Source : Straits Times - 4 Feb 2009
THE economic downturn may pull the plug on grand building projects, but it presents an incredible opportunity to improve the urban landscape, says Mr William Lim.
The drying up of collective sales would mean a slower pace of change to the urban landscapes that people have grown familiar with and built communities around. This would be an improvement to the situation two years ago, when escalating land prices enticed many property owners to sell their homes to be torn down for redevelopment.
It ‘destroyed perfectly good buildings’ and perpetuated the idea that ‘everything is disposable’ in the city.
The downturn also gives Asian cities the opportunity to build up their urban infrastructure, which is central to proper urban planning. These could run the gamut from public transport to sewer lines essential to the functioning of the city.
‘The recession is a very good time, especially if a country has money, to improve infrastructure. Just building a lot of expensive buildings doesn’t work,’ he says.
What also helps is that around the world, people stung by excesses of consumerism and the free market are looking for a more sustainable way of life. More people, says Mr Lim, are starting to take to the idea of having bicycle lanes in cities.
‘Even if the economy recovers, the world will not be the same again.’
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