Can young people revive Singapore’s old buildings?

Synopsis: The Usual Place host Natasha Ann Zachariah hunts for new perspectives on issues that matter to young people.

That was the question Natasha teased the audience with during the video podcast’s first live event. Held on Feb 12, the show was a part of ST Podcasts’ Live!, a series of six events this year to celebrate ST’s 180th-year anniversary.

Organised by The Straits Times in partnership with the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), the event drew more than 80 people in an intimate setting at The Foundry in Prinsep Link, which was the former Elections Department building.

The two guests on the show were SLA’s chief executive Colin Low and Mr Ng Wee Liang, a real estate university student, who creates social media content on Singapore heritage, arts and culture.

As Mr Low sees it, buildings are not just physical structures. Instead, they are opportunities waiting to be unlocked, reflecting our past, present, and future, he says.

But how do we get young people to care about old buildings they may not even know?

Mr Ng, 25, says that unfamiliar buildings can become meaningful once young people form new memories in them.

But he argued they should have accessible programming and business rather than catering only to a more affluent crowd, which might limit their appeal to younger Singaporeans.

For SLA, the challenge is to find the “right formula” for each space, rather than going with the bidder offering the highest rent.

Citing spots like The Foundry, Kada in Kadayanallur Street and Dempsey Hill, Mr Low says: “There's no one cookie-cutter (spot). The way we look at things…it's about multiple offerings, different locations (and) different experiences.”

Highlights (click/tap above):

1:27 How do we get younger people to care about heritage spaces?

8:38 How would Wee Liang encourage his peers to look beyond the facade

14:38 Remembering the history of these old spaces