The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is the national urban planning authority of Singapore, and a statutory board under the Ministry of National Development of the Government of Singapore.

Mission

The authority was established on 1 April 1974, and is of critical importance to the city-state. Singapore is an extremely dense country where land usage is required to be efficient and maximized. The city state is trying to reduce land wastage in the face of land shortage in the area.

Responsibilities

Land use planning

URA's main responsibility is land-use planning. URA planners devise both long-term strategic plans, along with medium-term plans, which are reviewed every five to ten years. These plans designate the land use and urban density for the entirety of Singapore. These designations are divided by URA into 55 planning areas.

Building conservation

Building conservation in Singapore is the responsibility of URA, which issued a Conservation Master Plan in 1989. This plan laid down guidelines and processes for the conservation of culturally and historically significant buildings. More than 7,000 buildings in Singapore have been gazetted as conserved buildings.

Land sales

URA also sells land by tender on behalf of the Singapore government to meet demand from private developers.

The URA maintains a regular and ever updated public urban planning exhibition on the first three floors of their headquarters. Highlights include three scale models of the island of Singapore, the central region, and the central area. Special exhibits and models on current projects and developments island-wide are regularly displayed as well.

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File:Central model.jpg|Model in the lobby of the URA building.

File:SingaporeModel.jpg|Scale model of the island found in the Singapore City Gallery.

File:URA_Gallery_Marina_Bay.jpg|The Singapore City Gallery Exhibit - URA is responsible for the urban planning of Singapore.

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See also

  • Development Guide Plan
  • Urban planning in Singapore
  • Planning Areas of Singapore

References

  • History of the Urban Redevelopment Authority