Singapore’s skyline continues its upward climb, yet the character of the city is still formed most clearly at ground level. Away from the towers and integrated districts, neighbourhoods evolve through smaller interventions: the homes that give a street its rhythm, the conserved structures that carry memory forward, the mixed-use clusters that create walkable pockets of activity, and the food and industrial hubs that quietly sustain daily life. Together, these elements produce the layered texture that defines the human-scale city.
This year’s neighbourhood-focused winners at the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) show how these layers continue to shift. They illustrate a version of Singapore shaped not by height but by proportion, craft, continuity and economy. Their impact is subtle but enduring, reminding us that the foundations of urban identity are often built in the places where life unfolds directly.
Landed homes remain central to this landscape, and Springleaf Collection — the year’s Best Landed Housing Development — shows why. Developed by The Assembly Place, the ten houses sit within a reservoir-framed enclave where greenery and low-rise streets create a calm residential setting. An indoor–outdoor planning approach supports multigenerational living, with private lifts and, in selected units, pools integrated into the spatial flow. Landscaped setbacks and planted transitions soften the development’s edges, reinforcing the longstanding interplay between architecture and nature in this part of Singapore. In a city where densification accelerates at its core, enclaves like Springleaf maintain continuity in the urban fabric.
Along University Road, Jean Yip Developments pursued a more crafted, architectural route with a project that secured Best Boutique Landed Housing Development and Best Housing Development (Singapore). Three detached houses, each exceeding 9,900 square feet, use broad off-form concrete portals to frame views towards Bukit Timah. Cascading gardens strengthen the green frontage of a quiet residential street, while the overall composition places emphasis on proportion, materiality and permanence. These awards reflect how small, precise clusters of homes can exert a wider influence on neighbourhood character.
Between landed districts and denser townships sit the boutique mixed-use schemes that animate daily life. Artisan 8, winner of Best Boutique Condo Development, is one such project. Its eight-storey profile combines 34 homes with ground-floor retail, introducing a visible commercial presence to a largely residential pocket of Sin Ming. Neoclassical accents give the building a measured street presence, while the shop units contribute to a more walkable rhythm for nearby residents. Modest in scale but active in effect, the development illustrates how small mixed-use nodes can shape local routines.
The role of heritage in neighbourhood identity is even more deeply felt at The Golden Mile, recipient of this year’s Best Heritage Conservation Development title. Long regarded as one of Singapore’s most distinctive megastructures, the 1973 building has been conserved and reimagined by Perennial Holdings and Far East Organization under the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s conservation framework. Its Brutalist geometry, once a bold expression of modernist planning, remains intact, while new terraces, public decks and landscaped inserts increase accessibility and soften the massing. With a renewed programme of offices, medical suites and retail, the project adapts a landmark for contemporary use while preserving its architectural essence. In a city shaped by cycles of demolition and renewal, conserving a structure of this scale signals a deeper commitment to continuity.
Neighbourhoods, however, rely not only on homes and heritage but also on the systems that sustain daily life: food production, logistics and light industry. Food Point @ Tai Seng, developed by Tai Seng Food Point Development Pte. Ltd. and awarded Best Food Hub Development, illustrates this clearly. The 12-storey hub integrates ramp-up access, elevated loading bays and hygienic layouts, supported by daylighting and ventilation that improve working conditions. Its distinctive façade gives the complex a recognisable identity within an industrial zone that supports many of Singapore’s F&B operators, hawker suppliers and catering businesses.
Viewed collectively, this set of developments shows how Singapore’s neighbourhoods are shaped by a mix of built forms and activities. Landed homes bring architectural precision to established enclaves. Boutique mixed-use projects introduce walkability and local commerce. Conserved structures bind the present to the past. Food hubs and industrial complexes sustain the flow of goods, services and employment that keep districts active.
In a year defined by striking towers and major precincts, many of the most resonant stories emerged here at street level, in the places where architecture meets memory, and neighbourhood life continues with quiet consistency.
