If the statement surfaced by the Housing Board is to be believed, the construction of the Build-To-Order(BTO) flats will be accelerated after the previously-imposed circuit breaker measures are relaxed to restore the momentum of the projects.
Just like the other domains of the industry, all the on-site activities circumscribing the BTO projects have been halted since April 7th owing to the government’s attempts to curtail the spread of the novel coronavirus as much as possible. As per reports, the suspension will be valid till the 4th of May, until and unless the government issues any further notice regarding the same.
HDB revealed that they will be functioning closely with the contractors of the project to review the developments made so far and expedite works after the suspension is officially revoked. If there happens to be any alteration in the timeline of the projects, they will be duly informed to the residents to whomsoever it may concern through the HDB Portal.
BTO developments that were scheduled to have their construction done this year include Clementi Crest in Clementi, Alkaff Court View and Alkaff Oasis in Bidadri and Northshore Residences I and II in Punggol. Apart from these, upgrading works that were categorized as the Home Improvement Programme (HIP) have also been terminated since Tuesday.
However, the only exception to the rule was the flats that had toilet upgrading works left to ensure that the toilets were usable but, that too was concluded yesterday. According to global health reports, the coronavirus has reached its peak at this point in time and the coming weeks will be very crucial for the entire world alike. Social-distancing is the need of the hour and this is fairly the reason why all major projects that needed innumerable people to come together and work have been stopped as of now and will be resumed only after the COVID-19 curve starts flattening for the wellbeing of everybody.
HIP, which was introduced in 2007 concerns itself with the improvements that are recurring in the flats and the common maintenance problems that the aging flats are susceptible to. Unfortunately, before the circuit breaker measures were implemented, some of the manpower and supplies that were designated for the HIP projects were gravely affected by the movement restrictions exercised in Malaysia that were in place till 14th April.
The chief executive of the estate upgrading company and building maintenance, Mr. Anthony Koh, affirmed that the Malaysian policy had already delayed the conclusion of the HIP works in one of the projects that were assigned to him in Tampines by one or two months. The ball of this project started rolling from October last year and was anticipated to be completed by the third quarter of 2020.
Once the suspension is rescinded, HDB will get in touch with the households and start making arrangements to resume internal works. Additionally, the construction counters in Toa Payoh and its branches have deferred all its appointments, except for the active transfer cases and resale. Nevertheless, online services and call centers are still available to take up queries from the public.
If all goes well, in the following month, HDB will be releasing about 3,700 flats in Tengah, Choa Chu Kang, Tampines, Pasir Ris and somewhat around 160 assisted living flats for the senior citizens in Bukit Batok.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/construction-of-bto-flats-to-be-expedited-after-may-4
