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R.I.P. on 20th June 2026 Blk 994A Buangkok Link

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Shaw Tower, Beach Road

This condo in the news for the wrong reason again Source & Credit:

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The former Malay Film Productions (MFP) studio was located at 8 Jalan Ampas, Singapore. It was right next door to the recent Viridian. BALESTIER HERITAGE TRAIL FORMER MALAY FILM PRODUCTIONS STUDIO Filming taking place at the Malay Film Productions studio, undated Courtesy of Asian Film Archive A still from the opening of a Malay Films Production film, undated Courtesy of Shaw Organisation Pte Ltd The former Malay Film Productions (MFP) studio was established in 1940 by Shaw Organisation, which was founded by brothers Runme Shaw and Run Run Shaw. Malay films were shot and edited at the studio grounds which housed large-scale sets replicating locations such as kampongs. Between 1941 and 1967, a period known as the Golden Age of Malay Cinema, the studio produced more than 150 movies. After a temporary closure during the Japanese Occupation, the studio reopened and released its first post-war film, Singapura Di-Waktu Malam (“Singapore at Night”) in 1947. Shaw’s films were shot by notable directors such as B S Rajhans, Jamil Sulong and Ramon Estella. The studio’s biggest star was P. Ramlee, a Penang-born actor, singer, director and composer who starred in over 60 films and directed more than 30 movies. In the late 1960s, the MFP declined as the local film industry faced competition for audiences from television and foreign films, as well as increasing costs arising from labour disputes. Many talents, including P Ramlee, also relocated to Kuala Lumpur after the Federation of Malaysia was established in 1963. Shaw Organisation followed suit in 1966 and the MFP studio was eventually closed in 1967. The Malay Film Productions studio, undated Courtesy of Shaw Organisation Pte Ltd +++ A quiet corner of Balestier where a whole cinema era was built Balestier is often described through the everyday roads lined with shophouses, old neighbourhood rhythms, the kind of place you pass through on the way to somewhere else. But the “Former Malay Film Productions Studio” marker on the Balestier Heritage Trail reframes the area instantly. It points to a surprising truth: this was once one of the most important engines of popular culture in the region, a place where stories were manufactured at scale and then carried far beyond Singapore’s shores. What makes the location compelling isn’t just that films were made here. It’s the sheer ambition described on the sign. The Malay Film Productions (MFP) studio, established in 1940 by Shaw Organisation (founded by brothers Runme Shaw and Run Run Shaw), wasn’t a small, improvised operation. It was a studio complex with space for shooting and editing—and, crucially, with large-scale sets built to mimic real places, including kampongs. In other words, Balestier wasn’t only a backdrop to history; it was a workshop where entire worlds were constructed, lit, recorded, and stitched together into the moving images that shaped a generation’s imagination. The dates on the marker read like a capsule history of an industry. Between 1941 and 1967, during what it calls the Golden Age of Malay Cinema, the studio produced more than 150 movies. That number is startling: it suggests a creative pipeline, a steady churn of talent, craft, and audience demand. One can almost picture the pace—scripts circulating, actors rehearsing, sets being repainted and re-dressed, crews shifting from one production to the next. A neighbourhood studio, yes, but also a cultural factory. Then the sign gives a second layer: the disruptions that shaped this place. A temporary closure during the Japanese Occupation, a post-war reopening, and a symbolic return with Singapura Di-Waktu Malam (“Singapore at Night”) in 1947. Even the title feels like a statement—an urge to reclaim modern life, city life, after rupture. The marker also names key directors (B S Rajhans, Jamil Sulong, Ramon Estella), grounding the site in real creative lineages rather than vague nostalgia. And of course, there is the name that can stop even a casual reader: P. Ramlee. The sign describes him as the studio’s biggest star an actor, singer, director, and composer from Penang who acted in over 60 films and directed more than 30. That level of output hints at why the studio matters today: this wasn’t only entertainment. It was a formation ground for icons, genres, music, dialogue, and shared references that helped define Malay-language popular culture across the region. What finally makes the location feel poignant is how clearly the marker explains decline—not as a single event, but as a convergence. By the late 1960s, television and foreign films competed for attention, costs rose amid labour disputes, and talent drifted to Kuala Lumpur after the Federation of Malaysia was established in 1963. Shaw Organisation moved in 1966, and the studio closed in 1967. It’s a familiar story in creative industries: technology changes the audience, economics squeezes production, and the centre of gravity shifts elsewhere. Standing with this knowledge, Balestier feels different. The trail marker turns an ordinary streetscape into a prompt: if whole kampongs could be built here for the camera, what other “invisible architectures” once existed—sound stages, rehearsal rooms, editing bays, prop stores now dissolved into the city’s later layers? The power of the site is that it invites you to imagine the noise and motion that once filled it, and to see heritage not only in preserved buildings but in the memory of work—the collaborative craft that made stories travel. If you visit as part of the Balestier Heritage Trail, treat this stop less like a trivia plaque and more like a doorway. Read the names. Note the dates. Then look around and try to picture it: lights blazing, dialogue being reset for another take, a painted “village” standing a few steps from an urban road. Balestier, for a time, was not just a neighbourhood. It was a studio for dreams and a launchpad for an era.

The Viridian Stack Formation

The Viridian Floor Plan

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Mixed Development? The term “Mixed Development” sounds innocent enough until you realize that every mall roof has cooling towers. That’s fine when the towers are operating properly. But when they’re not, they can become a source of noise pollution. +++ Noise from cooling towers on mixed-use building roofs My main concern is the location of the cooling fan towers on the rooftop of the neighboring integrated commercial and residential development. I am also concerned about the close proximity to the bus interchange and hawker centre. +++ Mixed developments always have air-con cooling towers somewhere on the roof or in this case close to the common area(s) of the residential facilities. 1. Before you sign the lease, ask your agent if the mall’s cooling towers are near your unit. 2. If your unit is next to a cooling tower, you might hear noise from the cooling fans. The noise depends on how many fans there are. 3. As the building gets older, the cooling tower fans often get louder. 4. The air coming from cooling towers is not very fresh. 5. Cooling towers usually run during the hours that tenants need them. 6. If you have tenants like fast food chains, some cooling towers might run 24 hours. Otherwise, they may start working around 11 am and shut down about 10:30 pm. This is just an estimate. If you’re unsure, ask the mall’s managing agent for the exact hours. 6. I have recorded the sounds from the roof of a commercial building on the same land as HDB Tampines Greenweave. 7. Please note that these pictures and movies with sound are from HDB Tampines Greenweave: ***************** 8. Please turn up the volume and click here to listen to the rooftop equipment noise sample: IMG_2024.MOV15.42 MB · 18 downloads IMG_2024.MOV +++ Noise pollution from Sengkang Grand Mall loud exhaust fans Source & Credit Sengkang grand mall creating loud exhaust fan noise at 3am to 6am this morning. They still clam they are eco friendly and incorporates naturally ventilated common areas. But they creating more noise pollution in early morning for all the residents nearby. Many already log complain with NEA but still happening. How to make them stop?

Lesson from: Lumina Grand Key Collection Surprise in 2026 Dream Apartment Turns Sour: Buyer Discovers Huge Ventilation Shaft Outside Unit After Getting Keys @ Lumina Grand Ground Floor Units may be affected by ventilation shafts that vent air from the basement carpark Worse, blocks the views of some units Buyer’s Post-Handover Discovery Raises Questions: Ventilation Shaft Looms Outside Ground-Floor Unit Dream Apartment Turns Sour: Buyer Discovers Huge Ventilation Shaft Outside Unit After Getting Keys @ Lumina Grand From New Home to New Headache: Ground-Floor Unit Overlooks Large Block of Ventilation Shaft, Buyer Claims +++ Many years ago, I remember a friendly sales brochure for Fourth Avenue Residences that clearly showed the exact locations of their ventilation shafts, knowing full well this could affect the views from ground-floor units. So if you know where to look, it won’t come as a shock when Key Collection time arrives for your home. Case Study 1: I was curious to know what was the initial VS on the site plan! 1. Recently, I was preparing a House Hunting (Can or Cannot Buy Review) for a client. 2. I realise that the unique initial VS. Which I understand is the Ventilation Shaft for the basement carpark. 2.1. For ventilation of basement carpark to avoid the danger of too much deadly carbon dioxide. 3. From observations of the Fourth Avenue Residences site plan, seems like these VS are around the perimeter of the development. 3.1. And not directly below a PES unit. 3.2. This was because in the past, had a client who previously collected their new home key. 3.3. To be disappointed whenever the windows of a bedroom was opened. This development had a basement carpark ventilation fan turned on at specific timing. The fan was making quite a din.

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