Hillview Estate, not to be confused with Hillview Garden Estate, a larger landed area we toured a while back (which, interestingly enough, doesn’t have a single street with “Hillview” in its name) is a small freehold landed estate in Upper Bukit Timah.
The two areas are separated by just one street (Hillview Avenue) and a few condos, but with quite a different feel.
Here’s the Master Plan for your reference: Hillview Garden is near the top of the map, above the other Hillview estate. As you can see from Google Maps, the area is in between a lot of greenery, with Bukit Gombak Hill on one side, Bukit Batok Nature Park on the other, and easy access to Hillview Park Connector.
Unfortunately, when exploring the neighbourhood, you don’t get that sense of open greenery, as the estate is bordered by towering apartments.
Example 1.Example 2. In fact, I didn’t even realise that we were close to the Nature Park till I looked at the Map!
On the bright side, I didn’t see any monkeys when visiting both this estate (and Hillview Garden estate.) A Google search also did not turn up any reports of monkeys in the area (the closest reports I could find were over at Hindhede Walk.)
The above photo was taken near the entrance to the estate, so let’s start our photo tour there. One thing I like about this estate is the number of entrance/exit points. When driving, you can enter and exit via Hillview Crescent and Hillview Drive- very generous, considering how small this estate is. For pedestrians, there is a 3rd entry/exit point in between these two roads, that brings you directly to the bus stop.
To the right of the Hillview Drive exit.To the left.I walk a few steps to the right and reach the bus stop. Across the road are condos.6 buses stop here.Walk another few meters to the right and you reach the second exit/entrance into the estate at Hillview Crescent.But before we get there, here’s the third (pedestrian-only) entrance/exit into the estate. It certainly makes life convenient, despite not being within walking distance of an MRT station.I should also point out that there’s a long drain adjacent to the estate. (Some people aren’t fans of this, as they feel there may be a smell. It was a hot and humid day when I visited, but I didn’t observe any odours.Looking back to the left before I head into the estate again – as you can see, the traffic here is quite heavy. (The flow of cars did not stop when I was there, despite it being off-peak hours.)The properties here are mostly terrace units, though I did see two larger ones undergoing construction that looked like they could be detached.I was surprised by how many cars were still parked in the estate since I visited during working hours. (Either everyone has more than one car, or they don’t drive to work.) I was almost unable to find street parking! Thankfully, (some of) the streets are wide enough that three cars can fit: i.e. you can have cars parked on both sides of the road, and a third can still traverse the path in between. As you can see, even the garbage truck can go through without issue.Another positive is that the streets are mostly straight, with quite a wide pavement in front of the houses. This allows the houses to park 2 cars on their properties (if they don’t close the gate.)This is what I mean. The first car can fit inside the porch, and the second can be parked like this.To illustrate how wide the street is.See what I mean about the “full house” street parking situation? In case the previous photo wasn’t clear.And so, of course, we saw quite a few rubbish bins being used to reserve parking spaces.Another example.Random photo of a house I like. (The one and black one.) It’s one of the few redeveloped properties in the area. However, as you can see, it is not much taller than its neighbours so it doesn’t look like there’s much plot ratio left to maximise, compared to other estates.Most of the houses I saw actually all looked the same (i.e. not rebuilt.)Although a few, such as the one above, had been touched up. (Improvements had been made but the overall look and feel were kept similar to the older properties.)Another example of a spruced up property. (New shutters.)This one has the funkiest windows I’ve ever seen. It looks iridescent.Another property that has been touched up.One end of Hillview Crescent directly borders Bukit Gombak Hill.Unfortunately, I couldn’t spot an entrance or path in. (The area also looks too densely forested for a leisurely stroll.)It does, however, make for easy turning of cars, and provides an extra space to park. (As this end of the street is broader.)Turning around and heading in the other direction: the view.See what I mean about ample pedestrian paths here? (Also none of the paths I saw were blocked by resident’s potted plants or belongings, making them easier to walk on.)Walking down the street: the taller apartment buildings are on my left. The greenery we see ahead is Bukit Batok Hill and Bukit Batok Nature Park.Some of the houses to the left have longer driveways (i.e. can potentially park three cars, with the gate opened.)I also saw several houses with solar panels, something worth noting, as not all terrace houses have enough roof area to allow for them. (According to the solar panel company I spoke to, that is.)At the end of the street are some bigger properties, under construction.The glass elevator looking out is a cool feature.The property looked big enough to be a detached, but it was still attached to its neighbour, so guess not.Walk to the very end of the street and you find an elevated playground (to the left.)As you can see from the stairs, it’s quite a bit above ground level.Area in front of the playground.Turning around and looking back (at Bukit Gombak Hill.)Once you climb up, this is what you see. Sadly it’s not breezier despite the higher location (probably because of the condo behind.)Turn to the right.Tiny exercise area- looks to be more for adults, though I guess the kids can run around this open space.View you get when exercising.Slightly further ahead, a few more rides for children.I was thinking that the staircase was impractical for people pushing buggies, but then I saw this ramp.Sounds like an interesting event.Quite a few congratulatory banners around the estate too.I’m guessing monkeys aren’t prevalent here, or residents wouldn’t be able to leave trash out in bags like this. (Unless you want to invite the monkeys over for a house party.)Another redeveloped house in the area.As mentioned, I also saw at least two detached units in the area. However, they’re unfortunately extremely close to the condos.So close, it feels like you can hop over from the balcony!Street in front of the detached unit.Some of the properties are also located slightly below the condo.And so close the condo’s kids could probably climb over!The two detached houses.Turn around, walk down the street, and we’re back where we started at the main road.
So how did you find this estate? Personally, I found it easier to navigate than Hillview Garden thanks to the wider roads. Unfortunately, the tall condo does loom over the properties. Let me know how you like it in the comments!
