Maintaining a symbiotic relationship with nature as a densely populated island state remains a complex challenge for Singapore.
The Rail Corridor: Choa Chu Kang Integrated Housing Development was a scheme submitted for a competition held by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It proposes that it is possible to seed nature and the built environment simultaneously. This allows ecological reparation to take place alongside strategic construction and development. The Rail Corridor was a railway line that connected Singapore to the Malay Peninsula. This scheme reimagines the corridor as a twenty-four-kilometre tract that celebrates Singapore’s biodiversity. The nearby Pang Sua Canal is reconceptualised as a natural floodplain, dissolving its hard concrete boundaries and making it an integral part of the design. By doing so, land is freed up to accommodate a 50-metre linear forest down the length of the site. It infuses the Rail Corridor with a green function, to reflect a deeper connection between community and nature.
Comprising a series of modular blocks, the model represents a means of achieving density whilst safeguarding the quality of our living and natural environment. It provides visitors with insights into how the man-made and the natural can coexist to produce an enriched and mindful living experience.
MKPL Architects Pte Ltd was formed in March 1995. The firm’s design philosophy focuses on creating, clear architectural forms and spaces that are comfortable and liveable, viewing the vernacular and regional culture as a rich resource that can suggest appropriate solutions and references.
