Plans to build a Buddhist temple with columbarium facilities in Sengkang has sparked calls for refunds from several would-be residents of Fernvale Lea, according to media reports.
The group made this request to Dr Lam Pin Min, MP for Sengkang West, during a closed-door dialogue on Sunday, which saw 400 people attending the session.
According to Dr Lam, those residents “felt uncomfortable that such a (columbarium) service would be provided there and have requested that HDB look at their request for a refund”.
In a joint statement, the HDB and URA said they are looking into the request.
Some of those who attended the dialogue said plans for the columbarium were not made clear to them. In fact, many were surprised when the news was reported last week.
However, Dr Lam explained that it was included in Fernvale Lea’s brochure for new flats.
“There is really nothing to hide,” he said, adding that it is not uncommon for places of worship to offer columbarium services.
Notably, there will be 3,258 residential units within the vicinity of the temple, including the executive condominium Lush Acres as well as Build-To-Order (BTO) projects Fernvale Rivergrove and Fernvale Lea.
Some people are concerned that the columbarium may affect the resale value of their flats. Among them was 33-year old project manager Vicky Naidu who said that rejecting the flat is a tough decision to make.
“We have already waited for so many years to get a house, so if I reject this, I have got to wait another few years…It is not an easy decision to make overnight.”
Image: Artist’s impression of the Fernvale Lea BTO project. (Photo by HDB)
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Singapore Editor of PropertyGuru Group, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
