08 Jun 2023
Weaving stronger bonds at Frasers Tower through placemaking and community engagement
Roxanne Lee (first from left), Head of Community Management, Commercial, Frasers Property Singapore with tenants from Frasers Tower and their completed 13-metre long scarf for our adopted bear.
Stitch by stitch, it slowly came together. After four months of painstaking work, the 13m-long scarf was finally completed. Made up of more than 200 granny squares – a classic crochet pattern – the green, red and white handiwork was the perfect Christmas decoration.
Dozens of tenants at Frasers Tower in Singapore’s Central Business District had gathered every Wednesday since September 2022 at lunchtime to complete the project. For that hour or so, conversation and laughter would flow freely as hands and crochet hooks moved busily at The Terrace on the fourth floor, one of four community zones in the building.
The task was to provide the perfect Yuletide accessory for a 4m-tall cardboard bear, a sustainable art installation in the lobby. But the wider goal was for different stakeholders of Frasers Tower, from the building management team to employees of our tenants, to weave a strong bond with one another in the building.
This is a big part of placemaking, said Ms Roxanne Lee, Head of Community Management, Commercial, at Frasers Property. “Placemaking is about having a space that is fully utilised not just for our office tenants and visitors, but also for the community at large.”
It also entails planning and managing public spaces to add vibrancy and a sense of community to the area.
While her job is to facilitate this, it is also something she personally finds deeply enjoyable and fulfilling. An avid hobbyist, she kickstarted the crocheting interest group at Frasers Tower and came up with the idea to adorn the giant bear with the larger-than-life scarf.
Her passion for connecting with people is one main reason she joined the real estate sector almost two decades ago, when she first started as a concierge. “I genuinely enjoy a good conversation with people, connecting with people on a personal level and connecting people with people,” said Roxanne, who oversees Frasers Property's placemaking efforts across its commercial properties in Singapore.
To her, the job is also about forging collaboration and rekindling the purpose of events in a post-pandemic world.
Building win-win partnerships
Roxanne’s placemaking efforts have drawn the Fraser Tower community closer, with cascading benefits. As tenants feel more welcome in the space, Roxanne and her team are able to serve them better. The stronger ties increase the touchpoints between tenants and management, smoothening the process when, for example, tenants wish to organise their own events.
Some areas of collaboration are win-win, such as a sustainability-focused event that Microsoft, a major Frasers Tower tenant, organised in April this year. "Microsoft roped in their partner from National Parks Board and provided a panel of speakers on how artificial intelligence helps sustainability causes, and we provided the venue and lunch,” Roxanne recalled. “That’s how we pool our resources together to create more impactful events touching even more people.”
Beyond sustainability, Frasers Property is also committed to investing in the community, working with like-minded partners to support social causes. An example is raising funds for a non-profit that provides a safe haven for vulnerable children.
In 2022, Frasers Property encouraged tenants to contribute by organising charity flea markets across its commercial properties. It also held a public vertical challenge at the 39-storey Frasers Tower, where more than 200 participants raced to the picturesque Sky Garden at the top, raising over S$4,000 for Children’s Aid Society (CAS).
The campaign resonated so deeply with one of the tenants, Cooley, that the law firm donated S$28,000 to CAS, enabling Frasers Property to hit the S$65,000 target for the year.
“We rally our tenants to do good with us,” said Roxanne, who shared that Cooley has made further donations this year.
The allure of physical events
For Roxanne, COVID-19 was a sobering reminder of the importance of face-to-face events in placemaking. Stay-home measures greatly impeded the process of getting to know tenants during the “standstill” days of the pandemic, she recalled, while subsequent hybrid events did not provide the same level of engagement. When restrictions loosened, her team made sure to have catch-ups with tenants over coffee.
Still, changing trends post-pandemic have posed challenges to placemaking. For example, with many companies still on remote or flexible work arrangements, there are challenges in drawing the crowds or finding common timeslots for events. Roxanne revealed some tenants have in fact asked Frasers Property to organise more events to attract their employees back to the office.