SINGAPORE: Government agencies use various controls to balance commercial activities in residential estates, Senior Minister of State for National Development Sun Xueling said in parliament on Wednesday (Feb 4).

She was responding to MP Denise Phua’s (PAP-Jalan Besar) adjournment motion, in which she raised the need to protect residents’ well-being amid disturbances from commercial activities in their neighbourhoods. These included massage parlours and karaoke outlets.

Agreeing with Ms Phua that commercial activities need to be “carefully managed” to ensure they remain compatible with residential living, Ms Sun said that government agencies work together to plan, regulate and license commercial activities.

In commercially-run shopping malls or privately-owned Housing and Development Board (HDB) shops, market forces determine the mix of shops while adhering to regulations, she added.

CONGESTION AND CONFLICTS

In her adjournment motion, Ms Phua said that commercial activity, when done well, adds value, creates jobs and strengthens neighbourhood life.

However, when commercial activities intensify without adequate planning or safeguards, some residents experience persistent day-to-day challenges.

They include the continuous noise of exhaust fans, amplified music and late-night operations, as well as cooking odours from kitchen vents. These affect residents’ rest and living comfort, she said.

Ms Phua said that residents have raised concerns about how certain ground-floor businesses operate near homes.

She gave the example of visible solicitation activities outside some massage establishments in the Crawford estate, which families and seniors said made walking home uncomfortable.

Recently, enforcement actions also resulted in the closure of 10 massage and spa establishments offering illicit services at Tanjong Pagar Plaza.

Ms Phua added that increased commercial footfall can lead to congestion and conflicts in shared spaces.

“Queues, waste disposal issues, and competition for parking between residents and patrons can strain hygiene standards and create friction in otherwise peaceful neighbourhoods,” she said.

Some reasons why current safeguards have fallen short include regulatory and legislative gaps, and “siloed” enforcement measures, Ms Phua said.

As enforcement responsibilities are often divided across agencies, no single agency has sight of the “full neighbourhood impact”, she said.

“Issues are addressed sometimes in isolation, rather than holistically,” she added.

“This fragmentation not only leads to gaps in enforcement outcomes, but also risks inefficient use of public resources, as agencies respond piecemeal to symptoms rather than root causes. Crucially, the cumulative neighbourhood impact is often insufficiently assessed.”

Zoning controls, which dictate how a particular plot of land may be used, also tend to operate on a broad, area-based level.

“What may be acceptable in isolation can, when concentrated, significantly erode residential amenity and community well-being,” she said.

Ms Phua added that consequences may not deter poor behaviour.

For some lucrative errant operators, fines or summons are “simply treated as a cost of doing business”, she said, adding that this leads to little incentive for genuine behavioural or structural change.

PROPOSED MEASURES

In her proposed suite of measures, Ms Phua urged the government to consider a “prevention-governance-enforcement” framework.

She suggested having clearer use classes to better distinguish between low-impact and higher-impact neighbourhood businesses, such as late-night food and beverage outlets, massage establishments, bars and karaoke outlets.

This would allow planning decisions to better reflect the lived reality at the block or precinct level, instead of broad zoning assumptions.

Ms Phua added that business operators with higher-impact use could also go through a consultation at the preapproval stage.

The consultation process could help to clarify regulatory expectations and minimise future disputes with residents, said Ms Phua, adding that this is “pro-business and pro-resident”.

She proposed that operators with higher-impact uses could enter a “good neighbour agreement” that sets out expectations on issues such as noise, waste management and crowd controls, which could help to resolve issues early.

Ms Phua also called for the closing of regulatory gaps and better coordination across agencies.

Enforcement should be firm but proportionate, and focused on repeated and substantiated non-compliance, she said.

“A transparent, graduated framework would allow consequences to escalate only when problems persist – from tighter conditions or shorter renewal periods, to restrictions on hours or activities, and, as a last resort, licence suspension or revocation,” she said.

VARIOUS CONTROLS

In her response, Ms Sun said that the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) considers where and what type of businesses can be located at its planning level.

Nightlife establishments are not allowed in both sold and rental Housing Development Board (HDB) shops, and new nightlife establishments are not allowed within commercial developments integrated with residential units, she said.

On Ms Phua’s point on the concentration of such outlets, Ms Sun noted that the URA and the Singapore Police Force (SPF) have identified exclusion areas where new nightlife or massage establishments are not allowed.

This is due to a high concentration of existing outlets and complaints from residents.

"Government agencies will continue to work closely with grassroots advisors to manage local concentration issues and will not hesitate to turf out unsavoury operators who do not adhere to regulations or tenancy conditions," she said.

In heartlands, HDB imposes planning and mix controls by maintaining a published list of allowable uses and sets quotas to regulate the number of massage establishments in each HDB estate, Ms Sun said.

Ms Sun added that agencies have approval mechanisms such as licensing, which serve as a “gatekeeping tool” to assess operator suitability and establish operational requirements.

Nightlife establishments and massage establishments are regulated by the SPF and the licensing framework ensures that these venues are not misused for vice activities, she said.

She added that the police are currently reviewing the massage establishment regulations to ensure that the regulatory regime is updated and fit for purpose, and that industry consultation will be done in due course.

Apart from licensing, government agencies use tenancy conditions to address disturbances.

For example, coffee shops are required to stop the use of their outdoor refreshment areas by 11pm. They are also required to install appropriate exhaust systems and grease traps, and implement proper waste management practices to control odour issues and maintain hygiene.

When it comes to enforcement, there is no “one size fits all” approach as it involves multiple stakeholders and varying circumstances, Ms Sun said.

Agencies strive to work closely together on enforcement, she added.

An example is URA’s partnership with other agencies to adopt a three-strikes approach to deal with businesses that flout rules or requirements.

SPF and HDB have also taken joint enforcement action to work with shop owners to evict close to 40 massage establishment operators in 2025, she said.

For food establishments operating in HDB estates, HDB takes into account the feedback received by different agencies when assessing tenancy and tenancy renewals.

On Ms Phua’s suggestion for mandatory pre-approval consultation, Ms Sun said that applicants are provided with information on relevant planning parameters, licensing requirements and tenancy conditions.

“Agencies will continue to look at how to make this information clearer and more transparent upfront for applicants,” she said.

She added that Ms Phua’s suggestion on the “good neighbour agreements” would be encouraged at the grassroots level to establish good social norms and community relations between local businesses and residents.

While government agencies rely on legally binding tenancy agreements and licenses, they will take into account feedback from the community when considering the amount of outdoor leasing space and rental renewals, she said.