CITIES IN THE SKY:

ELEVATING SINGAPORE'S
URBAN SPACES
TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION

II. METHODOLOGY

III. RESULT AND DISCUSSION

IV. CONCLUSION
 PRESENTERS

JOEY ENCOMIENDA BENJAMIN JOHN MARK CHRISTIAN

ITOK BAUTISTA

CHRISTINE JAIRAH LEZIEL JOY DELA JOSE BENIGNO

ASAG PENA SISON
 INTRODUCTION

4 PRESENTATION TITLE
 Metropolitan now hold 55% of the world's population, with that figure anticipated to climb to 68% by
2050. With increasing urbanization and population expansion, it is expected that metropolitan areas will add
another 2.5 billion people, with about 90% of these people living in Africa and Asia (Uni- ted Nations, 2018). To
meet this rising density tendency, our urban settings are extending not just horizontally, but also vertically,
resulting in the tall structures that characterize today's metropolitan skylines. Graham and Hewitt (2012)
highlight the "dramatic vertical growth of constructed space both above and below over the previous few
decades," with elevated and underground infrastructure (Hebbert, 2012) and creative concepts of multi-tiered
city escapes (MVRDV, 2007). This is especially noticeable in places with geographical constraints, such as
Singapore, an island nation.

Vertical density can help alleviate land shortage issues, but towering structures can also generate an island
effect, isolating residents from their communities. This, combined with shrinking public spaces and increased
vehicular traffic on the ground, has resulted in the proliferation of skybridges, sky courts, and sky-gardens as
pedestrianized public/quasi-public spaces and networks at height that seek to connect tall buildings with their
surrounding environments. Indeed, one of the first elevated pedestrian networks was built in Minneapolis,
Minnesota, by a developer rather than government planners to meet the needs of shoppers during the cold
winter months, demonstrating the role of elevated walkways as an effective tool for designing around an area's
climate.
 Hong Kong was one of the first cities in Asia to deploy an extensive network of elevated footbridges. In the 1970s, Hong Kong developed an
integrated elevated pedestrian network within commercial centers, as well as a new comprehensive underground and elevated pedestrian
network comprised of escalators and walkways, to address the city's densely packed population, in addition to its large roads and hilly terrain
(Tan and Xue, 2016). Another factor contributing to the growing popularity of elevated places is that the number of automobiles on city streets
has gradually increased, vying for space with walkers. The conflict between pedestrian and automotive traffic has emerged as a key problem in
urban and transportation development, and the installation of overhead pedestrian bridges, or sky-bridges, appears to indicate that cities are
attempting to restore the viability of walking in the city. Sky-bridges are frequently placed in areas with significant amounts of pedestrian
activity, but with systemic preference to preserving vehicle traffic flow: bridges eliminate the requirement for pedestrian-focused stoplights. As
cities strive for urban intensification, they are adopting the Lau and Coorey (2007) multiple and intensive land use (MILU) development model,
which is described as an extruded three-dimensional model that distributes density and land use and integrates with vertical layering of
transportation with mass rapid transit below ground level, vehicular traffic at ground level, and elevated walkways above ground.

Sky-bridges, though, not the only type of elevated space seen in cities. Sky-courts and sky-gardens are also utilized as destination areas,
both communal and public, for relaxing and social activities, similar to the parks and sidewalk benches that dot the ground level of most cities
and towns. Sky-courts and sky-gardens may ease overcrowding in public places such as parks and plazas, or replace ground level spaces lost to
construction, in the same way that sky-bridges are used to redistribute expanding pedestrian populations to minimize congestion. As a result,
networks linking urban buildings have expanded, and many developments' networks have merged into three-dimensional multi-level webs.
METHODOLOGY
 The findings in this study are based in part on research conducted in an elective
module at the National University of Singapore's Department of Architecture (NUS). The
module aimed to investigate the meanings and manifestations linked with new and
developing urban space typologies seen in large-scale, hybrid, and high-density
constructions. The programmed involved students in a closer examination of this new genre
of urban spaces as it possibly contributes to improvements in urban vibrancy, user
accessibility and connection, precinct programming, and the greater network of public
spaces inside cities.

The module aimed to engage students in supervised investigation and analysis of

elevated places inside MBS and Jurong Gateway that, because to their unique spatial, visual,
and functional qualities, serve as nuclei for people, programs, and facilities. Cho et al.
(2016)'s Integrated Urban Space Framework, with its sub-themes of "hardware" (essentially
design), "software" (basically programming), and “Orgware" (mainly management), served
as the major lens and analytical framework for the investigation of these situations.
This mapping was specifically used to understand:

 the architectural and spatial qualities of such spaces and the vertical access points
connecting them.

 the programs and amenities incorporated within the spaces.

 their management and operational aspects. This multi-pronged approach was adopted to
understand the design drivers, production, use, and management of such spaces in large-
scale, complex, and hybrid environments.

2 Case study

• Marina Bay Sands (MBS) Overview

• Jurong Gateway Overview

 As a development, MBS connects Singapore's Marina Bay area to its
Gardens by the Bay Park. In many ways the businesses cater to tourists
1. Marina Bay Sands (MBS) Overview and short-term visitors to Singapore more than they do to the locals —
which can be seen from the mix of retail options, advertising and more.
The Singapore government now sees Marina Bay as the "nation's civic
core" that projects Singapore "as a modern and globalized city-state"
(CLC, 2015). The basement level of the development features a mass
rapid transit (MRT) station and underground path- ways that offer direct
access to the mall, the hotel and the gardens by the bay. From an outdoor
perspective, the three primary components are the two-tiered waterfront
promenade, the sky-garden and the elevated walkway.

Additionally, sky-bridge – an elevated walkway runs from atop the

Shoppes (mall), into the hotel, above the lobby and restaurant area (Lion
Bridge), and on into the Gardens by the Bay Park (Garden Bay Bridge),
thus bridging across two high speed roads – the Bayfront Avenue and the
Sheares Avenue. The basement level of the MBS development features a
Marina Bay Sands Master and Floor Plans (Credit: Anna Kleinsasser).mass rapid transit (MRT) station and underground path- ways that offer
direct access to the Shoppes, the hotel and the Gardens by the Bay.
The two-tiered waterfront promenade, the sky-garden atop the Shoppes,
and the elevated walkway, which constituted the subject of this research,
are the development's three principal exterior components. Although the
hotel's sky-garden/observation deck is substantially vegetated and open
to the public, it primarily serves to hotel guests and paying visitors,
hence it was assessed to restrict access to most of its portions and was
thus excluded from the research.

Marina Bay Sands Section (Credit: Anna Kleinsasser).

2. Jurong Gateway Overview
Jurong Gateway is a mixed-use development that includes malls (Westgate with an office tower above, JEM, Big Box,
IMM, and JCube), an MRT station (Jurong East), a hospital (Jem, Ng Teng Fong Hospital), and the Devan Nair Institute.
It is located in Singapore's western sector and is intended to be the city-second state's Central Business District (CBD).
The J-Walk, a network of skybridges, links all of the aforementioned buildings and facilitates seam-free communication
between the MRT and this big scale, multi-building construction. This elevated pedestrian linkway has connected the
public on a level above ground, connecting the MRT station to the region's various mixed-use complexes. The J-Walk is
accessible through stairs, elevators, and escalators, making it accessible to all pedestrians.

Jurong Gateway Context Plan.

Jurong Gateway Plan (Credit: Anna Kleinsasser).
 Sky-courts and open-air atria dot the J-Walk and
connect this elevated network to other
multilevel spaces within the buildings of Jurong
Gateway. Outdoor elements of the wider
development include the rooftop Westgate
Wonderland, which is the largest rooftop mall
playground in Singapore, and JEM Play - a
Westgate atrium, J-Walk and connection to sky court, exterior access point to the J-Walk. honey- comb themed playground atop JEM. To
cover all of the J- Walk network, a pedestrian
would need to traverse through two of the three
malls and the hospital. At ground level, a
reserve site adjacent to the MRT station is also
used informally as a park and occasionally hosts
temporary markets while the spaces in between
the developments as well as the sidewalks at
ground level are landscaped and include
Outdoor elements of Jurong Gateway (Westgate Wonderland Rooftop Playground, Reserve Site -
vegetation.
Adjacent to Westgate Mall and Jurong East MRT, Vegetated landscape between buildings at ground
level)
 RESULTS
AND
DISCUSSION
The project highlighted specific considerations listed, such that
they enhance urban transitions, accessibility and vitality.
 
Considerations:
• Connectivity
• Climate sensitive design
• Inclusivity
• Provision of programs
• Management
Connectivity
“Connectivity refers to the degree to which the environment offers points of contact across a range of
scales and purposes”.To achieve this objective the project solution was to create a sky walks or paths and
nodes. The elevation of urban paths and nodes can enhance mobility and connectivity and result in
improved pedestrian walkability and safety, also it is to promote social interaction among the users. The
multilevel elevated skywalks and underground paths not only connect two buildings separated by a wide,
high-speed road, but they also connect the diverse functions: hotel, expo, casino, retail, theatre, MRT
station and public waterfront. Of note, sky-bridges are physical connectors in developments suffering from
island effect due to the large roads that surround such developments and so to connect larger grain
developments across a mesh of high-speed roads.
Another factors of the challenges of multilevel networks is the limited visual connectivity or lack of visual
cues. Visitors have to go through several floors of shopping malls before they finally reach the promenade
area. Sky-bridges and paths are oftentimes unnamed and unmemorable, and become illegible multilevel
connections. With this problem such obscurity and illegibility leads to poor way finding and disorientation
despite extensive signages, affecting the visitor experience in these networks. The project solution into
this was to ensure legibility through the use of distinct nodes could potentially improve connectivity,
legibility and way finding in such large scale and complex environments.
Climate sensitive design
As the practice now stands, climate frequently only factors into the design process to
ornament space with subtle references to the outdoor and to indoor trees or flowers. Through
careful planning and design the project objectives is to fully design a comfortable interactions with
the actual climate whereby thermal comfort can be achieved even during the hottest parts of the
day.Since the Marina Bay Sands (MBS)has many outdoor spaces including the rooftop space
above the Shoppes and sky-bridges are the get affected by heat since these promenade area
suffer from the insufficient provision of trees and structures that provide effective shading. While
On a hot summer afternoon, the MBS promenade is largely exposed to the sun, meaning that the
indoor climate-controlled atmosphere of the shopping mall is more popular and the elevated
spaces are uninhabited.
Some of the solution they implement is the J-Walk’s covered walkways which is designed
appropriately for the climate. Not only these very useful in high heat and rain storms alike, visitors
actively seek them out as an alternative to other outdoor, unsheltered pathways. And To ensure
user comfort in outdoor areas, both projects do adopt certain measures to protect from sun and
rain, and orientate public spaces to harness winds for passive cooling. The solution into these
problems is expanding more rigorous environmental approach, through passive design and
greening of such spaces would improve shade, shelter, micro climatic conditions and thermal
comfort that would encourage sustained use and support urban vitality.
Inclusivity
A common misconception is that urban spaces/POPS connecting development sites cannot be truly public
because they are managed by private individuals. In reality, all spaces are subject to some degree of
administrative control, whether by government agencies or private companies, and therefore the level of
disclosure varies across our urban areas. The designer's challenge is to create ways to reach a position that
welcomes the public and encourages use. This Marina development serves commercial and social activities in
the heart of Singapore's CBD, and Jurong Gateway contains many shopping centers that want to encourage
the public to spend time and money in their premises. This Marina Bay Sands is an exclusive mixed-use
development consisting of a hotel, mall, theater, convention center and casino, and by its very nature faces
the challenge of ensuring inclusiveness. Thanks to the elements and spaces of the structure, those who do
not. wanting to shop while feeling unwanted or uninvited. Architect Moshe Safdie proposed a solution and
envisioned the atrium and shopping promenades and halls of the hotel as essentially public and designed
spaces that encouraged unrestricted movement for all visitors, whether customers or curious spectators. They
plan public walkways through the hotel space with a sky bridge that runs through the public lobby, connecting
the mall to Gardens by the Bay via two main roads, but essentially separating the spectators from the hotel
guests, diners and partygoers. They also create restricted spaces that are only for hotel users to at least
maintain their privacy. However, despite the architect's efforts to create an inclusive and accessible
environment at MBS, and although it was partially very successful, the high-level, iconic and nationally
important features of this project make prioritization of economic values ​inevitable. This in turn manifests as
an exclusive environment that feels somewhat restrictive, affordable and uninviting.
 

Provision of programs and street activation

The proliferation of elevated and underground passages can reduce the vibrancy of urban areas by
drawing people away from the street level, as stated by Ciu et al. (2015). However, the results of the two case
studies show that in fact these networks can potentially make urban environments more livable by combining
different elements of hybrid construction and overcoming the island effect caused by major highways that
usually limit such developments. However, providing appropriate planning strategies and programs is key to
enhancing vitality. Access to tower blocks and sky bridges and their meeting with the street are unclear and
somewhat illegible in both developments. Especially where skybridges/elevated spaces meet the street,
vertical connections should become meaningful, memorable, visible and distinct nodes that are legible, visible
and promote public activity and interaction through meaningful services and programs. Activities and events
are key elements of urban space, because they increase the use of urban space between different users
(Salingaros, 1999) and there is a strong relationship between the intensity of activity and the quality of urban
space (Gehl, 2010).
 
 For example, the Westgate Roof Garden has a 12,000 square meter playground, and the Big Box and
Devan Nair Institute sky courts often host children's gymnastics classes. In MBS, the roof terrace on top of
the Shoppes is often used by visitors to view the nightly light show on the bay. However, such programs,
amenities, and seating areas are located away from the main pedestrian traffic routes, unlike on the ground
level, where pedestrians are often walking alongside areas of community activity. Incorporation of
programs and amenities within or along sky-bridges, therefore, would be more appropriate to support
inhabitation and vibrancy. This would allow the sky-bridges to not merely being utilitarian conduits/
passages within our vertical environments and cities but truly act as streets in the sky.
 
Management
The management structures of elevated networks and sky gardens affect their accessibility and
usability. In other words, the public vs. private and singular vs. multi-party coordination will inevitably
improve the user experience of developments such as MBS and Jurong Gateway. When hybrid
developments are categorized under different administrations, access can be limited to varying degrees or
blocked in certain parts of the network, compromising the user experience and causing them confusion and
inconvenience when they have to find alternative routes in complex conditions. It is essentially about
coordination between the various parties that can benefit from network integration. Excessive control is also
a problem, because it usually manifests itself in the overregulation of visitors' behavior with a series of
restrictions and regulations that prohibit certain activities (eg food consumption) and prevent users from
adopting those spaces. For example, Jurong Gateway's rooftop areas restrict eating and drinking,
preventing the public from using these spaces for meetings and lunch breaks. In contrast, ground-level
spaces around Westgate near the MRT and pop-up markets are heavily used. The meadow, which is
mostly uncovered and thus exposed to rain and sun, is even used a lot, probably because these spaces are
seen as neutral public infrastructure rather than shopping centers given their behavioral pressures and
limits.
CONCLUSION
 The purpose of this study was to use two cases in Singapore to examine how multilevel urban spaces can be
used successfully in large-scale hybrid developments and to identify successful applications to fully utilize their
potential. This study demonstrates how efficient and diverse multi-level networks give people options and
opportunities to extend vibrant street life into the vertical dimension, separate vehicular traffic from pedestrian
traffic for improved walkability and safety, connect dispersed elements of large-scale and hybrid developments,
and breathe life and publicness into the privatized city fabric. In general, lessons about the design, management,
and use of Marina Bay Sands and Jurong Gateway can be drawn about the function of elevated spaces and
networks in enhancing urban vitality, accessibility, and horizontal to vertical transitions.
inclusivity.
For sky-bridges, sky-courts, and sky-gardens to contribute to high quality multi-level networks, the following
strategies are recommended through the findings of this research to guide the design and planning principles for
their creation and redevelopment.

 Improve user comfort and vitality through appropriate environmental design strategies to
encourage people to dwell.
 Plug in developments to larger systemic planning infrastructure and integrate multi-level
networks into larger spatial and functional networks of a city.
 Improve inclusivity and accessibility across the different entities of a large-scale hybrid
development.
 Provision of programs across the section and along the streets is important.
 Implement Effective Management Strategies and Partnerships.
THANK YOU!

GROUP-5

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