2nd reading round-up speech by SMS Sim on Housing & Development (Amendment) Bill

Jan 10, 2023


Mr Speaker sir, I thank the Members for their comments and their support of the Bill. Let me address the issues they have raised.

Polling Process

 First, there were a few questions about how polling for upgrading works would be carried out.

Under the Revitalisation of Shops (ROS) scheme, HDB provides co-funding for improvement of the common area within the shopping precinct to boost the vibrancy and competitiveness of HDB shops. This upgrading may include works at the shopfront that directly benefit the individual shop operators, such as replacement of the floor tiles or lighting at the shopping corridor. It may also include other common area works that would indirectly benefit the individual retailers by improving the overall shopping environment and increasing footfall to the area. Examples include building new spaces for promotional events, introduction of entrance markers or way-finders.

Mr Louis Ng and Mr Lim Biow Chuan have shared their concerns that shop owners who do not benefit from the ROS works – or perceive that they do not benefit – might vote against upgrading the common areas, and asked if such shop owners should be excluded from the poll. Mr Henry Kwek  also suggested for HDB to consider excluding non-responsive shop owners from the poll, sharing feedback that some heartland merchants would welcome a polling threshold of 60% or even 50% instead. Miss Cheryl Chan also asked how the upgrading works could be put into effect if the likelihood of getting owners onboard is low.

  1. First, on ROS works. Neighbourhood Centres have clear boundaries, and our intention is for ROS to be provided to a Neighbourhood Centre as a whole. However, as various precincts have different upgrading needs depending on their age and design, HDB does not stipulate a set scope of works to be carried out under the ROS programme. Instead, a Local Working Committee (LWC) comprising members from the Merchants’ Association (MA) Town Council and HDB, will be formed when the precinct is selected for ROS. With the local stakeholders’ input through the MA, the scope of works can then be tailored to best suit local needs.
  1. The incidence of benefit for the upgrading works will depend on the design and configuration of each Neighbourhood Centre.  We expect precincts selected for ROS to propose enhancements that can benefit the majority – if not all – of the shops in the precinct.
  1. Next, if a poll succeeds, I believe Members would agree, that there is a need for parity for all shop owners. Hence, HDB will recover the cost of upgrading from all beneficiary shop owners, regardless of their vote or their attendance at the poll.
  1. In this context, excluding non-responsive shop owners from the overall count would amount to further lowering the threshold for a successful poll. As Members would be aware, the key basis for this review is to avoid a situation where a single shop owner can exercise what is effectively a veto and deny the rest of the opportunity to upgrade, even if they were all supportive.
  1. At the same time, we have to strike a reasonable balance with the consideration that some individual shop owners might not support upgrading for their own reasons.
  1. We have hence taken a leaf from other upgrading programmes, such as the Home Improvement Programme (HIP), where the threshold of 75% has come to be widely accepted. We believe this would be a reasonable threshold for the ROS to move towards.
  1. For sites that continue to fail to meet the threshold of 75%, there are other upgrading programmes which will help to rejuvenate the common areas for the benefit of nearby residents, such as the Neighbourhood Renewal Programme,  where HDB provides funding for the Town Council to upgrade common areas.

On Mr Lim’s query on whether voting rights will differ based on the size of the commercial property, shop owners will be entitled one vote per beneficiary unit, regardless of size.

  1. For shop owners with multiple beneficiary units, they will be entitled to one vote per beneficiary unit as the share of upgrading costs for the site is typically apportioned to the shop owners based on the number of shop units owned by the individual owner, among other factors.
  1. However, in the case where HDB is the owner of the shops in the Town or Neighbourhood Centre, HDB will only hold one vote, regardless of number of rental units which can be considered as beneficiary units so that there is no contention on polling outcomes.

Scope and Cost of Upgrading

There were also questions relating to the scope and cost of upgrading.

Miss Chan, Mr Ng and Mr Kwek asked if HDB could come up with a preliminary design concept on the proposed works and provide information to shop owners ahead of polling, for them to exercise their vote meaningfully.

  1. We agree that this is necessary. After the selected sites are announced and the LWC is formed, the LWC will work with a consultant to come up with the preliminary design concept for the upgrading works. Prior to polling, shop owners will be notified in writing of the full scope of works proposed so that they can make an informed decision on whether to support the upgrading. The specific details are being worked out, and will be provided when we open the upcoming ROS Batch 8 for application.

Mr Ng also asked who would bear the costs if the upgrading works exceed the initial cost estimates. 

  1. Shop owners will be notified of the overall estimated upgrading costs, as well as their share of the bill, before polling.
  1. In the event that the construction costs exceed initial estimates, HDB will work with the LWC on the best course of action for the specific site, which may include reviewing the scope of proposed works.

Mr Louis Chua also raised a question of whether HDB would consider wholly bearing the cost for upgrading of common areas.

  1. In this case, we are talking about upgrading for the purposes of improving shoppers’ experience, also with the view of drawing in more shoppers, greater footfall, which will result in better business and monetary gain to the shop owners.
  1. I think in this case, it is therefore reasonable to expect some co-payment, although as I have said, we are reviewing the co-payment structure.
  1. HDB co-pays a significant amount because we acknowledge that HDB shops also exist to serve residents. However, undeniably there is also commercial interest involved. So, we believe that some amount of co-payment would be reasonable.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan also asked how the need to upgrade the common areas would be balanced against higher maintenance costs.

  1. As mentioned earlier, when a Neighbourhood or Town Centre is selected for ROS (Upgrading), an LWC would be formed comprising members from the MA, Town Council and HDB. As part of the LWC, the Town Council will be able to participate in the process of determining the scope of works and design of the upgraded precinct, and provide a check to ensure that the proposed works will not generate significantly higher maintenance costs that are unsustainable in the long run for the TC, which remains ultimately responsible for common property.
  1. In our engagements, it was highlighted that TCs may be constrained by funding issues. Please be assured that we are looking into this, while balancing against the need for TCs to also have skin in the game, and we will announce more details further on.

Miss Cheryl Chan also asked if HDB could consider including lift upgrading for blocks that were unsuccessful or opted out in the past as part of upgrading works under the ROS scheme.

  1. Currently, there is a menu of upgrading works offered under the ROS scheme, which are funded jointly by shop owners, HDB and the TC. Main items include fixed awnings, re-tiling, shop corridor lightings, digital directory, way-finders, landscaping and street furniture and Digital Display Panels. Shop-specific items that individual shops can opt in for include vertical blinds and roller shutters.

2. Lift upgrading works are covered under the existing Lift Upgrading Programme. While we note that lifts are important to serve residents in common areas, lift upgrading is a big-ticket item that would exceed the budget allocated for works under the ROS scheme. So, we will keep the two separate.

Prioritisation and Selection of ROS sites

Other questions pertain to prioritisation of ROS sites to align with other upgrading programmes and retaining the role of MAs, from Mr Kwek; and whether we have indicators of success, from Mr Ng.

  1. We agree that coordinating upgrading efforts will facilitate more comprehensive upgrading of the shopping environment and minimise disruption to retailers. Hence, HDB will continue to prioritise town or neighbourhood centres which have been selected for or are undergoing other HDB upgrading programmes such as the Neighbourhood Renewal Programme mentioned earlier, Remaking Our Heartlands, or where the Town Councils have plans for Repair & Redecoration works.

We also agree with him that HDB should tap on the strengths of MAs to persuade shop owners to support ROS upgrading in their neighbourhood centres.

  1. MAs indeed play an integral role in our commercial heartland areas, including revitalisation efforts within the neighbourhood centres. They are an important intermediary between HDB and the shop owners. Under the revised scheme, we intend for the MAs to continue to play a key role in the upgrading process.
  1. The LWC, which I mentioned earlier, will include representatives from MAs, who will help us to shape the upgrading plans so that they can meet the needs of the shop owners. While the MAs will no longer need to gather support from the shop owners, HDB will still need to tap on their networks to engage and reach out to shop owners to share the upgrading plans with them.

Lastly, to Mr Ng’s query on measurable indicators that HDB monitors to determine if the purposes of upgrading have been achieved, there are varying outcomes that we aim to achieve through the upgrading works.

  1. Fundamentally, upgrading should improve the shopping experience and hence footfall. This should translate into revenue for stallholders.
  1. There are also less measurable outcomes such as enhancing the vibrancy and local character of our heartlands, and their role as social hubs for the community to interact and forge bonds.
  1. Ultimately though, the context, including factors such as catchment, trade mix and location, will differ from site to site and hence it would be difficult to impose a standard target across ROS sites. Nonetheless, we will monitor feedback post-upgrading so that we can continuously improve on the scheme.

And in this connection, although some of the points raised were not strictly to do with the clauses of the bill, I would like to also take this opportunity to address them. In particular, I want to thank the interest expressed by Mr Chua and also Miss Chan in trade mix curation in our Neighbourhood Centres and Town Centres. We agree that this is very important, and I appreciate them raising the importance of getting the trade mix right.

Mr Chua also talked about the use of point-of-sale system, and he has also mentioned ShopperLink. Indeed, HDB is in the process of rolling out point-of-sale systems to the HDB shopping precincts that are under HDB ownership precisely with a view to use the data gathered to analyse and to help shop operators achieve better outcomes, and to provide a better experience for shoppers overall. So, this is ongoing. Likewise, with ShopperLink, this is also progressively being rolled out. It is a work-in-progress, and I thank Mr. Chua for his interest in ShopperLink.

As for the specifics, with regards to the injection of eating places in our towns, HDB follows planning parameters for the insertion of F&B as well as other kinds of amenities and facilities needed by residents as we plan and build each town. In the case of Sengkang, we have been hearing feedback from residents and progressively been injecting F&B or eating facilities, especially as new developments come up. And if the member has specific suggestions or feedback, he can share it with HDB, which we will study.

Conclusion

As mentioned in my opening speech, our heartland shops play important social and economic roles in our neighbourhoods. We know that our heartland shops hold a very special place in the hearts of Singaporeans. Hence, we are giving more support our heartland merchants through enhancing the ROS scheme with formal polling provisions.

Overall, the amendments will enable us to better facilitate physical upgrading, which is a first and necessary step in our plans to refresh and upkeep the vibrancy of our heartland shop precincts.

Mr Speaker sir, I beg to move.