A sleepy and peaceful district, District 27 is blessed with a reservoir, country club and Singapore’s only hot spring. Sembawang is noted for its trademark black and white houses while Yishun is a thriving place with a reservoir and country club.

Introduction/History

Sembawang

Sembawang is located at the northern tip of Singapore, on the coast of Johor Straits. It comprises part of Yishun and part of Seletar. The town is rather secluded as it is out of the way for most Singaporeans. Sembawang earned its name from the Sembawang tree and it was mentioned in Franklin and Johnson’s 1830 Map of Singapore. Formerly a rubber plantation, it was turned into a major naval base for the British Army in the 1920s. Colonial barracks were constructed in monochrome colours during that time and they have now come to be known as the “black-and-white houses”. After Singapore’s independence, the naval base was handed over to Sembawang Corporation. These black-and-white houses are also now mainly occupied by expatriates. The Sembawang of today also contains numerous HDB estates and condominiums.

Yishun

Yishun is comprised of Yishun Central, Northland, Yishun East, Yishun South, Lower Seletar Reservoir, Springleaf, Nee Soon, Khatib and Yishun West. Yishun was named after a businessman named Lim Nee Soon who owned many rubber plantations in the district. Formerly known as Nee Soon, the Yishun we know now used to have gambier, pepper and pineapple plantations in the area. The residential area of Yishun is made up of public housing flats and condominiums.

Amenities/Facilities

At Sembawang, one can find the Sembawang Park, the Sembawang Hot Spring, the Bottle Tree Village, the Orchid Golf Course and the Seletar Golf Course. A point of note about the Bottle Tree Village is that the bottle trees found within this compound was specially flown in from Queensland, Australia, and they cannot be found anywhere else in Singapore.

Yishun residents seek relief from the hectic life at the Orchid Country Club and Lower Seletar Reservoir during weekends.

Transportation

District 27 is served by the Sembawang MRT Station and Yishun MRT Station.

source: http://www.iproperty.com.sg/resources/District.aspx?nid=27