'Heartbroken to leave': Tenants at Punggol East container park upset by impending closure
City Sprouts, which operates the container park, said that while it knew it would not have the site long-term, getting notice of the final outcome has also been "deeply difficult for us".
Punggol East Container Park on Sep 1, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Syamil Sapari)
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SINGAPORE: More than 50 tenants at Punggol East container park are preparing to leave by the end of next month as the land is returned to the government.
The container park, which is operated by social enterprise City Sprouts, will be handed back to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) upon the expiry of its lease, according to an email from City Sprouts to tenants dated Aug 4.
"As the site is required to be reinstated and returned to SLA, we will require all tenants to cease operations by Oct 31, 2026 and hand over their respective premises to City Sprouts by this date," read the email that was seen by CNA.
In response to CNA's queries on Tuesday (Sep 1), City Sprouts, which operates urban farms and is also a tenant at the container park, said it was sent an official notice in May to vacate the site and carry out the necessary reinstatement works within the stipulated timeline.
The land has to be returned to SLA by the end of its lease on Dec 31. "We were not given specifics by SLA aside from it being part of redevelopment as part of the Singapore Master Plan for the district," the social enterprise said.
"We were aware of this timeline with each lease renewal, and our tenant partners knew we would not have this site long-term. Despite this, getting notice of the final outcome has also been deeply difficult for us," said City Sprouts.
The site at Punggol has become "much more than a place of business", as it was also a space where it built relationships with tenants, farmers, partners, families and the wider community.
"We are heartbroken to leave a place that we have spent so much time and energy building together with everyone who has been part of it. We understand the disappointment and uncertainty this creates for our tenants, and we share that disappointment," said City Sprouts.
"While the return of the land is not a decision within our control, we are doing our best to support our tenants through this transition and to ensure that the community and relationships we have built are treated with the care and respect they deserve."
City Sprouts told CNA that farmers were informed about the handover early this year while its main food and beverage operator D'Heart was informed in July after City Sprouts clarified details on the reinstatement from SLA.
City Sprouts has secured a new space at Pasir Ris Park and has offered the Punggol community farmers and partners priority to move in, or to other community greenhouses it operates across Singapore.
For F&B outlets, the enterprise said it informed the main operator of an option for businesses to take up stalls at its other locations in the East.
Besides Punggol, City Sprouts also runs green spaces at Pasir Ris, Henderson, West Coast and Bedok.
City Sprouts, which has been operating at Punggol since mid-2023, will also be moving out. It was in discussions with SLA for extensions and alternative sites.
"However, an extension was not possible as this decision for the Punggol district has long been part of the Singapore Master Plan."
CNA has contacted SLA for more information, including the plans for the site.
TENANTS SADDENED
The issue was first brought to light by the Smok Hous founder Isrudy Shaik who posted about the container park's impending closure on social media last Friday.
Mr Isrudy opened his shop at the container park last November and had hoped to sign a three-year lease. But he was told a longer tenure was not possible as the land could be returned to the government.
When confirmation of the handover came in August, his first concern was his nine full-time staff members. "How can I keep them if I don't have a shop? Because they have families to feed," he said.
He runs another eatery at Telok Ayer but said it might be overstaffed if all nine employees moved over.
He is now looking for another location.
"Opening another shop is not easy because you need to get a space. For the smoke house, it's not easy to get a space because we need an outdoor and indoor space," said Mr Isrudy.
While the early departure from the container park came as a shock, he said he was embracing it as an opportunity to move elsewhere.
"Smok Hous can be like a travelling restaurant … Like now we are at the northeast, maybe next time we'll be at the west, then north, then south," said Mr Isrudy.
Among those affected is Ms Nurnisa Jonson, who runs Tara na! by Easy Eatz SG, a Halal Filipino food business, with her husband.
The couple first ventured into the business at hawker centres and coffee shops around 2016 but stopped after sales were slow to pick up.
They gave it another shot in 2020, this time as a home-based business in their house in Punggol. Over the next six years, business took off with 100 to 150 orders coming in daily.
Earlier this year, they thought about moving the business out of their home. The plan was to find a bigger kitchen, and when they found a place at the nearby Punggol East container park, the couple signed the contract despite knowing that the lease was until December.
But this was short-lived when she was informed on Aug 11 that she had to move out by end-October.
"We were really hoping to at least finish the festive season until December and then we move from here. But they say we have to move out early, so that was really the shocking part.
"Because August, September, October – it's hard. It's really hard for me to move out, especially when I just built the name here," said Ms Nurnisa, adding that she moved into the current premises in May.
Her immediate concern was for her 12 employees, half of whom are foreigners. She said she did not inform them the shop had to close and move out, and was looking for at least a smart kitchen so she would have a place for her employees.
"I cannot just be sending them away when I just give them the (hope) that 'we will build the future together'. How can I find a place within two months? That's the most stressful days we've had," Ms Nurnisa said, her eyes tearing as she spoke about her employees.
She would wake up at 4am to browse for a place to move to. Her efforts have since paid off as she signed a contract to move into Punggol Golf Driving Range the same afternoon she spoke to CNA.
CONCERNS ABOUT CUSTOMERS
But Punggol East container park has a "different feeling" and customers enjoy it even though it is outdoors.
"You won't need an aircon because you will feel the nature, the birds and everything. Even sometimes bees and butterflies. It's really out of the city vibe where they can relax," she said.
She has received waves of customers since opening at the container park, including some from across the Causeway.
"We're really gonna miss the community we built here," she said.
Mr Vincent Low, co-founder of Kim Kao Mai Thai restaurant, which sells Thai, Chinese and Vietnamese food, was similarly concerned about his customer base.
He has run his eatery at the container park for nine years and moving out now would mean starting from scratch again and rebuilding customer trust.
He estimated that 90 per cent of his customers lived in the northeast. "We can still have our brand in the west, but … we are new to them," said Mr Low, who worried that distance would make it difficult for existing customers to follow the business.
"Sad to say, it might not be so easy to find the right place for us to build up this whole thing … I'm angry and sad that we got such a short notice; sad to leave all the customers after so nine years. What can we do?"
Another tenant, Play! Pickle, which provides pickleball lessons and leases out courts in Punggol, Serangoon and Chai Chee, told CNA that its Punggol venue is the largest and the most frequented by customers.
It has six double indoor courts and a singles indoor court, as well as an outdoor court, founder Darren Teo said.
He opened the Punggol branch in December 2024 and said his tenancy was until Dec 10, 2026. The notice to vacate the premises ahead of time came as a surprise.
"We are, of course, heavy-hearted as we have built a vibrant community of pickleball lovers here," said Mr Teo, adding that he enjoyed the "village vibe" of the container park.
"We ... asked for clarification on why we have to cease operations and hand over the premises by Oct 31, 2026. But there has been no response from them so far," Mr Teo said.
He intends to operate the Punggol branch until the end of October and is preparing for the handover. Moving forward, he will concentrate on his remaining two branches.
"Our regulars have definitely reacted with dismay, with many lamenting the closure of a place they have called a home base for their pickleball gatherings.
"While we are sad to leave Tebing Lane, we are happy to have created a welcoming, social and vibrant community for pickleball fans young and old, beginner and experienced."
