Tengah ( ) is a planning area and new town in the West Region of Singapore. It is bordered by Choa Chu Kang to the north, Jurong East to the south, Bukit Batok to the east, and Jurong West to the west.
The development of Tengah is planned around five districts: Plantation District, Garden District, Park District, Brickland District and Forest Hill District. The town is planned to accommodate approximately 42,000 homes, including about 30,000 Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats.
Tengah is the first HDB town to have been planned with smart technologies implemented at the town-wide level from the outset. It is being developed alongside the Jurong Innovation District and Jurong Lake District as part of the broader transformation of western Singapore.
Etymology In the year 1853, during the British Straits Settlements period, the area was characterised by thick forests and quiet rivers. A Teochew man named Teng-Ah Tong arrived in the area. He was granted special permission by local nobility to clear the trees and establish large farms along the riverbanks. In those days, these river farms were known as chu kangs, and the leader of the settlement was called a kangchu, which means "master of the riverbank" in Teochew. As Teng-Ah Tong was the leader of the settlement, people began calling his plantation Teng Chu Kang or Teng Ah Kang.
A small part of the Kranji River ran right next to his land. People started calling this body of water the Teng-Ah River, which is now known as the Tengah River. Over many years, the name of the area shortened from Teng Ah to Tengah. The historical name was saved when the British Royal Air Force built Tengah Airfield over the old farmland in 1936. Today, the name is still used for the modern Housing and Development Board (HDB) residential town.
History
Early history
Before its redevelopment as a new town, the area now occupied by Tengah was predominantly rural. Historical research indicates that the area formed part of a riverside farm with gambir and pepper plantations by 1853. During the early 20th century, cultivation progressively shifted towards rubber, and by 1945 much of the area was occupied by rubber plantations, with smaller areas of forest and scattered housing. By 1966, rubber cultivation had declined substantially, while grassland, other forms of rural land use and brickworks had become more prominent. By 1975, only limited rubber cultivation remained, alongside small areas of other cultivation.
The wider Jurong area also contained villages, agricultural land, plantations and other forms of small-scale rural activity. Settlements such as Hong Kah Village and Kampong Ulu Jurong formed part of the rural landscape of western Singapore before large-scale urban redevelopment began.
Resettlement and military use
During the 1980s and 1990s, villagers in Tengah were progressively relocated under government resettlement programmes, resulting in the demolition of many of the kampongs in the area.
Following the resettlement, much of the area was used for military training and remained comparatively undeveloped for several decades. By the 1980s and 1990s, Tengah had become a military training area, helping to preserve substantial tracts of open land even as surrounding parts of western Singapore underwent rapid urbanisation.
Military use continued into the 2010s. On 10 November 2015, the larger part of the former Hong Kah Village ceased to be used as an SAF military training area, with military training in the area subsequently shifted towards Ama Keng Road.
Planning and redevelopment
The release of the former military training land enabled the area to be planned for redevelopment as a new HDB town. On 8 September 2016, the Housing and Development Board formally unveiled the masterplan for Tengah, Singapore’s 24th HDB town. The plan envisaged a new “Forest Town” incorporating five housing districts, extensive green spaces, a car-free town centre and town-wide smart technologies.
The first phase of residential development began with the launch of Plantation Grove in November 2018, when HDB offered 1,620 flats in Tengah under its Build-To-Order programme. This marked the beginning of the development of Tengah as a new residential town following decades of rural and military use.
Development as a new town
Tengah was announced as a new HDB town in the 2010s and became the first entirely new HDB town to be developed in Singapore in more than two decades.
The first Build-To-Order (BTO) flats in Tengah were launched by HDB in 2018. Subsequent BTO projects were launched progressively across the town's planned districts, with the first residents moving into the new town as the first housing developments were completed in August 2023.
HDB's planning framework envisages approximately 30,000 public-housing flats in Tengah, with additional housing and other developments contributing to the town's overall planned capacity of approximately 42,000 homes.
As the town develops, infrastructure and community facilities have been introduced progressively, including neighbourhood centres, schools, healthcare facilities, parks, green connectors and public-transport facilities.
Town planning and districts
Tengah is divided into five districts, each planned with a distinct character and connected through a network of green spaces, pedestrian routes and cycling paths. Tengah is divided into five housing districts and is planned with dedicated pedestrian and cycling paths throughout the town.
Plantation District
The Plantation District is the first district of Tengah to undergo substantial development. When fully completed, it is planned to contain about 10,000 homes.
The district includes Plantation Farmway, a 1.3-kilometre green connector linking residential developments with the town centre and other community facilities. The area also incorporates landscaped open spaces, playgrounds, fitness areas and community gardens.
Plantation Plaza serves as a neighbourhood commercial centre, with about 75 shops distributed across five levels. Its facilities include a supermarket and food court.
Garden District
The Garden District is planned as another major residential district within Tengah and is planned to contain about 7,000 homes when fully developed.
Garden Farmway forms part of the district's network of green connectors. At approximately 1.5 kilometres in length, it provides a landscaped route through the residential neighbourhood and links residents to nearby amenities and community facilities.
Garden Waterfront I and Garden Waterfront II form part of the district's housing developments. Garden Waterfront II was completed under HDB's Construction Transformation Project, which incorporated advanced construction technologies and achieved a reported 25 per cent improvement in productivity compared with conventional construction methods.
Park District
The Park District is planned to contain about 13,000 homes and is intended to form one of the principal residential areas of Tengah.
The district is planned around extensive landscaped spaces and connections to Tengah's wider park and greenway network. Its development forms part of HDB's broader objective of integrating greenery and recreational spaces into the town's residential environment.
Brickland District
The Brickland District occupies the northern portion of Tengah. It is planned as a further residential district and is intended to provide additional housing as the town expands.
The district forms part of the longer-term development of Tengah and is connected to the rest of the town through the planned road, public-transport, pedestrian and cycling networks.
Forest Hill District
The Forest Hill District forms part of the longer-term development of Tengah. Its planning is intended to complement the town's broader green and ecological framework while providing additional residential and community facilities.
Greenery and environmental planning
Greenery is a major component of Tengah's town-planning strategy. HDB has incorporated green connectors, landscaped spaces, community gardens and other forms of vegetation into the town's layout, with the intention of integrating greenery into the residential environment rather than confining it to isolated parks.
Environmental studies were conducted for Tengah North and Tengah South in 2021 to assess the environmental implications of the town's development. A subsequent Environmental Impact Assessment was conducted between December 2025 and March 2026 for the site earmarked for the future town centre. Environmental studies were conducted for Tengah North and Tengah South in 2021 to assess the environmental implications of the town's development. A subsequent Environmental Impact Assessment was conducted from December 2025 to March 2026 for Tengah Site 1, which is earmarked for the future Town Centre.
The environmental studies identified areas of ecological importance and examined ecological connectivity within Tengah. HDB has stated that the Recommended Area of Conservation identified in the Tengah North study is important for maintaining ecological connectivity within the town and that it would seek to retain the area where possible as development proceeds.
Water bodies and water infrastructure
Water features form part of Tengah’s blue-green infrastructure, comprising retention ponds, streams and drainage channels integrated with its parks and green corridors.
Tengah Pond
Tengah Pond is a planned retention pond between the Garden and Plantation districts. It forms part of the waterfront landscape adjoining the Promenade Park and Forest Fringe, while contributing to the town’s wider drainage and ecological network.
Water bodies around Brickland
The Brickland area contains a network of ponds, streams and drains forming part of the northern Tengah drainage system. The Tengah North environmental study identified several existing water bodies, including Pond 1 and Pond 2, together with streams and drainage channels within the study area.
The ponds and streams also have ecological significance. HDB’s environmental-management measures provide for the retention of existing water bodies and sufficient hydrological flow, while Pond 1 and Pond 2 are incorporated into the planned creation of an open-country pond and ABC Waters features.
Tengah Service Reservoir
The Tengah Service Reservoir is a potable-water facility at the highest point of Tengah. Completed in November 2025, it comprises two tanks and supports current and future water demand from residential developments in Tengah and businesses in the adjoining Jurong Innovation District.
Smart and sustainable development
Tengah was planned from the outset as a smart and sustainable HDB town. HDB describes it as the first HDB town planned with smart technologies implemented town-wide from the beginning.
The town's planning incorporates digital infrastructure and smart technologies intended to support estate management, environmental monitoring and the efficient operation of town services. These initiatives form part of HDB's wider approach to developing more sustainable and liveable towns.
Tengah has also been selected for the deployment of a centralised cooling system. In April 2026, HDB announced a contract for centralised cooling systems covering nine BTO projects in Tengah, providing access to the system for approximately 14,000 households across 12 projects.
Community facilities and education
Community facilities have been introduced progressively as the town's population has grown. These include neighbourhood centres, food-and-beverage outlets, supermarkets, recreational facilities, schools and healthcare services.
Parc Point is a second-generation neighbourhood centre serving residents in Tengah. It contains nearly 40 shops and includes a polyclinic, food court and supermarket.