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Residents of Block 639 Jurong West Street 61 have been waiting for nearly two and a half years for the resident's corner at their void deck to be completed.

According to Shin Min Daily News, construction of the resident's corner started in end-2020, but was halted in October 2022 and has not resumed since.

In response, the West Coast Town Council has notified residents that the resident's corner is targeted for completion in Q3 2023, due to restructuring in the contractor's company.

Construction came to a halt in Oct 2022

Lu, a 78-year-old resident, told Shin Min Daily News that there are many elderly residents in the estate, and when they first heard that a resident's corner was to be built, they were excitedly looking forward to its completion.

He noted that the stone chairs and stone tables at the construction site have already been modelled.

"However, construction came to a halt in October 2022," Lu shared, "I heard that there was a change in contractors. Until now, they still haven't resumed work."

After the halt in construction, Lu noted that the workers left their construction materials at the void deck.

Additionally, soil from the site can cause the floor to get muddy when it rains.

Inconvenience caused to residents

Other residents complained to Shin Min Daily News that the lengthy construction process inconvenienced them.

A female resident explained that the area was fenced up for construction, so residents were forced to make a detour when taking out the garbage or going to the car park.

Another male resident revealed that he was affected by the noise from the construction. Since construction works were intermittent, he did not know which times they were scheduled to be carried out.

Shin Min Daily News reported that the Town Council (TC) has posted a notice at the lift lobby to clarify the situation for residents.

The notice, dated Mar. 23, 2023, states that due to restructuring in the contractor's company, the resident's corner is targeted for completion in Q3, 2023.

The TC also wrote that they have advised contractors to take measures to minimise inconvenience and noise disturbances for the residents.

Makeshift "resident's corner"

As the resident's corner still lies incomplete, it seems Lu has taken matters into his own hands.

Lu shared with Shin Min Daily News that he spent S$80 on 10 plastic chairs so that his neighbours would have places to sit at the void deck.

"In the morning, you might typically find 10 or more people chatting downstairs at the void deck," Lu explained.

He added that as a long-time resident of over 10 years, he has formed close bonds with many neighbours in the estate.

Unfortunately, Lu revealed that the chairs he bought have been stolen, so eventually, the residents had to bring down their own chairs to the void deck.

Lu seemed disappointed about the delay in construction.

He told Shin Min Daily News, "At first, I was really looking forward to the resident's corner being ready. I even wanted to prepare teapots, so that everyone could have a nice chat together over a cup of tea."

Town Council's response

In response to Mothership's queries, the West Coast Town Council stated that they are aware of the delay.

They also apologised for the inconvenience caused to residents in the estate.

A spokesperson from the Town Council explained that due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the contractor faced challenges obtaining materials and manpower.

"In an effort to resolve the situation, the Town Council has been working closely with the contractors, and work is estimated to resume before the end of this month," the spokesperson added.

"In the meantime, we hope to seek our residents’ understanding and patience on this matter."

Top image via SRX website and Shin Min Daily News.