Kampung Admiralty Bags World Architecture Festival's Top Prize
Singapore architect WOHA's mixed-use, public housing block for the elderly wins World Building of the Year Award 2018
At the World Architecture Festival held in Amsterdam this year, Kampung Admiralty won the World Building of the Year Award 2018. Paul Finch, Programme Director of the World Architecture Festival, said in a statement: “The jury felt this was a project with potential lessons for cities and countries around the world: the way in which it dealt with the universal condition of longevity and health treatments, social housing provision, and commercial space. This hybrid building also incorporates a huge amount of greenery (more than 100 per cent of its footprint) in a series of layered levels which have generated welcome biodiversity, and does something necessary in an intelligent fashion from the way it connects to transport to its natural ventilation strategy, all benefitting from a decision to layer a series of buildings rather than separating them into separate tall blocks.”
The jury comprised internationally prominent architects Li Xiadong (Founder and Professor – School of Architecture, Li Xiadong & Atelier Tsinghua); Nathalie de Vries (Director and Co-founder – MVRDV); Frederick Cooper Llosa (Founder and Senior Partner – COOPER, GRANA, NICOLINI, Arquitectos) and Lesley Lokko (Head of Graduate School of Architecture – University of Johannesburg).
The jury comprised internationally prominent architects Li Xiadong (Founder and Professor – School of Architecture, Li Xiadong & Atelier Tsinghua); Nathalie de Vries (Director and Co-founder – MVRDV); Frederick Cooper Llosa (Founder and Senior Partner – COOPER, GRANA, NICOLINI, Arquitectos) and Lesley Lokko (Head of Graduate School of Architecture – University of Johannesburg).
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
The one-bedroom apartments enjoy lush green views created by the ‘club sandwich’ layered design of Kampung Admiralty. The layers comprise a Community Plaza, a Medical Centre, a Community Park and even a rooftop Community Farm. The different layers are managed by various government agencies: Ministry of Health (MOH), Yishun Health Campus (YHC), National Environment Agency (NEA), National Parks Board (NParks), Land Transport Authority (LTA), and Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA), in collaboration with HDB.
The one-bedroom apartments enjoy lush green views created by the ‘club sandwich’ layered design of Kampung Admiralty. The layers comprise a Community Plaza, a Medical Centre, a Community Park and even a rooftop Community Farm. The different layers are managed by various government agencies: Ministry of Health (MOH), Yishun Health Campus (YHC), National Environment Agency (NEA), National Parks Board (NParks), Land Transport Authority (LTA), and Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA), in collaboration with HDB.
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
WOHA shares more details about what makes this senior residential ‘village’ so special:
About the apartments
There are two types of one-bedroom apartments: 36 square metres and 45 square metres.
Singapore nationals over the age of 55 may apply [to purchase]. for example seniors who are living in larger HDB apartments and want to downsize. The housing is affordable, it’s part of the public housing scheme of the Singapore government.
WOHA shares more details about what makes this senior residential ‘village’ so special:
About the apartments
There are two types of one-bedroom apartments: 36 square metres and 45 square metres.
Singapore nationals over the age of 55 may apply [to purchase]. for example seniors who are living in larger HDB apartments and want to downsize. The housing is affordable, it’s part of the public housing scheme of the Singapore government.
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
Elderly-friendly apartments
All apartments are fitted out with senior-friendly, accessible features, and some features have been included to create spaces to build community and new friendships. Some examples:
Elderly-friendly apartments
All apartments are fitted out with senior-friendly, accessible features, and some features have been included to create spaces to build community and new friendships. Some examples:
- Induction Hob – The induction hob was offered for the units in Kampung Admiralty as a safer and cleaner option for seniors. Unlike conventional gas or electric stoves, induction hobs do not involve open flames for cooking, thus eliminating the risk of fire or gas leakage. The cooking zone also cools down faster and is easier to clean.
- Resilient (vinyl) strip flooring – With its slip- and moisture-resistant quality, resilient (vinyl) strip flooring is safe, durable and easy to clean.
- Retractable clothes drying rack – These laundry racks are installed in the kitchen but can be swung out through the window to allow clothes to be dried outdoors.
- Accessibility – no steps, level floors, doors wide enough for wheelchair access, kitchen worktop can be pulled out to be used while sitting in a wheelchair, grab bars in bathrooms and common corridors, gentle slopes (wheelchair ramps) in public areas
- Emergency call chords in each room (alert alarm system)
- “Buddy-benches” at the entrances so neighbours can sit down, have a chat and get to know each other
- Lift access to all floors
- Lift lobby has benches to sit while waiting
- The urban farm features plants that were typical in the “kampungs” before Singapore became increasingly urbanised. This helps seniors feel more at home and the farming is a social activity during which new connections can be made and friendships can be formed.
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
The community spaces
NParks initiated a club called “Community in Bloom” that organises the gardening and farming activities. It is open to anyone in the neighbourhood, not just residents.
The community spaces
NParks initiated a club called “Community in Bloom” that organises the gardening and farming activities. It is open to anyone in the neighbourhood, not just residents.
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
The People’s Plaza is a fully public, porous and pedestrianised ground plane, designed as a community living room.
The People’s Plaza is a fully public, porous and pedestrianised ground plane, designed as a community living room.
Photography © Darren Soh courtesy of WOHA
The Hawker Centre looking over the People’s Plaza forms a lively public space for the neighbourhood.
The Hawker Centre looking over the People’s Plaza forms a lively public space for the neighbourhood.
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
Sustainable design
The project has extensive planting and landscaping which reduces the thermal load of the building (the plants absorb the heat, so you don’t need to use as much energy for air conditioning), and the public spaces are cross-ventilated naturally. Rainwater is collected and used for irrigation and there is also a water recycling system in place for the landscaped areas.
Sustainable design
The project has extensive planting and landscaping which reduces the thermal load of the building (the plants absorb the heat, so you don’t need to use as much energy for air conditioning), and the public spaces are cross-ventilated naturally. Rainwater is collected and used for irrigation and there is also a water recycling system in place for the landscaped areas.
Photography © Patrick Bingham-Hall courtesy of WOHA
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Kampung Admiralty (’kampung’ is the Malay word for ‘village’), located in a Housing Development Board (HDB) estate next to Admiralty MRT station, is described by the housing agency as “the first-of-its-kind development, integrating housing for the elderly with a wide range of social, healthcare, communal, commercial and retail facilities”.
Designed by Singapore architecture firm WOHA, the 11-storey block has 104 apartments intended for senior citizens, with a view to ageing actively and independently. To this end, the award-winning firm led by Wong Mun Summ and Richard Hassell incorporated elderly-friendly features in each apartment, and crafted a sustainable building that fosters community.