Yishun

Yishun
Name transcription(s)
  Chinese 义顺
  Pinyin yìshùn
  Malay Yishun
  Tamil யீஷூன

Housing estates in Yishun
Country Singapore

Yishun, or Nee Soon as it was initially named, is a suburban town in the northern part of Singapore, encompassing the Yishun Planning Area, in the North Region, which includes Yishun New Town and the Nee Soon private residential estate.

Under the 1996 Land Use and Urban Design Planning, the total land area of the Yishun Planning Area was 2108 ha.

Historical Population
Yishun New Town and
Nee Soon private estate
1990 Census 181,036
2000 Census 176,689

History

Yishun is the Mandarin romanisation of Nee Soon, named after the "pineapple king" and rubber magnate, Lim Nee Soon (b. 1879).

Lim Nee Soon was also a banker, contractor and general commission agent. He was the first general manager of the Bukit Sembawang Rubber Company Limited, formed in 1908. Nee Soon and Company was formed in 1911.

Nee Soon was one of the pioneers that opened up Sembawang. Nee Soon served on the Rural Board from 1913 to 1921 and was also appointed a Justice of Peace. In the field of education, he was one of the founders of Chinese High School and also a member of the Raffles College Committee. Nee Soon Road was officially named in 1950 by the Rural Board to facilitate postal services. Nee Soon also owned a large plot of land in the area and several roads in this area are named after his business concerns and family members. Nee Soon was a leading member of the Teochew clan association poit ip huay kwan, and was a close friend of Dr Sun Yat Sen.

The name Nee Soon was one of those changed at the height of the campaign to replace dialect names with Mandarin ones. While the government later revoked some of its decisions and reinstated names like Bukit Panjang (for Zhenghua), Yishun remained unchanged and is now the name attached to streets, roads, parks and a well-known cineplex within Yishun New Town, Golden Village Yishun.

Yishun has started the development of HDB flats since 1976, with the first HDB flats at Chong Pang. Yishun Neighbourhood 1 has been developed since 1981, followed by Neighbourhood 7 and Neighbourhood 2. Neighbourhood 6, 8 and 9 have been developed in 1987, together with the Town Centre. Neighbourhood 3 and 4 followed slightly later in 1992. Construction of the Neighbourhood 5 was started on 2009 after the Crossrail West was announced and will be completed by 2015.

Amenities

Shopping/commercial areas

Neighbourhoods

Within the Yishun vicinity, There are 9 neighbourhoods.

Medical facilities

Instead of Northern General Hospital, the new general hospital has been named Khoo Teck Puat Hospital after receiving a S$125 million donation from the late Mr Khoo's family. Spanning over 3.5 hectares in the Yishun Central Area, the 550-bed hospital will offer a full range of comprehensive healthcare services for residents living in the north. A new feature of the hospital includes overlooking the scenic Yishun Pond. This will be the first hospital in the north after the nearest one which is at Thomson.

Yishun Polyclinic is located at 100 Yishun Central beside Khoo Teck Puat Hospital and is managed by National Healthcare Group Polyclinic (NHGP).[1] It is accessible by Bus 812, 853 or 858 from Yishun Bus Interchange.

Currently, the Yishun estate is well served by the Yishun Polyclinic as well as many private medical clinics and dental clinics.

Country clubs

SAFRA Yishun Country Club

Community centres and clubs

Transport

Parks, Garden and other Recreational Facilities

2 Major Parks:

Sports Facilities

Located at the Southern end of the town, the Yishun Stadium was opened on 2 January 1992. In 1993, it played host to the Karate event during the 1993 SEA Games in Singapore. In 1996, it was the home ground for the Sembawang Rangers FC in the S-league. Eventually the team was dropped from the league in 2003. Later on, it hosted the Young Lions in 2005 season, Sporting Afrique FC in 2006 season and currently it is the home for Korean Super Reds FC for the 2007 season. Other than the main stadia with the soccer field and 8-lanes running track, it also houses a ClubFitt gym. The sport hall seats 800 people and it can be use for badminton, basketball or other indoor sports.

Opened in 1988, it has a competition pool (with 430 seating), a children pool and a training pool.

Industrial activities

The Yishun Industrial Park is a small industrial park situated between Avenues 6 and 7 which comprises some well known companies such as Murata, Philips Lumileds, Agilent, Avago Technologies, ATS, ASM-Frontend, STATS, Inc. and many other smaller companies. It can be reached by Bus service 811 from the Yishun Bus Interchange.

Educational institutions

There are 69 primary schools, 96 secondary schools and a Junior college

References

Sources