SINGAPORE: Mr Shinichi Takiguchi has visited Singapore several times, and from the windows of his hotel room, all he can see is the sea. He believes that will change in future.
“We have to examine every single option that's available. We need to pick up every stone and seize those opportunities.”Besides the sea, the options include building in the air, such as above roads, canals and existing structures, as the show Land Unlimited discovers. They have also erected an experimental structure, half floating on water, which they have kept a close watch on, to apply what they learn to building the Float.
In fact, the company’s research found that it is possible to have 180,000 such homes in London, a city where 66,000 new homes are needed annually to meet demand after years of underinvestment. “We have new technologies to enhance the structural integrity of these buildings, which not only will build new units which are safe to live in, but also enhance the integrity of the existing buildings,” says Mr Bhatti.
Any such decision, however, must be weighed against other priorities such as leaving low-rise heritage areas as they are. “Whether we build above existing structures, it’s a matter of policy and, of course, societal acceptance,” he adds.Mr Michael Shaw, who develops rooftop homes in London, spotted another kind of opportunity during his trips to Singapore, where his son Cameron worked for a few years. He wants to build apartments above drainage canals.
Transport infrastructure is another that takes up lots of space. But architects are finding ways to respond to that challenge facing many cities. This idea of building over major roads has been carried out in Singapore with the S$16 million Eco-Link@BKE, opened in 2013 to restore the ecological connection between the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.In future, such bridge-like structures might be a way to inject new spaces into business districts, serving as areas on which low-rise offices or community facilities could stand.
In the coming years, road infrastructure will evolve because of autonomous vehicles “going mainstream”.