Resort Plans that Never Materialised

Plans to develop Pulau Ubin as a resort were revealed in 1993. It was reported that the government will acquire about one quarter of the island to “further develop it into a fun-in-the-sun island” (BT 1993).  The Ministry of National Development (MND) released a statement that 254 ha of private land will be used by Outward Bound Singapore (OBS) for further expansion, the National Police Cadet Corp’s camping facilities and the creation of an “adventure park” which will be managed by the Parks and Recreation Department (PRD) (ST 1993).   

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The plans to transform Pulau Ubin into an “adventure island” appear to have been first raised when the 1985 Master Plan was released, labelling the island for “Sports and Recreation”.  

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At that time the government-appointed advisory council was requested to “look into the possibility of developing the 1,000 ha island into a sports and recreation centre” (BT 1993), raising questions about the consideration for the existing residents as they have not been taken into account in official plans relating to both land reclamation for future public housing and those for the development of recreation areas. While the residents of Pulau Ubin welcomed the new resorts being built as they will bring the islanders more business, some were fearful that further development will mean resettlement for them (ST 1999).  In the 1993 talks of private land acquisition to build an “adventure park”, the area to be procured included the site of Kampung Surau and Kampung Melayu. 

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To date, the adventure park has not been built.