SINGAPORE - House hunters eyeing the popular Bukit Merah estate can tap an upcoming development of around 1,500 Build-To-Order (BTO) flats on a site in Alexandra that is less than a 10-minute walk to Redhill MRT station.
The Housing Board said plans are being drawn up and will be shared when ready.
The site is bounded by Alexandra Road, Prince Charles Crescent and Alexandra Canal and sits along the Alexandra Park Connector.
Located 400m from Redhill MRT station, it was previously home to low-rise blocks of public rental flats, shops and a market, all of which were demolished in the 1990s.
The site will be developed to meet the strong demand for public housing, said the HDB and Singapore Land Authority on Wednesday (Dec 15).
"The new housing projects will add to the good geographical spread of public housing to meet the different needs of Singaporeans, including young families who want to live near their parents in the area for better mutual care and support," said the agencies in a joint release.
When asked if the flats will come under the new prime location public housing (PLH) model, HDB said: "The details of future projects under the PLH model are being finalised. Projects to be offered under the PLH model will be announced before the BTO launch."
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The PLH model is aimed at keeping future HDB flats in prime, central locations affordable and inclusive.
Home owners under the model are subject to stricter buying and selling conditions such as a 10-year minimum occupation period and a subsidy clawback by the Government upon the resale of the units.
To facilitate the development of the Alexandra site, 0.23ha of land that is currently occupied by Alexandra Post Office and SingPost's tenant will be acquired by the Government.
"This will allow for more residential units to be built... and enable a more optimal planning and design of the public housing projects such as better layout within the projects and better connectivity from the development to surrounding amenities," said the agencies.
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
