For a place to have real appeal it must have the balance right between a mature estate where people know it just works, and exciting new developments, attractions and improvements that keep the place fresh and instil a buzz in long term residents and future visitors alike.
Alexandra is home to many old favourites, but it has not rested on its laurels when it comes to building on that success, as demonstrated by the building and announcing of many local projects that will add an extra sheen to the area.
More Retail and Dining Options than ever
The biggest addition is Alexandra Central Mall, which has recently opened its doors and is rapidly filling up with a wide range of F&B and retail outlets. The stylishly imposing glass fronted building rises 19 floors above the junction of Alexandra Road and Jalan Bukit Merah, next to IKEA, which has been a landmark in the area for over two decades.
Alexandra Central
Its 85 shops cater for all needs, big and small from fashion to electronics, from beauty to convenience. There are also numerous educational and enrichment centres, and of course a large number of – very competitively priced – cafes and restaurants. Sharing the site with the mall is the 4-star Park Hotel, boasting 450 rooms over its 13 storeys.
More Reasons to be Outdoors
The Greenway – the jogging and cycling path along the route of the old railway line, is currently closed, but will be opened once again in stages over the next two years.
The Greenway cycling path
From the fourth quarter 2018, the track north of Jalan Kilang Barat will be fully open all the way up through to Woodlands, with the final section down to the old Tanjong Pagar Railway Station being completed a year later.
The Greenway
The area is already blessed with abundant parks and green spaces, but more are planned including one at Ganges Avenue which will link to the park connector running alongside the Alexandra Canal. Just over the water, a waterfront park will be developed on Keppel Island, forming an extension to the nature and coastal walk along Labrador Nature Reserve.
Transport
The forthcoming MRT station at Havelock on the new Thomson Line as well and the interchange at Outram Park will not only provide another access point for local residents, but it will also ease congestion on the existing lines and stations in the area. Road users will benefit from both the Sentosa Gateway Tunnel and the widening of the Keppel Viaduct.
Better Health Facilities
The major refurbishment of the just reopened Alexandra Hospital means that the area once again has world class medical facilities within very easy reach. Due to a combination of the recent closure forcing patients to use other healthcare facilities nearby and very little fanfare surrounding the reopening, the hospital is one of the quietest in Singapore.
Alexandra Hospital
That is good news for residents however. Most A & E departments on the island see around 300 patients a day. The figure for Alexandra is 30. This means the waiting time to see a doctor is halved. It is a similar story at the brand new 24 hour acute care clinic, where it deals with less than half of the 100 patients a day it is set up to provide care for.
Going Forward by Recognising the Past
To show that progress can take different forms, the redevelopment of Alexandra Hospital also involved the conservation of its historic buildings. The old hospital was the largest and best equipped not just in Singapore but in the whole region when it was completed in 1938 by the British, and was a perfect example of how modern architecture, imported from the UK, was adopted and adapted to suit the tropical climates.
Vivid despite cloudy skies
Its high ceilings, large windows and overhanging eaves not only provided natural ventilation and shade, but made the building a prominent and popular landmark in the area, overlooking Alexandra Road from behind its spacious and verdant grounds. This was something the URA were determined to keep, and Block 1 (the main administration block) along with its neighbouring Blocks 2 and 6 have been fully conserved, while the period charm and character of the building has been kept throughout.
