Sports Hub and National Gallery white elephants?

Are the Sports Hub and National Gallery white elephants?
BY CHRIS REED

The Sports Hub in Singapore was built at a vast cost of at least $1.3 billion with a promise of a packed program of concerts, sports events, and community events. Currently it is used to show pictures on the top of the roof and giving up 10 prime Saturdays for National Day Parade practice sessions as it has no other significant content booked in.

Part of the Sports Hub Ptd Ltd (SH) consortium, Global Spectrum Pico are being removed for failure to deliver concerts and sporting events. I am certainly glad that I didn't buy a season ticket or special corporate hospitality ticket. Mariah Carey, Jay Chou, and Rugby 8’s are not what I expected from the Sports Hub. A string of events are either being staged at other parts of Asia or not coming at all.

Is it a White Elephant?

The new National Art Gallery was built at a vast cost of $532 million and took many years to do so. It has opened and is now not only deserted of people but also of art. On a recent visit I wandered around desperately trying to find something to see other than the seven estaurants it has. It in fact has more restaurants than art exhibitions. The ones it does have are sparse, to say the least.

Like the Sports Hub it's not as though they didn't have years of time and oodles of money to plan and buy the content calender, source art and events. So where is all the art? If this was an unsubsidised business, would it be allowed to open, to continue?

What is really bemusing for an art gallery is 1) no local art (apparently local artists were asked to give their work for free and most of them understandably declined) and 2) the walls between offices/empty rooms/exhibitions that are there are blank. Boring beige. Empty. Grey. Nothing on them. It's an art gallery!

Surely they could have some, I don't know, um, art on the walls to bring the whole place to life? As a brand it's not marketing the very thing it should be known for, art. Present it as a thriving active interesting art gallery, not an empty shell of a vast building with nothing in it of interest to anyone. That's not how any business can be sustained, let alone one paid for by the Singaporean taxpayer.

I know that it used to be the Supreme Court and City Hall but it still looks like it still is being used as both. It's the least visual and engaging art gallery I have ever seen and from a business point of view I worry about its reputation and the amount of money it costs to create and curate. It still looks looks like a courtroom and political venue. It's boring.

Is this the next white elephant? All that money and nothing there. It should be treated as any business, it needs to engage the consumer base, both local and tourist to justify the vast investment and coverage it has received.

Even the restaurants are empty. If you are one of the business owners of these, you would be let down by the lack of traffic and lack of customers seeing the venue as a place to specially visit. I have been on Saturdays and weeknights and managed to get any table in any restaurant I wanted (bar Odette) no problem.

It's not an obvious place to go for food and drink despite having stunning views over Marina Bay from the bars/restaurants overlooking the Padang. The businesses are not marketing themselves as a special destination enough and the gallery itself is not pulling enough visitors in to justify this many restaurants.

Both venues were built with the best intentions. However, the saying "build it and they will come" only works in movies. In reality when people have limited time and limited money, you have to build it and fill it with something worth seeing.

If you don't, you end up with two very expensive white elephants that not only end up costing a fortune to maintain but as they are both in such visually impactful areas are then constant reminders of what is not happening in Singapore.
- See more at: http://sbr.com.sg/commercial-proper...-gallery-white-elephants#sthash.weDv1owl.dpuf

It's not surprising after years of human engineering into society. Singapore has lost the sense of creativity.

I mean how many museums already in Singapore and what is the differentiating characteristic of each ? Each claim to be a museum of cultural shit. There is really a need to create a clear distinct characteristic for each. Moreover we a are pot of diverse culture only like less than 100 yrs old, what distinct culture are we speaking about - mudland indon thialand n Philippines with their more or less homogeneous society has both richer n purer culture.

Yah put all the past year PSLE papers on the wall of the museum, that's our art n culture.

People in SG (note: this does not only refer to citizens, but everyone in the island) does not have any inkling or penchant for anything old, history or otherwise. Hence museum, is just that, i.e., a dead, cold place. Free also not many people keen to spent their time there.

The stadium, with its moveable roof? Is a wrong place to host concerts, unless one pays to have headache from the echoes and not able to figure out what was sung. Every concert held really destroy the so-call quality of the performers. Further, with just a slit in roof, how on Mother Earth does the designer of the stadium hope the grass will grow? There's also a reduced sitting capacity compared to the old stadium, and with its open top, has no issue with grass or concert (though sound quality still lacking compared to a consent hall). At $1.3B? That's a colossal white elephant only million-dollar ministers will approve.

These great architectural achievements have created many good jobs in singapore. Surely it must not be difficult to manage an art gallery without art, or a stadium without events.

Example of PAP willing to throw away $ on "things" but when it comes to investing in their own citizens , the "lesser mortals" are out of luck.

If u think these are 'elephants', just wait till the new Changi T5 is finished!

Its easy to spend monies when you are not held accountable for whatever happens- the Youth Olympic budget increased 3x from US$75.5 million to U$284 million (S$387 million) and see what happens?

If you want to increase amount for PA recipients, the answer is "How much do you want? Do you want three meals in a hawker centre, food court or restaurant?"

borom said:

Its easy to spend monies when you are not held accountable for whatever happens- the Youth Olympic budget increased 3x from US$75.5 million to U$284 million (S$387 million) and see what happens?

If you want to increase amount for PA recipients, the answer is "How much do you want? Do you want three meals in a hawker centre, food court or restaurant?"

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They would ask this question: "What's wrong with spending more money which is not our own?"

borom said:

Its easy to spend monies when you are not held accountable for whatever happens- the Youth Olympic budget increased 3x from US$75.5 million to U$284 million (S$387 million) and see what happens?

If you want to increase amount for PA recipients, the answer is "How much do you want? Do you want three meals in a hawker centre, food court or restaurant?"

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No blame culture allowed here sir! Let's move on.

mojito said:

No blame culture allowed here sir! Let's move on.

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how about shifting the whole geylang over? it can become the new redlight district. sure huat one

stuffycunt said:

how about shifting the whole geylang over? it can become the new redlight district. sure huat one

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You bring ur mother and sister to prostiture for the Ah Neh and Banglah.

stuffycunt said:

how about shifting the whole geylang over? it can become the new redlight district. sure huat one

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You bring ur Mother and Sister to prostitute for Ah Neh and Banglah.

shittypore said:

You bring ur Mother and Sister to prostitute for Ah Neh and Banglah.

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your whole family like to worship and suck black cocks lah....if not why u support the msia kekleng until can see his kekleng cum dripping from your mouth

stuffycunt said:

your whole family like to worship and suck black cocks lah....if not why u support the msia kekleng until can see his kekleng cum dripping from your mouth

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Tats wat happened when ur Mother was sucking my dick and the Ah Neh who forced her to do it. Now go ask ur ur Mother or the chow ah neh how he treated your mother.

must think positive. surely sinkies don't want all national iconic sites to be swarmed by pinoys, nehs and tiongs. they're good to be empty and quiet as they provide sinkies sanctuaries to contemplate their next makan or geylang move. when sites are too packed sinkies kpkb. when sites are too empty sinkies also kpkb. it's expected.

Marina Barrage also. Brand new dunno why now need major renovations.....repaved most of the concrete floor dunno for what

shittypore said:

Tats wat happened when ur Mother was sucking my dick and the Ah Neh who forced her to do it. Now go ask ur ur Mother or the chow ah neh how he treated your mother.

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your mother is the queen of sucking kekleng cocks and your father is the gay king of arse fucked by kekleng cocks

Love this post. The last sentence is a good reflection of our culture.

red amoeba said:

I mean how many museums already in Singapore and what is the differentiating characteristic of each ? Each claim to be a museum of cultural shit. There is really a need to create a clear distinct characteristic for each. Moreover we a are pot of diverse culture only like less than 100 yrs old, what distinct culture are we speaking about - mudland indon thialand n Philippines with their more or less homogeneous society has both richer n purer culture.

Yah put all the past year PSLE papers on the wall of the museum, that's our art n culture.

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bumbaclaat pussyhole our museum one suk madda rassclaat. Mi nuh bizniz but dat haffi get look pan di authorities dem.