B R I D G I N G
Melvin Tan

Melvin H J Tan is the Deputy Managing Director of LAUD Architects. He is the designer responsible for several award-winning projects such as Singapore Life Church and Philips APAC Center.  In 2017, he received the URA 20-under-45 award and currently serves as a council member of SIA.

Instead of being perceived as a dis-amenity and a hard concrete environment, Melvin asked himself: “What if dorms could be the very construct that brings green back to the urban fabric?” 

Spurred on by the notion of an “a tree for every worker” initiative as a form of “urban reforestation,” his proposal transforms the roofscapes of high-rise dorms into a shared but separate green realm for the benefit of the public. 

This typology can be inserted within harsh industrial precincts, acting as bridges to surrounding neighbours in the form of a park.