Metropolis

What if the spaces between home and work like coffeeshops, void decks and sheltered walkways, were the key to how a city can bring its people together?

LA-based architect Jenny Wu travels to Singapore for the first time on a mission to search for the hidden logic behind a city known for order, but built for connection.

As she moves through public housing blocks, 
community nodes and bustling hawker centres, Jenny learns how Singapore’s “third places” – spaces between home and work – can hold memory, movement and meaning. Connection here is not accidental, it’s intentionally built into the design.

Through conversations with architects, planners, and everyday Singaporeans, Jenny begins sketching a conceptual “third place” of her own. But can a space be both functional and deeply personal? Can cities leave room not just to gather, but to truly belong?

In this two-part series, Jenny explores what it means to build for community and how design might quietly shape the way we live together.