A New Chapter for Toa Payoh: Building a home for sports, wellness, and community life

Speech by Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth & Second Minister for Law, at the Toa Payoh Integrated Development (TPID) Groundbreaking Ceremony on 5 January 2025

Introduction

1. Let me start by wishing all of you a very happy, healthy and blessed New Year! All the best to all of you in 2025! A very good morning to all of you and welcome to the Toa Payoh Integrated Development (TPID) groundbreaking ceremony. 
2. Last year, we spoke a lot about enhancing our sporting ecosystem in Singapore.
1. We talked about the Kallang Alive Masterplan and the Disability Sports Masterplan. And both speak more than just to sports. They talk about lifestyle, healthy living and inclusion.
2. Both plans are very important ones that signal a big shift in sport for Singapore, and it sets out the Government’s position on how important sports is for Singapore.
3. These efforts aim  to grow accessibility for sport participation, and to grow the base of participation. We need more Singaporeans to take up sports recreationally, as well as competitively, and overall, strengthen our sporting culture.
4. This year, we will be continuing this effort, and we are starting with a very important part of that equation – the space. The space to learn, to play, and eventually to master, sports.
5. So, as part of our larger Sport Facilities Master Plan, we have been developing, as well as, refreshing our sporting facilities all over Singapore. We want to put them in the heartlands – Singapore is not that big – but we want to put them close to where you are. 
6. We also must update and refresh our sporting facilities, to make them modern and evolve with the times.
7. So we have rejuvenated several existing facilities. 
1. For example, Delta Sport Centre was reopened in May 2023. It is now larger and has  more sporting facilities, like a full-sized hockey pitch.
1. We also have courts that take into account our residents’ evolving needs. There is a growing interest in pickle ball, so the courts see a lot of pickle ball players at Delta.
2. The swimming pool at Delta is also retrofitted with a built-in ramp to facilitate persons with disabilities, so that they can go on their own to take part in programmes at the pool.
8. We have also built several new facilities, such as the one at Bukit Canberra Sport Centre. It is now the centre with the largest ActiveSG gym in Singapore. This gym is also equipped with inclusive facilities, so that persons of all abilities can train in one same space. 
9. As I said, sport is more than just about how you take part and how you compete. It is also about a lifestyle and how inclusive we are in Singapore.
10. We have, therefore, been stepping up efforts to build even more new sport facilities around the island. Let me give you another example: Punggol Regional Sport Centre will feature a 5,000-seater stadium, as well as an archery field that is dedicated to our archers.

Amenities of Toa Payoh Integrated Development

11. TPID is the latest in our efforts to bring top-quality sporting infrastructure closer to the community, right here in the heartlands. This is so that our citizens can have more opportunities to take part in sporting activities, and, more importantly, create shared experiences and memories with your friends and families. And I see many of those examples here today. 
12. The vision for TPID was done in consultation with the public. 
1. We asked the public: What do you want to see in a sporting facility that is near your home?
2. We asked the athletes, the NSAs: What would it take to bring top-class athletes to train here? What does it take to host world-class events right here at Toa Payoh?
3. And we have taken on board these suggestions and comments to build TPID.
13. Let me give you a snippet as to what TPID will entail. 
14. TPID is planned to feature our favourite sports: badminton courts, swimming pools, covered tennis and futsal courts, fitness studios, and a fully functional ActiveSG Gym.
1. All of these will be available for Team Singapore athletes and everyone in our community to take part, come, train, play and build memories together./li>
15. TPID is also planned to host major sporting facilities, and we intend for this to be a secondary hub for sporting facilities.
1. We are planning to have a 10,000-seater stadium, right here at TPID. This will complement the existing facilities at Jalan Besar and Kallang.
2. We are also planning to have a 5,000-seater indoor sports hall and a 2,000-seater aquatics centre. These are all different sized from those that we have at Kallang, but nonetheless still top-quality facilities that will allow us to host a variety of world-class sporting events in Singapore. Not just in Kallang, but also in the heartlands, like right here in Toa Payoh.
3. So, the netballers will be happy to know that we can host the Mirxes Nations Cup, and footballers will know that we can host events, qualifiers and matches at our 10,000-seater stadium. Members of our community will be happy to see that this will be place for community events, including Pesta Sukan, GetActive! and New Year Countdown or Chingay Celebrations.
16. But I hope you will agree with me that TPID must be more than just about sports, it must be more than just about being a good quality sporting facility.
1. It must cater to a wide variety of different needs, and that is why, on the healthcare front, TPID will also have the new Toa Payoh polyclinic. This will be anchored on a proactive relationship-based approach of care delivery for improved health outcomes for patients, serving the healthcare needs of our people.
2. TPID will also have a new public library, with larger spaces and improved services. And you might ask: “In the world of digital sophistication, do we still need a library?” I think the answer is clearly yes. A library is more than just a place for books and reading. It is a place for quiet reflection and learning. It is a  sanctuary, a space of respite and a space where our community can call their own. And I think it is very important to still maintain the value and habits of reading. So, I am very happy to see that the National Library Board is working with us to have a new public library right here at Toa Payoh.
3. Alongside TPID, the Toa Payoh Town Park will also be rejuvenated. We will refresh it, make it modern, but we will also ensure that we keep some signature items that remind you that you are in Toa Payoh Town Park. So, we will keep the iconic Lookout Tower. Everyone recognises it, everyone knows that if you see it, you are at the town park and can enjoy both nature and heritage while strolling through the park.
17. All in all, we would like TPID to become the focal point of Toa Payoh, 

Conclusion

18. Finally, as I end, I want to say a big thank you to many agencies who have made this happen. This could not happen overnight, and we have the support of many agencies: SportSG, NLB, NParks, NHGP, our many partners and our consultants. They work tirelessly, they were inventive, and very receptive to new ideas. The product of this blueprint is because of their effort and time.
19. But I also want to say that today’s groundbreaking is only the start. 
1. We will have to continually work together to build this project, so that TPID can become a vibrant node, for our heartlanders, and for a community that makes us feel proud.
20. Today, we did not just break ground on TPID as a sporting or community facility, but we break ground on our journey toward top-class facilities all over Singapore, for a future where Singaporeans can live better through sport.
21. One final point, our facilities will be top-class, but they mean nothing if they are not well-utilised. 
1. So, when TPID opens its doors, I ask all of you, whether you are a resident, retiree, senior, youth, or an athlete – Singaporeans from all over Singapore – to make full use of the facilities, whether it be training for your next marathon, or coming to support our Team Singapore athletes in action, or discovering a new book at the library, or meeting new friends or taking a stroll in the park.
2. We want to turn TPID into a place buzzing with activity, where memories are made and cherished, and full of community life.
3. And if we can achieve that, I believe that will be the true measure of success of TPID.
22. Thank you very much to all of you for being here and supporting us on this project. Happy new year everyone!