East Coast Park is a beach and a park encompassing Marine Parade, Bedok and Tampines, along the southeastern coast of Singapore. It was opened in the 1970s, after the government had completed reclaiming land off the coast at Katong which extends from Changi to Kallang. It serves these and other seaside communities.
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Sunrise at East Coast Park, Singapore
The 185-hectare (460-acre) East Coast Park is the largest park in Singapore, and is built entirely on reclaimed land with a man-made beach, where swimming is possible. The beach is protected by breakwaters.
The park has barbecue pits, chalets, food centres and amenities for various sports activities. Visitors can fish at Bedok Jetty (Area F). A cycling and inline skating track runs along the perimeter of the park, which measures over 15 km (9.3 mi) long. It is connected to Changi Beach Park by the Coastal Park Connector Network, a 12 km (7.5 mi) park connector running along Tanah Merah Coast Road.
With an area of 185 ha (460 acres), East Coast Park is Singapore’s largest. It is bounded by the East Coast Parkway to the north and has 15 km (9.3 mi) of coastline. The park is also the most visited park in Singapore, with 7.5 million visitors annually.
East Coast Park is divided into eight areas, A to H. Of these, those at the park’s edges, areas A, G, and H, tend to be less crowded, while the main facilities and attractions are located in the more popular areas, from B to F.
East Coast Park was first proposed as part of plans for the utilisation of land reclaimed as part of the East Coast Reclamation Project.[2] Initial plans for the park included a 9-acre (3.6 ha) swimming lagoon, areas for camping and picnicking, and outdoor sports facilities such as tennis courts. Development work commenced in the middle of 1971, and the park, although still under development, was opened to the public in October 1972, to alleviate some of the pressure on the Changi and Tanah Merah beaches on weekends and public holidays. Construction on a $12 million, 350-acre (140 ha) seaside holiday resort began in September 1974 and a dedicated cycling track was opened for public use at the end of that year.
The S$4 million swimming lagoon was opened in May 1976, along with refreshment and sanitation facilities. Upon its opening, the lagoon immediately became popular with swimmers and picnickers, with over 70,000 people visiting in the first week. To provide access between the park and nearby areas, six underpasses were constructed at a cost of S$1 million.
In January 1977, plans to build a 2.8 ha (6.9-acre) aquatic centre to complement the lagoon were announced. The Singapore Tennis Centre, located in the park, was opened in March that year. Plans for a 1200-seat food centre near the lagoon were announced in April, and the first batch of the Housing and Urban Development Company’s (HUDC) chalets were opened in May, with the rest following soon after. Plans for a seafood centre in the park, with five seafood restaurants from Upper East Coast Road, were also announced that year.
The $6 million aquatic centre, named ‘Big Splash’, was opened in July 1977. It featured an 85-metre-long (279 ft) slide, which was claimed to be the world’s longest and highest, and an artificial wave pool, as well as food outlets. Nevertheless, the aquatic centre suffered from poor business and low patronage, and cost $2 million a year to operate. As a result, the original operator sold it to the Singapore Industrial Business Organisation (SILO) for $4.3 million the following year.
In August 1978, the Parkland Golf Driving Range, the first one in Singapore, opened its doors in the park.[16] Due to high demand for the chalets, the Urban Redevelopment Authority constructed 59 additional two-storey chalets, twice as large as the previous ones, for the HUDC in 1979. Costing $2.5 million, the chalets were opened in April 1981.
The East Coast Lagoon Food Centre is a hawker centre near the East Coast Lagoon.
Occupying 0.81-hectare (2.0-acre), the centre was constructed by the Public Works Department in 1977 at a cost of $700,000, with seating for 1,200 and 60 stalls. Constructed of wood, the centre consisted of 10 structures, with butterfly-shaped roofs for the cooking areas and pyramid-shaped ones for the eating areas; its design was intended to blend in with the seaside and the lagoon.
In 2003, as part of a redevelopment plan for the park, the hawker centre received an upgrade. In late 2013, it was upgraded at a cost of $1.5 million. As part of the upgrade, the toilets were renovated and the seating capacity increased. Roofing and wooden floors were also installed.
AloJapan.com