Room at the Top—The Roof as an Alternative Habitable / Social Space in the Singapore Context

Rooftops have been both forgotten spaces for the underprivileged as well as celebrated spaces of the affluent. However, the rooftop as an alternative means of development has become increasingly explored as a means of densifying the city, replenishing open space for social interaction in an increasingly depleted public realm. This paper considers the practicalities of top up densification and, in the context of Singapore, their use as alternative social spaces. It argues that they should be included alongside the conventional urban spaces of the street and square (public) or alternative social spaces of the mall, arcade, court or hotel lobby (semi-public) in the broader open space infrastructure for civil society's appropriation. It further argues that in their current guise, they are semi-public domains. For their transformation into public spaces, a re-investigation into existing social boundaries and a greater symbiosis between public–private interests are needed to be able to create more civic rooftop environments.