Toa Payoh Integrated Development

The 12-hectare site is an existing heritage and sports park that has been reimagined and designed by Populous, in collaboration with MKPL Architects, for Sport Singapore (SportSG) as an integrated development. 

The project comprises of a regional sports centre, stadium, town park, library and polyclinic.  With ample community spaces, the development will give residents health, wellness and learning experiences, while preserving the area’s rich heritage and greenery in a connective landscape. 

The original site hosted the Southeast Asia Peninsular Games in 1973, the Southeast Asian Games in 1983, 1993 and 2015, as well as the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in 2010. 

The new integrated development is part of SportSG’s plans to bring more quality sporting infrastructure closer to the community and encourage citizens to be more physically active while enjoying convenient access to health and wellness facilities and programmes. 

The new regional sport centre will include a 10,000-seat football stadium with increased seating capacity, multi-sport courts, sheltered competition and training pools, outdoor leisure pools, a community gym, with fitness studios, sheltered tennis courts, sheltered futsal courts and a jogging trail. 

The new stadium aims to be an inclusive facility that is integrated into the overall development and will be capable of hosting international events with its FIFA compliant pitch and comprehensive player and officials’ facilities. 

The project is expected to be completed by 2030 under the Sport Facilities Master Plan, under the Vision 2030 National Sport Blueprint.  

One of the key design challenges was to ensure that the façade was able to address the frontage of the very long sports building to allow it fit coherently within the neighbourhood and the adjacent highway, while still allowing proper ventilation and views for the respective sports programmes housed within them.  

For the Stadium, specially designed modular louvers placed at specific angles will allow daylight and natural ventilation to cool the stand and concourses, while keeping wind driven rain, traffic noise and dust out, creating a comfortable experience for those using the facilities.  

The wayfinding strategy for the development is key to the successful integration and connectivity of the sport and community facilities for the many different demographics of people who will use them, from young children to the elderly and elite athletes.  

Using colours to differentiate the various programmes, and having an integrated coherent signage design allows people to find their way around the co-located facilities efficiently and easily.