JUDGES’ CITATION

Singapore has long established itself as a Garden City. However, the Garden City image cannot be sustained without conscious and constant effort to upkeep good intentions on landscape design.

While the SILA’s Professional Design Award, which focus on the landscaping per se, the Skyrise Greenery Award examines the creative modification of the building envelop to bring greenery and landscaping in sync with the architectural aspects, especially in an urban site. To have a full integration of architecture and greenery, it is important for architects to engage a landscape consciousness from the very beginning of the projects.

Although the focus of this award is on the skyrise condition (i.e. looking at how successful and innovative the methods of each scheme are), the judges noted that the ground greenery certainly merits consideration to provide a more encompassing assessment of how landscaping contributes to building.

A set of 6 criteria is used to evaluate the projects
1) Provision of landscape opportunities at the building block(s), such as balconies, planter boxes, roof gardens, communal sky gardens, vertical greenery etc, with emphasis on skyrise greenery.
2) Landscape considerations that enhance Singapore’s cityscape and environment quality.
3) Creative landscape ideas and originality in design with emphasis on softscape.
4) Choice of plant materials
5) Sustainability
6) Quality of maintenance

WINNING ENTRIES

ORCHARD CENTRAL – Completed Projects First Prize

Located at the heart of Orchard Road, Orchard Central is Singapore's first 'vertical mall' at 12 storeys above ground. As Orchard Road's first new mall in four years Orchard Central brings a breath of fresh air with urban green verandahs and express escalators allowing shoppers to step off the street into the mall's unique cluster concept.

With its setting befitting Singapore as a Garden City, the extensive greenery of OC includes the 140m Discovery Walk on the first storey and the lusciously landscaped sky gardens on the 11th and 12th storeys.

The judges were impressed with the lush tropical rainforest setting, co-existing with the modern-day shopping experience. An extensive green wall up to 13 metres high, stretching from the 11th to 12th storey generates a funky yet cultural environment for the public to enjoy and creates a 'green blanket' that is highly visible from Orchard Road.

The biological pond on the 12th storey creates the atmosphere of a water garden as an unforgettable experience whilst dining in the sky gardens' restaurants.

Project Info:
Architect: DP Architects Pte Ltd
Client: Orchard Central Pte Ltd
Landscape Architect: Dlqdesign Pte Ltd
Landscape Contract Manager: Nature Landscapes Pte Ltd

CENTRAL HORIZON – Completed Projects Second Prize

Central Horizon is a high-rise, high-density public housing redevelopment project. Lush greenery amidst high-density development. Located at Toa Payoh Central where the famed longest curved residential block in Singapore used to stand, Central Horizon infuses a new lease of life into this distinctive estate through better quality housing and a more attractive surrounding.

For the first time in public housing a multi-tier landscape approach provides greenery on the ground, roof and sky levels to optimise the land use, soften the impact of the housing and provide visual interest to the living environment. Most importantly, the skyrise gardens are accessible to all, fostering a sense of community for the residents.

Project Info:
Architect: Surbana International Consultants Pte Ltd
Client: Housing & Development Board
Landscape Architects: Surbana International Consultants Pte Ltd
Landscape Contract Manager: Greenscape Pte Ltd

SOLARIS – Unbuild Projects First Prize

Solaris is comprised of two tower blocks separated by a grand naturally ventilated central atrium. Office floors are linked by a series of sky bridges spanning the atrium.

Solaris will become a vibrant focal point for the one-north community through the introduction of open interactive spaces, creative use of skylights and courtyards for natural light and ventilation. and a continuous spiral landscaped ramp as an extension of one-north Park across the street. The overall vegetated area in the building is over 110% of the site area.

Solaris boasts many ecological design features. It's perimeter landscape ramp forms a linear park 1.5 km long ecological infrastructure of escalating roof gardens and sky terraces that connect the ground level and the basement.

Project Info:
Architect: CPG Consultants Pte Ltd
Associate Architect: T.R. Hamzah & Yeang Sdn. Bhd.
Client: SB (Solaire) Investment Pte Ltd
Landscape Architect: Tropical Environment Pte Ltd