The city as showroom: Singapore and the rise of the “urban solutions” industry
This open access article argues that because of the impact that exporting urban planning expertise has on a city’s or nation’s image and economic development, the spatial planning of districts in Singapore is increasingly informed by the need to reproduce the city’s leading edge in urban solutions by showcasing advanced technologies within iconic areas and greenfield districts.
Singapore exemplifies a new form of urbanism in which the entire city itself becomes a showroom for urban solutions. Unlike earlier logics of city branding or testbed experimentation, showroom urbanism links the spatial planning of districts directly to the commercial imperatives of state-linked firms and the reproduction of Singapore as a truth spot of urban expertise.
Reading Development 