URBAN CONSERVATION AND
REGENERATION OF
URBAN TRANSFORMATION
1
Regional Function: From Diverse to Homogeneous
Before 1980s
Present
Kreta Ayer was a diverse and vibrant place for local activities before the 1980s. However, this area have became increasingly homogeneous and tourism-oriented in the past few decades. Most of the shophouses there are currently used for catering and souvenir sales.
2
Street Layout: From Organic to Organised
Before 1980s
Now
Nowadays, Kreta Ayer, particularly pagoda street and the surrounding neighbourhoods are seen as a touristy land, reflecting the experience of a shopping centre. It is due to the current condition where formal kiosks were positioned in front of the shophouses, separating the main lane from the historical shophouses and gradually dismantling the organicity and diversity of the lane, Jeopardizing the Genius Loci of the area.
3
Public Space: From Connected to Segregated
Before 1980s
Now
Once the main street was filled with hawkers, the sound of yelling and neighbourly chatter filled the neighbourhood, creating a connected and growing community. Nowadays, the main streets are occupied with extensively regular cubicles, separating not only the two five-footways but also the stakeholders from each other.
The back lanes were vibrant public spaces catering to dynamic activities, providing a place for birdsong and conversation at leisure. Nowadays, the back alleys are filled with logistics and storage, congesting the passageways and making dark floors and walls a common sight, and the smell of grease and rubbish keeps people away.
4
Building Facade: From Informal to Formal
Before 1980s
Present
In 1970s when the neighbourhood slowly turned into a more massive commercial street, many signages started to inhabit the facade as observed through the facade of the shophouses and ground-level activities. Domestic fragments of the residents started to reflect on the façade, such as drying sticks, racks and plant pots protruding out from the houses, projecting the character of each resident and eventually contributing to the liveliness and the character of the neighbourhood.
It was not until the 1980s when the HDB initiated the change of name of Kreta Ayer for the sake of tourism that this character or spirit of space started to fall off. The once informal neighbourhood was regulated and gentrified. This act of regulation detached the activities of each level of the shophouses and de-ornamented the buildings. A neighbourhood that was once lively and cultural had been transformed into a uniform, formal and artificial theme park for tourists.