Got news of this upcoming BTO in Sept 2012 right in front of our balcony.
I would not say that this news surprises me as I was aware that the plot of land is slated for future high rise development.
It is really the timing and the subsequent play-acting by various parties that leaves me speechless.
Back in 2008 where a lot of young couples were hunting for flats, there were not much options at all... Punggol... Sengkang... Yishun... Woodlands... Bukit Panjang...
We were very sure that we wanted a unit either in the north or northwest to be near to our parents.
Furthermore, we were not really keen on resale flats with high COVs and extensive renovation might be required.
Hence, we tried for the BTOs at Yishun and Woodlands but always ended up with crappy queue numbers even though we were first timers and applied under Married Child Priority Scheme.
Thereafter, a series of DBSS were launched which comes with huge price tags.
We decided to take the plunge and balloted for Park Central with the hope and belief that this seems to be the best option for us especially since HDB did not seemed to be launching much flats in areas other than Punggol and Sengkang.
We finally got our keys last September and spent almost a year thereafter dealing with sub standard furnishings. Till now, there are still some areas that can be considered as defects but we are sort of resigned to fate and would rather try to settle these ourselves.
Had to take a lot of leave and effort to deal with the defect rectification (the block supervisor can only view the defects on 1 day and rectify defects on other dates)...
Act as project manager to "chase" developer on defect rectification...
Act as QC engineer as the cheapo developer uses their own workers to rectify these defects who are not really educated on the proper way to solve these issues...
One classic example is the shower screen with leakage issues along the joints. The workers just silicon everywhere without really identifying the issue and yet the leakage continues. It is only after the contractor comes down that the issue was really resolved. The leakage joint had to be cemented instead of being silicon-ed. In addition, the contractor also pointed out that the workers did not re-install the shower screen in the proper manner, resulted in the rollers grinding against the bottom track.
Even though HDB is supposed to administer the estate upon handing over by the developer, they took a really laid back approach.
When we approached HDB for assistance in "chasing" the developer for defects rectification (which were not rectified after months of submission of the defect list), we only received system automated response.
And HDB's vision is "An outstanding organisation with people committed to
fulfilling aspirations for homes and communities all are proud of."...
Really outstanding services... and we as homeowners are really proud of it...
When we are finally done with the defects just last week, ready to settle down to enjoy the quiet breezy environment, the news of the upcoming BTO hits us.
And we even thought of asking my parent-in-laws to shift over with us especially since my FIL has just suffered a serious stroke early this year.
We had been selling them the idea that the unit is disabled friendly with the ramped entrance to the living room/common toilet and the rooftop garden is really accessible with quite a number of exercise corners.
With the noise/dust/strangers that will be milling about, I guess this plan is pretty much aborted.
I guess we are just plain suay to have bought this unit.
Ever since HDB started to launch more and more BTOs in areas other than Punggol/Sengkang, I did start to regret my decision.
If HDBs had these plans in their pipeline all along, why were majority of units launched back in 2008 concentrated in Punggol/Sengkang? To build up the residential rate there?
Won't it have been more effective and efficient to have ensure a more even mix of BTOs at various locations around the island during each launch keeping in mind the current aging population?
How do we really take care of our parents when they are half the island away with the current crowded and unreliable transport system that we have?
Due to misrepresentations by the media, there have been articles/comments depicting residents of Park Central as fishmongers (selfish) who are opposing the upcoming BTO.
My take is that the media have chosen to misinterpret our actions due to the sources of the news (perhaps the Mp Ang Hin Kee himself? HDB?).
Who are we to deprive some other Singaporeans of their future home?
We are not interested in the political game.
Rather, we are waiting to see if the MP is really acting in the best interest of the residents and not just residents of Park Central.
Why does these surrounding residents have to ensure another round of construction?
The noise/dust/inconvenience/traffic...
Why was not these 2 projects constructed at around the same time like the Clementi DBSS and BTO?
Is the government really listening to the residents (as what was "promised" after the last election)?
I doubt so.
Moving on, since this BTO is definitely going to proceed on, what will be done to minimise the impact on residents?
Is there going to be a well constructed/sheltered (unlike our "airy" MSCP)/well-lit (unlike our dimly lighted corridors)/well maintained path to the MRT station?
How about the current road conditions with only 1 lane per direction for most roads surrounding the site? And also the heavy vehicles coming in and out of the site and the jam outside Jingshan Primary School during certain periods of the day? Even for now, when bus service 265 stops at certain bus stops, long queues of car are piling up.
As for security wise, what are the steps taken to ensure safety of residents keeping in mind the recent car thefts in our carpark/ thefts in the wet market downstairs/strangers loitering at the staircases/incidents of strangers trying to force open metal gates/Town Council rejected residents' request for a security system?
It will be interesting to see what are the next steps taken by the various stakeholders.
