Being a small city-state, Singapore’s land use needs have always been a balancing act. The need to consider demands and trade-offs across a wide variety of needs, from housing to infrastructure, community facilities, and workplaces, is keenly felt. When developing new areas, the Singapore government considers a range of options, including redeveloping what are known as brownfield sites. Brownfield sites are areas that have been previously developed or are vacant lots within existing developments.
Over the years, as land leases expire, brownfield sites such as golf courses, old school sites, and industrial areas will be redeveloped for multiple uses, including public and private housing. Here is a non-exhaustive list of sites.
#1 Keppel Club Golf Course
Source: URA SPACE
Singapore’s oldest golf club, the Keppel Golf Club was founded in 1904, starting with a three-hole golf course amid a nutmeg plantation. Almost a century later, now known as Keppel Club, the Bukit Chermin golf course had expanded into an 18-hole competition course. In 2022, the land lease expired and would not be renewed by the Singapore government.
As part of the Greater Southern Waterfront, the area will now be used to build about 6,000 HDB flats and 3,000 private homes. The first BTO project will launch in October this year.
#2 Bukit Timah Turf City
Source: URA Draft Master Plan 2025
Singapore’s second racecourse at Bukit Timah was built in 1933, with the last race held in 1999. However, despite early discussions of redeveloping the area for residential use since the 1998 Master Plan, it was transformed into Turf City in 2000, with an initial 10-year lease that was subsequently extended twice. In 2012, it was relaunched as The Grandstand, and the lease finally expired in 2023.
URA has announced that this area will be transformed into an inclusive housing estate, with 15,000 to 20,000 public and private homes. The redevelopment plan also includes conserving 22 heritage buildings, including the North and South Grandstands, stables, and the Bukit Timah Saddle Club clubhouse.
Read Also: Freehold VS Leasehold: How Much More Does A Freehold Property Still Deserve To Be Sold?
#3 Jurong Country Club
Source: URA SPACE
In 1975, Jurong Country Club was built to cater to help draw more industrial investment into the Jurong region, following its launch as an industrial estate. It had a 60-year lease, expiring in 2035. However, just 40 years later, in 2015, it was announced that the land was acquired by the Singapore government to make way for the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR). The Club would close for good in 2016.
Unfortunately, the HSR project would eventually be scrapped at the end of 2020. However, the government still plans to go ahead with its redevelopment as part of the Jurong Lake District, which is expected to become Singapore’s second largest mixed-use business district. It will be anchored by the upcoming Jurong Lake District MRT station, on the upcoming Cross Island Line, which should be ready by 2032.
Read Also: URA Draft Master Plan 2025: How The West Will Become More Connected And Future-Ready
#4 Marina Bay Golf Course
Source: URA SPACE
The Marina Bay Golf Course was the first and only public 18-hole golf course in Singapore. It opened at the end of 2006, but just 8 years later, it was announced that the land lease would not be extended after 2024. The space will now be used for the development of the expanded Bay East Garden and Founders’ Memorial.
According to the URA Draft Master Plan 2025, two zones in the former golf course have been designated for residential use. No further details have been provided at this point.
#5 Gillman Barracks
Source: URA SPACE
Built in 1936, Gillman Barracks was first used to house the British Army’s 1st Battalion, Middlesex Regiment. The site survived World War II and was used as a training ground for the Singapore Armed Forces till the 1990s. Multiple attempts to redevelop the area followed, with its current use as a contemporary art centre with multiple art galleries. It even hosted part of the Singapore Biennale in 2019. As late as 2022, the Singapore Land Authority launched new rejuvenation plans with the vision of transforming Gillman Barracks into a “vibrant creative lifestyle enclave”, awarding contracts to new tenants in 2023.
In the URA Draft Master Plan 2025 however, it was announced that the area would be redeveloped for residential use, once the land lease expires in 2030. In addition to Gillman Barracks, the residential plot includes the former St. Andrew’s Junior College, which now houses the Academy of Singapore Teachers.
You are refer to this handy inforgraphic depicting the brownfield sites that are slated for redevelopment:
