For efforts in providing greenery and ecologically friendly landscapes, 12 new and existing developments were recognised under National Parks Board’s (NParks) Landscape Excellence Assessment Framework (LEAF) on 13 August.
New private developments bagging the award include Adana @ Thomson, Eco Sanctuary, Sky Habitat, Highline Residence, and The Glades at Tanah Merah.
Keppel Land developed two of the winning projects in the list. Tan Swee Yiow, President (Singapore), Keppel Land, said, “We are honoured to have been conferred the LEAF award by NParks for The Glades at Tanah Merah and Highline Residences. Greening a development provides both tangible and intangible value to a property as it not only improves energy efficiency, but also enhances the well- being of our residents with better air quality, clean water as well as a healthy environment. ”
The Glades at Tanah Merah is expected to be completed in 2017 while Highline Residence (pictured) will be launched soon.
Meanwhile, existing condominiums Tree House and Vacanza @ East also join the LEAF list this year.
Developed by Hoi Hup Sunway Property, Vacanza @ East’s greenery provision includes a multi-storey carpark roof garden, rain gardens and biological pond, as well as a careful selection of plant material in which 44 percent of the plant species are native plants.
Wong Swee Chun, Director of Hoi Hup Sunway Property, said, “Gearing towards a sustainable building, other than the construction materials, we also take pride in promoting a clean and green environment for the residents. We try our best to make it right during the construction stage so the environmental issues could be addressed and improved, and its benefits everyone.”
Additionally, Tree House by City Developments Limited (CDL) and Adana @ Thomson by Fortune Properties are also named Outstanding Projects. This is a new category for developments that showcase innovations in design and implementation of greenery, and demonstrate high-quality landscapes and biodiversity enhancement above par.
Holding the Guinness World Record for the largest vertical garden, Tree House’s unique features include a herb garden, chestnut treehouses and a discovery pond which is treated with a bio-filter instead of chlorine. Allen Ang, Senior Vice President, Projects, and Head of Green Building at CDL, said: “Greenery plays a very important part in CDL’s sustainable developments. Besides enhancing a development’s aesthetic appeal, greenery creates a better environment by reducing heat, improving air quality, and filtering carbon dioxide.”
Designed as three blocks of interlinked five-storey apartments, Adana @ Thomson’s gardenscape covers the entire rooftop of the development, interweaved with walkways, a jogging track and BBQ areas. Richard Tan, Managing Director, Fortune Properties, said, “Built upon a foundation of Singapore’s natural landscape, we aim to integrate modern lifestyle aspirations with environmental needs to create a greener future for generations to come.”
Existing and upcoming HDB estates getting the LEAF honours this year include Clementi Cascadia, Casa Clementi and Punggol Breeze.
Launched on 19 August 2013, LEAF is the first and only certification scheme in Singapore dedicated to recognise developments for greenery excellence in Singapore. Last year, nine developments were certified LEAF.
Muneerah Bee, Senior Journalist at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories email muneerah@propertyguru.com.sg
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