Making of a modern city-sate

Source : Business Times - 14 Oct 2008

IN JUST more than three decades, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has transformed Singapore’s physical landscape into one that is benchmarked by others.

Monocle, a leading international publication, rated Singapore as one of the top 25 most liveable cities in the world in its 2008 survey. This is significant, URA says, as this puts Singapore in the same league as great cities like Munich, Copenhagen and Zurich.

But perhaps the URA’s proudest achievement is that it has been able to take what is by any definition a tiny space - Singapore has a limited land area of only about 700 sq km - and optimise it to not only support sustainable economic growth but also provide a quality living environment.

‘Not only do we have to make sure we have enough land to sustain Singapore into the future, it is no easy challenge to transform a little island - bits of land, water, sea and greenery - into a living, thriving city state with world class facilities, into a home, into a magnet for business and an exciting playground,’ said URA chief executive Cheong Koon Hean.

For these reasons, the URA, which was formed in 1974, has grown to become an internationally recognised and well-respected national land use planning and building conservation authority.

When it was set up more than 30 years ago, it was only responsible for urban renewal within the Central Area. But with rapid economic growth, the government recognised that it was more expedient for an agency with the right expertise and resources to plan holistically for the whole city-state and facilitate its development.

In 1989, the URA amalgamated with the former Planning Department and expanded its scope to its present-day role as Singapore’s national land use planning and conservation authority.

This year, the URA is being honoured with a Singapore Quality Award (SQA). The award, given out by Spring Singapore yearly, recognises the pinnacle of business excellence for companies in Singapore.

‘The SQA award celebrates the URA’s 34 years of contribution to enhancing Singapore’s living environment,’ said Mrs Cheong. ‘What sets the URA apart from other planning agencies is the ability and the process to translate our plans into reality.’

The URA’s strength is its integrated planning and facilitating process. The organisation works in close partnership with the public and private sectors to turn plans into reality.

But this is not as easy as it looks. A lot of work went into making the city look as beautiful as it does. ‘During the F1, when the images of the beautiful city skyline were beamed out to the world, it wasn’t by chance,’ said Mrs Cheong. ‘It was by careful planning and very, very hard work over many, many years.’

The URA, she said, works on detailed plans on a very micro-level for all the areas that it deals with.

Take for example Marina Bay. The waterfront area on the southern part of Singapore is being transformed into a world-class financial hub with an integrated live, work and play environment. But what Singaporeans and foreigners will see when they walk around Marina Bay is the result of carefully drawn up plans.

Another ongoing project is the Bras Basah-Bugis area, which is being revitalised into an international award-winning arts, culture, learning and entertainment district. The URA’s proactive conservation efforts have resulted in more than 6,800 buildings conserved.

The URA’s leadership - which certainly includes Mrs Cheong - sets the tone for URA staff to dare to dream and plan for Singapore’s future. The senior management constantly sets goals to break new ground, and encourages and coaches staff through regular work review sessions.

The URA cites its HR policy as one reason for its business excellence. The organisation has adopted an integrated HR management framework that is aligned with its strategic objectives.

A unique hands-on planning foundation course and regular functional training programmes are developed in-house to equip staff with up-to-date knowledge and multi-disciplinary skills to carry out their work effectively. The URA also has a 360 degree feedback system on individual officers’ demonstration of the URA’s values and leadership, which has contributed to officers’ self-development as well as the building of a strong organisational culture.

Another one of the organisation’s main thrusts is innovation. Said Mrs Cheong: ‘We have to compete globally, so we have to learn.’

Many new ideas are generated in formulating plans for Singapore, such as the bold idea of positioning both the new financial hub and the upcoming mega-garden project - Gardens by the Bay - at Marina Bay. A waterfront city in a garden will differentiate Singapore from other cities competing for investments.

The URA also creates value by opening up new businesses and living options in areas like the Jurong Lake District, Kallang Riverside and Paya Lebar Central.

And in facilitating the property sector, the URA introduced innovative approaches in its sale of sites. For example, an Option Scheme allows a large site to be purchased in phases to mitigate developers’ risk. To achieve quality development, the URA also introduced a ‘two envelope system’ where both price and concept are considered before the government decides to award a site.

The URA was also the first among regulatory agencies to implement a plan lodgement scheme where qualified persons declare full regulatory compliance for selected development applications. This enabled less complicated development proposals to receive immediate approval.

The URA has also developed innovative and strategic IT platforms to transform its business processes. These include the iPLAN (Integrated Planning and Land Use System) to increase productivity, and Realis (Real Estate Information System) which enables the public to access one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date real estate databases in the world.

The organisation also has a comprehensive process in place to understand the public’s needs, analyse their feedback and translate them into improvement plans. Public consultation has become the cornerstone of key planning processes benchmarked by others. A variety of channels are used, from regular dialogues with industry players to focus group consultations on more complicated issues to e-consultation on specific guidelines.

With all these policies in place, The URA is winning over more and more Singaporeans. Singapore residents’ satisfaction level in Singapore being a great city to live, work and play in has risen from 70 per cent in 2003 to 75 per cent in 2007, according to public perception surveys. The URA’s processes, plans and conservation efforts have also garnered international awards such as the Urban Land Institute’s Awards for Excellence at the global and Asia Pacific region levels.

‘Our mission is very simple - to make Singapore a great city to live, work and play in,’ said Mrs Cheong. The organisation has succeeded in this, she said.