Assistance for Vendors Displaced from Kreta Ayer Weekend Market and Their Return after Its Renovation

Mr Kok Heng Leun asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) whether any assistance has been provided to the vendors displaced from the Kreta Ayer weekend market; and (b) whether the Ministry will consider allowing vendors to resume their activities at the weekend market once renovations are completed.

The Kreta Ayer Flea Market was organised and operated by the Kreta Ayer Community Centre Management Committee (KA CCMC). The vendors operating at the flea market were registered with and managed by KA CCMC. KA CCMC had applied for and was issued a temporary fair permit by the National Environment Agency (NEA) to hold the flea market in an open public area.

In June this year, KA CCMC informed NEA that the flea market would be affected by construction works and would, therefore, cease operations from 2 July 2018. Accordingly, the temporary fair permit was cancelled. Prior to the market’s closure, we understand that KA CCMC, as the operator of the flea market, had reached out to individual vendors about a month ahead of the closure to explain the decision and address the vendors’ concerns. KA CCMC further offered financial support and referred some of them to temporary flea markets at other precincts. There are also various Government-funded training programmes for those who wish to pick up new skills and seek more stable forms of employment.

NEA has not received any new application for a trade fair permit to restart the Kreta Ayer Flea Market. NEA will assess such applications on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration the potential impact on fair competition for the surrounding shops and the need to minimise disamenities to residents in the vicinity.