HDB floor parties catching on

More than 2,000 held to boost neighbourly bonding in past 2 years

SOFTWARE engineer Thangamuthu Muthukalai, a permanent resident from India and the father of a one-year-old boy, has hardly had time to interact with his Singaporean neighbours, the Ngs, since moving into his HDB flat in October last year.

But on Sunday last week, the two households enjoyed a birthday celebration for their toddlers, who were born a year apart on Sept1.

The party, organised by Canberra Zone4 Residents' Committee, included neighbours from five of the seven flats on the same floor. They mingled at the area near the lift landing over birthday cake and a simple spread including noodles and spring rolls.

'That day, we talked more,' said Mr Thangamuthu, 31. 'We talked about where they work, what they're doing and the kind of food to give to the baby.'

'Floor parties' for neighbours to get to know one another are catching on.

There has been a steady increase in the number of such parties, organised by residents' committees, with more than 2,000 held in the last two years involving around 80,000 residents, said the People's Association (PA).

The PA has been promoting the concept to constituencies as a way to rekindle the 'kampung spirit' among neighbours.

The latest move is to include the number of floor parties as a benchmark for its annual PA Awards for outstanding grassroots groups from next year.

The PA Awards are to encourage and recognise grassroots organisations (GROs), which organise activities and programmes to promote social cohesion and community bonding.

The fact that the Housing Board gets an average of 1,700 complaints each year about neighbours' inconsiderate behaviour is proof that neighbours can rub one another up the wrong way.

Floor-level parties help to smooth the rough edges that develop when strangers live so close to one another. They act as a conduit for interaction and residents are more keen to take part because they get to know their immediate neighbours, said Dr Lim Wee Kiak, adviser to Canberra's grassroots organisations, which pioneered the idea of floor parties in 2007.

The grassroots groups noticed that traditional block parties attracted the same faces and wanted to reach out to those who never attended.

Dr Lim, echoing a popular idiom, said: 'If Mohammed doesn't come to the mountain, the mountain must come to Mohammed.'

The idea has caught on in other wards such as Teck Ghee, Pasir Ris West, Sembawang, Bedok and Bukit Batok.

Teck Ghee started organising floor parties this year and has held at least 30 so far. Its citizens consultative committee vice-chairman, Madam Norlene De Foe, 56, said residents like these gatherings and added that they have helped neighbours who are not happy with one another to talk things through.

The gatherings can be timed for special events, like birthdays. The cost of the food may be subsidised by residents' committees, while families may chip in $5 to $10, or contribute food to a potluck.

Residents who have taken part say such parties have helped them get to know their neighbours better.

IT company director Peter Haugaard Hoeg, 31, from Denmark, attended a floor party in March when he moved into Admiralty Drive. This inspired him to join a small informal work group looking into engaging residents in the neighbourhood through new media.

Ang Mo Kio resident Hoo Kim Lam, a 63-year-old retiree who attended a party in June, said: 'Living in flats, we go out in the morning, then come back and close the door...We hardly stand around to speak to one another...At least now, we can get to know one another.'

Source: Straits Times, 7 Sep 2009