gardens, formed by 12 sky bridges that link its seven blocks.

The site, located in the city centre, could have been sold to develop private condominiums, but the Government chose to build public housing there as it wanted to share “the growth of the city with the people who… built the city”, MM Lee said.

Singapore would not have stability, progress and prosperity if not for home ownership, which is vital for creating a sense of belonging to the nation, he said.

“It is critical for an immigrant community from all parts of the world, with no common history, to quickly establish their roots here. And you establish your roots when you own a new home,” he said.

He added that the pride people have in their homes has “prevented our estates from turning into slums, which is often the fate of public-housing estates in other countries”. Back in the 1960s, many Singaporeans were living in overcrowded shophouses or squatter huts. To tackle this, the Government sought to build homes as fast as it could, with the HDB building 55,000 flats within five years from its inception in 1960.

This is more than double what its predecessor, the Singapore Improvement Trust, built in 32 years.

MM Lee said: “The Pinnacle@Duxton is a strong testament to our tenacity and capabilities as a people, to get to where we (are today).

“We have yet to reach the pinnacle of our growth. The future of Asia has never looked better. The growth potential for Singapore is tremendous if we stay united and work intelligently and hard.”

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