Singapore Recreation Club faces pushback in revamp bid to attract younger people

Club wants to move away from 'passe sports' and towards trending activities

- Isabelle Liew

Several Singapore Recreation Club members are unhappy that one of the Republic's oldest sporting clubs is pivoting away from "legacy" sports such as cricket and towards "trendy social activities" like pickleball.

(ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO)

Efforts by the Singapore Recreation Club (SRC) to revamp its nearly 30-year-old building and attract younger members have been met with pushback from existing ones.

While leaders of the 142-year-old club at the Padang hope to draw new blood by moving away from “old, passe sports”, some older members have characterised this strategy as pandering to the younger crowd.

The latest flashpoint arises from a proposal to move the club’s billiards room from the second floor to basement two, in order to make space for a co-working area.

This redevelopment will incur a land betterment charge - a tax to enhance the use of a site — of $4.9 million from the Singapore Land Authority (SLA).

Some 120 members have signed a petition protesting against the club’s call to vote on the move, arguing that the proposal by the management committee was drawn up without consulting members sufficiently, and imposes a financial burden on them.

Several members also told The Straits Times they were displeased that one of Singapore’s oldest sporting clubs is shifting its focus from “legacy” sports and pivoting towards “trendy social activities” with six new pickleball courts, upgraded bars, new lounges and the new co-working space.

At present, the vast majority of the club’s 6,917 members are aged above 55.

On Oct 18, members are expected to vote on whether to pay the land betterment charge to redevelop basement two in order to house the billiards room and an administrative office.