[Singapore Islands] History of Singapore's Coney Island

Welcome to Coney Island

1930s

The island was bought over by the Haw Par brothers - Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par, who built a beach villa on the island.  (22) "The 600 sq m building is the only known villa remaining from the Aw family. It has a central hall and an open verandah that surrounds the house. A separate single-storey 100 sq m house was a service block. Its architect was likely to be Ho Kwong Yew, a leading architect of the Modern Movement in Singapore during the 1930s."(23)

1937
A tender was published in the newspaper seeking for companies to bid for the erection of a bangalow on Haw Par Island (Pulo Serangoon). (29) 

1947
The villa fell into disrepair during the Japanese Occupation and a auction notice was placed in the newspaper for the sale of the island and its building. (22) (25) (30)

1950
Previously named Haw Par Island, Indian businessman Ghulam Mahmood bought over the island from Mr Aw Boon Haw and called it "Singapore's Coney Island". He had planned to spend $100,000 to turn it into a resort. The resort would include a dance hall, bar and restaurant. (24) (25)

1951

Advertisement in the newspaper (27)

The owner did try to get the resort off the ground. There was a launch every 1/2 hour and arriving on the island, visitors would be entertained by singers and also, the Coney Island Band. (26) (27)


1955
"Pleasure isle for sale" - headlined a 1955 The Straits Times article. It was said that the owner, Mr Tarlok Singh, had intended to sell this 32-acre island (12.8 hectares) located off Punggol. At that point of sale, there was "a building with a dance floor and several seaside cabins." The island also had its own electric power plant. (1) By then, the island was already deserted. (28) Though Singaporeans would head to the island for picnics, the idea of having a Coney Island similar to what was in New York failed to take off.


1971
In 1971, it was said that a Thai owner of Coney island was looking to sell off the freehold island for S$1 million. By then, the island was already a hot spot for swimming and water-skiing. Visitors could visit the island by taking a 30-minute boat ride via the Punggol Jetty. The article had also mentioned that there were remains of old army barracks. Hmm, so who built those army barracks? (2)

In the same year, there were talks about damming the sea to build a mega reservoir so as to meet Singapore's growing water needs. (3) The damming of the sea did not happen, but a more palatable damming of the river - Sungei Serangoon was completed in 2011 - 40 years after the idea of such a reservoir was first discussed. (4) Sungei Serangoon has an entire history on its own which I plan to cover in another post.

1972
Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) then purchased the island in 1972 and laid out its plan of wanting to develop the island into a recreational resort. The statutory board had also hoped to expand the island through a S$14.5 million reclamation work that started in March 1974. (5) With this reclamation, the plan was to increase the size of the island to 154 acres (54 hectares). (6) (7) It is said that the island would be linked by a bridge to the mainland. (8)

1976
Alas, it was not all about white sandy beaches. In 1976, the island had faced with issues such as pollution from the pig farms in Punggol that had afflicted the island till the late 80s. (9) (10) Oil-slick waters was also a perennial issue. (9) 

1982
In 1982, the complaint was about a pack of mongrels that were left on the island by owners to fend for themselves. (11)

1987
In 1987, PSA released the rights of the island to Singapore Housing Development Board. The plan was to reclaim the Punggol foreshore and with that, the island will be joined to the mainland. (12)

1994
In 1994, boatman Lu Song Fa opined that Coney Island has remained pretty much the same as it was decades ago. He was the only boatman operating the service to Coney Island. At one time, there were as many as 14 boats that took visitors to the island. These were beach goers and anglers. (14) The water off the island was also good for water-skiing.

1995
More concrete plans for the island came about in 1995 when the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) talked about land reclamation of the island. The plan was similar to the previous suggestion of land reclamation. However, there would be a river that separates Punggol and Coney Island. There were further plans of building either private or public housing on both banks. (13)

2008
Work on the island started in earnest in 2008. The decision was to build a coastal promenade and also a rustic park. (15)

2012
The final decision, lauded as a victory for nature lovers, was made by NParks to turn into Singapore's ninth nature park. (16) Nature lovers have been calling for the island to be preserved in its natural state as migratory birds such as the blue-throated bee-eater and jerdon's baza would usually make this little island their temporary home. (18) However, this is only the immediate plans as suggested by NParks. In the future, it is said that there will also be other developments, other than it just being a nature park. This will include a housing estate on the island itself. (17) (19)

2015
The 50ha island was officially opened by Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure, Mr Khaw Boon Wan on October 10, 2015. There are five beaches and two bridges that are linked to the eastern and western ends of Punggol Promenade and Pasir Ris Coast Industrial Park 6. The park is opened from 7am to 7pm. (20)

The park cost S$3million and took a total of 15 months to complete. There's a 2km stretch of shoreline and 2.4km path that stretches from the eastern to western bridge. Interestingly, there is no electricity or piped water on the island. So in comes solar power and harvested rain water. (22)


References:

1. Pleasure isle for sale. September 8, 1955. The Straits Times. P5.
2. It's yours if you have a million to spare. August 31, 1971. New Nation. P1.
3. Water. August 31, 1971. New Nation. P1.
4. PUB. Local Catchment Water. Accessed on November 11, 2015.  http://www.pub.gov.sg/water/Pages/LocalCatchment.aspx
5. Reclamation of foreshore. March 9, 1974. The Straits Times. P22.
6. Pulau Coney di-beli oleh pehak PSA. November 21, 1972. Berita Harian. P10.
7. Big Coney Isle Plan. January 4, 1974. New Nation. P3.
8. Beach of the future. September 11, 1974. New Nation. P3.
9. PSA plan for resort islands hit by pollution. December 25, 1976. The Straits Times. P6.
10. De Silva, G. July 29, 1989. Keep Pulau Seletar as it is - a 'hideaway' island. The Straits Times.
11. Unwanted dogs left to starve on the island. November 10, 1982. The Straits Times. P12.
12. Coney Island to be swallowed up. April 16, 1987. The Straits Times. P13.
13. Low, M. November 8, 1995. URA to sell Changi land for resort use, reclaim 110ha off Punggol. The Straits Times.
14. Tan, W. June 23, 1998. A last look at Coney Island. The Straits Times.
15. Development plan takes shape in Punggol. May 17, 2008. Channel News Asia.
16.Toh, K. February 19, 2012. Coney island set to become nature park. The Straits Times.
17. Nature park amid various projects. February 26, 2012. The Straits Times. 
18. Rustic nature park for Coney Island. November 20, 2012. The Straits Times.
19. Wild greenery makes S'pore a global eco-city. May 1, 2013. The Straits Times.
20. Coney Island Park, Singapore's new nature destination, now open. October 10, 2015. The Straits Times.
21. New nature park opens on Coney Island. October 10, 2015. Channel News Asia.
22. Coney Island Park opens to the public. October 11, 2015. The Straits Times.   
23. Coney Island: A walk on the wild side. October 17, 2015. The Straits Times.
24. 'Coney Island' ready by the end of this year. August 11, 1950. The Singapore Free Press. P5.
25. Coney Island for S'pore. April 4, 1950. The Straits Times. P7.
26. Advertisement. April 26, 1951. The Singapore Free Press. P11.
27. Advertisement. March 21, 1951. The Singapore Free Press. P7.
28. She saved marooned monkey. February 20, 1955. The Straits Times. P5.
29. Advertisement. February 1, 1937. The Straits Times. P2.
30. Advertisements. July 9, 1947. The Straits Times. P2.

[Singapore Parks] Punggol Point: Watching the Sunrise

A Refurbished Punggol Point

Sunrise at 7:08am

Sunrise at 7:11am

Punngol Point Jetty

Interesting rock formation found along the beach

Puggol Beach taken from the look-out

The Look-Out Point

Fish Ponds Along the Promenade

Playground for the Kids

[Sports] International Running Events in Singapore

Runners at the starting line

In Singapore, there are running events literally every month of the year. The recently-completed Osim Sundown Marathon 2015 saw the participation of about 26,000 runners who hailed from land both near and far.

With government's two prong approach - a push towards healthy living and revenue from sports tourism - much effort has been put into putting these races together. From running through the breath-taking Marina Barrage, to long stretches of the East Coast Parkway, most parts of the run were pretty pleasant. Certain roads were also closed to accommodate these events.

Breath-taking night view of the Singapore Indoor Stadium

Singapore's First International Marathon

The first Marathon ever held on Singapore's soil took place on December 5, 1982. (1)  It was a major undertaking as many roads were required to be closed. Starting from Connaught Drive, the race then meandered around Singapore. Passing through the various suburbs of Geylang Road, Paya Lebar, Ang Mo Kio, Thomson Road, Orchard Road and finally to the National Stadium. (2)

This arrangement would have caused a lot of disruption to the lives of Singapore and thus, would be the catalyst for the government to come up with a better way of doing marathons as the years go by. Now, all running events are held in and around the Central Business District area, Marina Bay and East Coast Park to minimise the level of disruption caused be road closures.

Also, the event was pretty much exclusive to those who have a higher level of fitness as there was only one race - the Full Marathon - 42.195km.


Marathon in Current Day Singapore

Races nowadays are more inclusive as instead of a single Full Marathon event, there are also shorter races such as the Half Marathon, 10km, 5KM fun run, and even children's event. (3) These running events can draw in more than 20,000 runners. (4)



References:

1. History of the Marathon in Singapore. November 17, 2014.  http://www.justrunlah.com/blog/2014/11/17/history-of-the-marathon-in-singapore/ Accessed on July 5, 2015.

2. The Straits Times. December 4, 1982. Advertisements Column 1. P3.

3. Channel News Asia. July 5, 2015. Sundown Marathon sees 26,000 participants. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/sport/sundown-marathon-sees-26/1961690.html Accessed on July 5, 2015.

4. Lim, J. July 5, 2015. Athletics: Participants laud new race category at Sundown Marathon. http://www.straitstimes.com/sport/athletics-participants-laud-new-race-category-at-sundown-marathon Accessed on July 5, 2015.

East Coast Park: Amber Beacon (Part 2 of 2)

A lovely stretch of cycling path along East Coast Beach

Continuing from Bedok Jetty, I cycled towards Fort Road. From as distance, I saw this yellow tower. I remember swimming at the beach close to the yellow tower and had never asked about its purpose nor its actual name.

Amber Beacon Tower

Well, there is indeed a name for this tower - Amber Beacon. It was given the name Amber as it lies pretty close to Amber Road. 

"The name and the roads were named after the Amber Trust Fund established by Serena Elias to enable poor Jewish youth to further their education...the name Amber Road was originally given in 1921." P.17 (1)

As I looked through past newspapers, what appeared was a murder of a 21-year old lady in 1990. (2)

More than 20 years has past and this unsolved mystery was brought to the fore once again. The male victim was interviewed by The Straits Times in 2015 and he's still haunted by that turn of event. The murderers have yet to be caught. (3)

I've also found Marine and Port Authorities of Singapore (MPA) listing Amber Beacon as the "East Control" reporting station for ships to report their arrival if they are coming from the eastern shore. (2)

How do I get there

To visit the Amber Beacon, you will need to head towards East Coast Car Park C1.

Updated on July 19, 2015.

References

1. Savage, V. R. & Yeoh, B. 2013. Singapore Street Names: A study of Toponomics. Marshall Cavendish Editions: Singapore. 

2. Marine and Port Authorities of Singapore. March 11, 2009. Amendment to reporting procedures for vessels manoeuvring in port. http://www.mpa.gov.sg/sites/circulars_and_notices/pdfs/port_marine_circulars/pc09-04.pdf  

3. Hoe, P. S. July 19, 2015. Haunted by unsolved murder of girlfriend 25 years ago. The Straits Times. Accessed on July 19, 2015. http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/haunted-by-unsolved-murder-of-girlfriend-25-years-ago

East Coast Park: Bedok Jetty (Part 1 of 2)

East Coast Park - A place where families spend their time relaxing at the beach; where lovebirds walked hand-in-hand enjoying the nice evening breeze; where cyclists and joggers come to take in the fresh morning air. The trail that I took started off at the Bedok Jetty.

Info-graphics extracted from NewspaperSG (1)

Prior to 1964, this entire piece of land was all but sea water. Known as the East Coast Reclamation, a total of 1,525 ha of land (The size of more than 2,100 soccer fields) was reclaimed from the sea. (2)

Bedok Jetty was "used exclusively by the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF)" prior to it being open to the public. Though it is now used by anglers and cyclists, its "status as a MINDEF base remained unchanged".

Vietnam War

During the height of the Vietnam war in 1975, the area around Bedok Jetty was converted to a temporary medical centre for refugees. (3) The vessels that brought these Vietnamese refugees to Singapore were anchored off Bedok and the refugees were required to stay on board their vessels. (4)

Singapore Commandos were deployed to ensure food were properly rationed amongst the refugees during their interim stay in Singapore's waters. This was a temporary arrangement as once the refugees were attended to medically, and their boats were repaired, these refugees would then make their way to other countries and American-run islands that had agreed to accept them. Guam was one such island. (5)

Other than refugees, East Coast was also a conduit for badly damaged American trucks, jeeps and other vehicles. My history teacher, Mr John shared this on my Facebook:-

Most of the damaged vehicles were heavy trucks, jeeps and similar vehicles, Didn't see heavy armor,probably because of their sensitive nature.


Military Exercises

Jetty as seen in 1986 (6)

Even till today, MINDEF is still using the jetty for their military exercises. Still, they co-existed with anglers who have found that they jetty was indeed a nice spot to do their fishing. (7) (8) (9) (10) During my military days, I remembered that I landed on Bedok beach close to the jetty via a landing craft. It was my one and only time and I remembered that it was not an exercise. Beyond that, the reasons why I was there has become rather hazy through the passing of time.
 

Beyond its military purpose, the Bedok Jetty has been honoured as one of Singapore's favourite icons. (11) Generations have thronged this jetty. It was a place that I grew up visiting; fishing with friends though I am hardly a fan of fishing.

With it being the longest jetty in Singapore, the Bedok Jetty sees many curious on-lookers who will stroll down the jetty while looking at the catch of the different anglers. It's amazing to see the wide array of fishes caught by these anglers.

In the end, it's really the ambience of the place, the serenity, and the view from the jetty that  makes Bedok Jetty that tad bit special.

How do I get there

To visit the Bedok Jetty, you will need to head towards East Coast Car Park F1.

 

References

1. De Silva, G. May 4, 1987. 10% more land here between 1960 and 1992. The Straits Times. P18.
2. The great land reclamation in East Coast. November 21, 1983. The Straits Times. P7.

3. Byramji, M. May 8, 1975. 37 rescued as vessels sink. The Straits Times. P5.

4. Cheang, C. May 7, 1975. Another 10 refugee ships sail in. The Straits Times. P22.

5. Daniel, J. Chew, M.L. May 11, 1975. Refugees: Saigon request to Singapore. The Straits Times. P1.

6. How long will this jetty hold up? April 5, 1986. The Straits Times. P18.

7. Fish and Cheap - and Fun. March 14, 1983. The Straits Times. P40. 

8. SAF Exercises. August 7, 1994. The Straits Times. P24.

9. SAF Exercises. February 14, 1999. The Straits Times. P21. 

10. Military exercises from next Monday: MINDEF. July 11, 2014. Channel News Asia.

11. Singh, B. April 6, 2014. Saving Icons of Singapore. The Straits Times.

A Place To Rest Your Mind

Pasir Ris Beach