On the 19th of May, the new Yishun Town Square was officially opened by Mr Lawrence Wong, Minister for National Development and Second Minister for Finance, and Mr K. Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs, Minister for Law, and Adviser to Nee Soon GRC Grassroots Organisations. The new square is meant to allow residents a place to gather, to perform, to meet and to enjoy each other’s company. 

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Conveniently located right beside the newly refurbished Northpoint City and Yishun Town Garden, it holds several food chain outlets like OneSushi and Burger King and provides easy access to the MRT and bus interchange.

 

 

This event was part of the Housing Development Board’s (HDB) Community Week 2018, which aims to promote the idea that homes are not just physical spaces but living communities where people come together.

 

 

“This year, we brought the HDB Community Week to the heartlands Yishun so that local residents can join in the activities planned for them throughout the week at the newly completed Yishun Town Square. Through the exhibition, we hope that residents get to discover the new facilities completed under HDB’s Remaking our Heartland programme at Yishun, pick up some ideas to kickstart a community project, check out the volunteering opportunities, and experience what ‘life in the heartlands’ means through the lenses of enthusiastic photographers,” shared Miss Shivvonne Wong, Deputy Director (Planning) for the Housing & Development Board’s Community Relations Group.

 

 

On display at the exhibition were different initiatives by groups in the community - such as the HDB Friendly Faces, Lively Places Fund projects carried out by HDB’s Friends of Our Heartlands volunteers.

 

 

Among those who contributed was Republic Polytechnic’s Diploma in Mass Communication students. Working in collaboration with HDB, the final year Photojournalism students produced several multi-media photo pieces, some of which went on display at the exhibition where 3 videos were shown at Yishun and 2 videos shown at Tampines. 
 

 

DMC graduate Shang Thong Yi, 21, was on hand to explain to Minister Wong about the work his team did on Yishun. “Before this project, I used to think that Yishun and the other HDB towns were ordinary places where people just live, eat and work. But after this project, I realised that Yishun is actually very well planned for residents to have plenty of chances to bond and lead a vibrant heartland life.” 

 

 

The team was well aware that Yishun had quite a lot of bad press – and were determined to find stories of community bonding. And as it turned out, they had no trouble at all.

 

 

“From void decks, coffee shops, community gardens to culturally rich shopping districts like Chong Pang City, I think all these places have made residents find a space for themselves to unwind and chat with their families or meet new friends to build meaningful relationships as well as enjoy life in the towns,” added Thong Yi.

 

 

Their work complemented the budding photographers who went home with prizes for their shots of different aspects of life in the HDB heartlands – from children playing to adults at the market.

 

 

Miss Chloe Wong, 28, resident of Nee Soon enjoyed the festivities: “We still should uphold the kampung spirit that Singaporeans have been building since the start, especially with the new estates, the kampung spirit has really died down quite a bit. So, it will be good if Singaporeans can come out of their houses and start taking part in community activities.’’

 

 

The exhibition at the Yishun Town Square will run till May 25 before roving to Our Tampines Hub on May 26 to 27.