Tomorrow’s City Today: The Future of Livable Cities in the Pacific Rim

Asia Society's Pacific Cities Sustainability Initiative (PCSI) presents a talk with Thai Ker Liu.

Thai Ker Liu has influenced the modern urban landscape more than any one else in Singapore’s development history. Trained as an architect, he went from working in architectural firms, to leading the Housing Development Board and subsequently the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore. He is known for his contributions to new towns as well as the Constellation plan.

From 1979-1989 he was head of the Housing Development Board (HDB), from 1989-1992 he was CEO and Chief Planner for the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and in 1996 became Chairman of the National Arts Council (NAC). Trained as an architect, Thai Ker’s keen sense of the arts was derived from his father, a local pioneer painter, Liu Kang. Thai Ker left his mark in three key areas:

1. Planning Concept — moving from “large scale estates with localized facilities to self-sufficient new towns;”

2. Architectural Design — transforming functional buildings to aesthetically designed homes with a tropical touch;

3. Engineering Design — where he introduced “new structural systems” such as the long span pre-stressed concrete beams for public housing. With URA, Thai Ker’s main contributions were in revising the “Concept Plan” for the arts, particularly in promoting local arts and in conservation projects. The Concept Plan arose from the British Master Plan for Singapore and was to shape Singapore’s early urban landscape.

Thai Ker serves as a planning advisor to various municipal governments in China (over 20 cities) and was given an honorary Citizen of Fuzhou, awarded by the Fujian district for his contributions.

He is currently Director of RSP Architects and Chairman of the Centre for Livable Cities in Singapore.

Moderator: Richard Drobnick, Director, CIBER USC Marshall School of Business.