A Venue With A View

The plan was first conceived in 1977 to build the Singapore Indoor Stadium on its current site beside the Kallang River as part of the government’s ambitious urban re-generation project. Under the guidance of then Prime Minister Lee Kwan Yew, Singapore embarked on a range of initiatives to revitalise the urban landscape and enhance natural resources.

Kallang River History

The history of the Kallang River itself is woven into the fabric that created one of Southeast Asia’s most successful trading nations. In pre-colonial times, the original inhabitants of Singapore, the aboriginal biduanda orang kallang, lived in the swamps at the mouth of the Kallang River, and fished from their boats, seldomly venturing out into the open sea. At the time when Sir Stamford Raffles landed in Singapore in 1819 half of the population of 1,000 were orang kallang.

Development of National Stadium

In 1973 the National Stadium was completed on part of the 35 hectare site at Kallang dedicated by the government for sports activities. This provided Singaporeans with the first venue capable of hosting events for up to 55,000 people. The National Stadium provided a home for the annual National Day Celebrations and major sporting events for more than 30 years.

Construction of Singapore Indoor Stadium

With the National Stadium well established, construction commenced in 1986 on a new indoor arena with the aim of creating a vibrant entertainment and sports venue capable of hosting major events for up to 13,000 spectators. Award winning Japanese architect Kenzo Tange was called upon to develop designs for what was to become the last major public sector project attributable to him before his death in 2004.

Stadium Waterfront Development

In 1998, the Stadium Waterfront project was launched to develop an area for ‘al fresco’ dining and entertainment along the Western façade of the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Future Developments

Work on the project to turn the Kallang River Basin into a freshwater reservoir will be completed in 2007. Desalination of the waterbody is expected to take some 50 years to complete. The local community is expected to benefit from this project by means of the generation of a vibrant environment for sailing, watersports and associated leisure pursuits.

The 35 hectare site at Kallang will be re-developed as part of a Private Partnership Project between the Singapore Sports Council and a private sector consortium to create a new Sports Hub for Singapore. The Sports Hub will comprise a new 55,000 seat National Stadium, a 3,000 seat Aquatic Centre, 3,000 seat Multi-Purpose Sports Facility and the existing Singapore Indoor Stadium. Construction of the Sports Hub will commence in 2007 and is due for completion in 2011.