‘Socially conscious’ hawker centre at Tampines hub to open in November
The hawker centre, which will have 42 cooked food stalls and about 800 seats, will feature natural ventilation, family friendly seating, child-friendly toilets and built-in tray-return facilities at accessible locations, says NEA.
Artist's impression of Our Tampines Hub. (Image: People's Association)
SINGAPORE: A new hawker centre at Our Tampines Hub, run by a “socially conscious operator” on a not-for-profit basis, will open for business in November, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Thursday (Sep 15).
The hawker centre, which will have 42 cooked food stalls and about 800 seats, will have features such as natural ventilation, family friendly seating, child-friendly toilets and built-in tray-return facilities at accessible locations.
OTMH, a unit of food court operator Kopitiam, will be the managing agent for the new hawker centre, NEA said. It was selected out of seven proposals received in a public tender for its “strong emphasis on social objectives, various productivity measures, and innovative solutions to ensure the vibrancy of the hawker centre and promote graciousness”.
To ensure affordable meals for residents, stallholders selling local food will be required to sell two items at a maximum price of S$2.80 per item.
“As the centre is to be managed on a not-for-profit basis, OTMH will be using part of its operating surplus for the benefit of the hawker centre, such as to improve vibrancy by supporting community events,” NEA said.
The operator has proposed a priority allocation of five stalls to applicants such as the underprivileged, residents staying in close proximity to the hawker centre and social enterprises. Another five stalls will be allocated to aspiring hawkers participating in OTMH’s Train & Place Entrepreneurship scheme, where trainees are paired with veteran hawkers to train for three months before operating their own stall.
A section of the hawker centre will also be set aside for stalls that will operate 24 hours to provide residents with all-day dining options.
OTMH will also introduce productivity initiatives such as a self-cash payment machine called iCashBox, which will be installed at all stalls. The machine will help to reduce manual handling of cash by the hawkers and facilitate faster turnaround during peak hours, NEA said.
To encourage tray return, OTMH will reach out to schools, community and volunteer groups, and will train cleaners to prompt diners to return their trays.
