The Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme, or SERS for short, is an urban

redevelopment Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses. It represents a process of land development uses to revitalize the physical, economic and social fabric of urban space. Description Variations on redevelopment include: ...

strategy employed by the

Housing and Development Board The Housing & Development Board (HDB) (; ms, Lembaga Perumahan dan Pembangunan; ta, வீடமைப்பு வளர்ச்சிக் கழகம்) or often referred to as the Housing Board, is a statutory board under the M ...

in Singapore in maintaining and upgrading public housing flats in older estates in the city-state. Launched in August 1995, it involves a small selection of specific flats in older estates which undergo

demolition Demolition (also known as razing, cartage, and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down of buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a bu ...

and redevelopment to optimise land use, as opposed to upgrading of existing flats via the Main Upgrading and

Interim Upgrading Programme An interim is a period of temporary pause or change in a sequence of events, or a temporary state, and is often applied to transitional political entities. Interim may also refer to: Temporary organizational arrangements (general concept) *Provis ...

s. To date
82 SERS sites
have been announced, of which 77 were completed. The implementation of SERS also depends on the availability of replacement sites and the Government's financial resources. It will be replaced by ''Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme'' (VERS) in 20 years time. Only 4% of HDB flats have been identified for SERS since it was launched in 1995. All residents displaced by the redevelopment works are offered a new 99-year lease in new flats constructed nearby. These residents have the privilege to select their units prior to public release of the remaining units, are compensated financially, and are given subsidised prices for their new flats. The scheme also gives residents the opportunity to continue living near their kin and neighbours, thereby retaining kinship bonds and strengthening community ties. The Selective En bloc Redevelopment Scheme has attracted opposition and controversy. The national government has power, under the

Land Acquisitions Act Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of the planet Earth that is not submerged by the ocean or other bodies of water. It makes up 29% of Earth's surface and includes the continents and various islan ...

of 1966, to carry out the Selective En Bloc scheme. This power invokes the principle of

eminent domain Eminent domain (United States, Philippines), land acquisition (India, Malaysia, Singapore), compulsory purchase/acquisition (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom), resumption (Hong Kong, Uganda), resumption/compulsory acquisition (Austr ...

as with most urban redevelopment projects. In April 2020, to deal with the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

in foreign worker dormitories, it was announced that HDB blocks Bukit Merah which had been purchased as part of the SERS would be used to temporarily house those foreign workers who were well and worked in critical services.

References and notes

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme Public housing in Singapore Real estate in Singapore Singapore government policies