Gardens by the Bay reaches first milestone

Gardens by the Bay reaches first milestone
By Joanne Chan | Posted: 15 February 2011 2245 hrs

SINGAPORE: Singapore's latest national project, Gardens by the Bay, overcame funding difficulties to reach its first milestone on Tuesday with the capping of one of its two giant conservatories, the Flower Dome.

The project faced rising construction costs when work started in 2007, leading overall cost to increase by more than 10 percent to over S$1 billion.

But with more public and private funding and the use of cost-efficient technology, the project was able to take off, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.

"We managed to do some value engineering, bring the cost down slightly and then ask for more funds. And I think the Finance Ministry was very understanding and managed to give us the funds. And we're also of course going for corporate sponsorships," he said.

For example, the Kingfisher Lake - one of two main lakes in Gardens by the Bay - was sponsored a million dollars by Japanese company Kikkoman last year.

Securing the final glass panel of the Flower Dome conservatory on Tuesday, Mr Mah described the "Capping-Up" ceremony as a milestone in a "long journey".

He said that the Flower Dome, along with the second conservatory the Cloud Forest, are not just "architectural icons" but an "amalgamation of architectural, environmental engineering and horticultural excellence."

The Flower Dome will feature Mediterranean-type plants, while the Cloud Forest, which is under construction, will mirror tropical high elevation regions like those in South America and Mount Kinabalu in Sabah.

The two conservatories were designed with environmental sustainability in mind, applying cutting-edge technologies that provide energy-efficient solutions in cooling.

The facade of the 1.2-hectare Flower Dome is made up of 3,300 special glass panels, which let in the sunlight while keeping the heat out. This allows the conservatory to mimic the cool-dry climate of the Mediterranean.

To ensure energy efficiency, only areas occupied by plants and visitors will be cooled.

The conservatory is divided into smaller gardens featuring plants such as poppy flowers from California and Cat's Paw plants from Australia. One of the gardens - the Flower Field - will have changing displays including tulips and lavender.

The conservatory will also have an event space which can be rented out for weddings and other functions. There will also be two restaurants within the conservatory - one serving Mediterranean cuisine and the other, Chinese.

The Flower Dome is part of Bay South - the first of three gardens in Gardens by the Bay.

Construction for Bay South is expected to be completed by November, and opened to the public in June next year.

Explaining the time difference, Mr Mah said the plants need time to grow.

NParks says previews of Bay South will be arranged for organised groups from February next year.

It adds that the preview period will help the Gardens ease into its operations and allow the public to provide feedback.

The public will also get a sneak peek of the Flower Dome in November this year, during the World Orchid Conference.

- CNA/ir

- wong chee tat :)