Sunbird Apollo

Our Estate

Estate Map

Sunbird-Apollo Estate is located on the eastern side of Singapore and is within the East Coast GRC and Changi Simei CCC.

The estate is bounded by the East-West MRT Line to the West, Upper Changi Road to the South, Simei Road to the East and both the Simei Green and Double Bay Residences Condominiums to the North. The total perimeter of the estate is about 1.5km and it occupies an approximate area of 80,000sq meters, equivalent to 20 acres or 8 hectares.

Sunbird Park is the heart of the estate, complete with a playground and two pavilions, it serves as a venue for many estate-wide functions such as the Chinese New Year Celebrations, Mid-Autumn Festival and many more.

Located as part of District 16, the estate is a preferred estate in the east side of Singapore due to its close proximity to facilities such as Changi Airport, Singapore Expo, Changi Business Park and 3 MRT Stations namely Upper Changi (DT34), Simei (EW3) and Expo (CG1|DT35) Station. Commuting to the Central Business District (CBD) takes about 20 minutes and it takes a mere 10 minutes to travel to the Changi Airport via car or MRT.

Sunbird-Apollo Estate has a good mix of double to triple storey semi-detached houses and terraces. She also houses a couple of walk-up apartments, namely Sunbird View and Apollo Gardens.

Getting Here

The estate can be reached by the following means:

By Bus
5 bus services serve the estate. Bus Service Number 2, 5, 12, 20, 24 and 38 link the estate to various parts of Singapore.

By Train
Three MRT stations—Simei (EW3), Expo (CG1 | DT35), and Upper Changi (DT34)—are located within approximately 500 to 600 metres of the estate. Among these, Simei MRT Station is the most convenient as it is the closest. From the station’s main exit, cross the pedestrian crossing and proceed along the NParks Connector beneath the westbound MRT tracks. Sunbird View Apartments will appear on the left after passing Modena Condominium. The remainder of the Sunbird–Apollo Estate is situated just across the canal, adjacent to Sunbird View Apartments.

By Car
The estate is accessible via the nearby East Coast Parkway (ECP), Pan Island Expressway (PIE) and Tampines Expressway (TPE).

Nearby

Shopping Malls

• Eastpoint Mall

• Tampines Mall

• Bedok Market Place

• Century Square

• Loyang Point

• Changi City Point

• Tampines One

Places of Interests

• Singapore Expo

• Changi Chapel And Museum

• Downtown East

• Changi Village

• Changi Beach Park

• Pulau Ubin

Childcare Centre

• Eureka Schoolhouse

• Star Learners @ Changi Simei

• Moriah Child Care And Development Centre

• Iman Childcare (Simei)

• Mindchamps Preschool @ Changi Business Park

• Bloom Educare

• My First Skool

• KidsCampus Changi Simei Childcare & Infant Care Centre

• Changi General Hospital Child Care Centre

• PCF Sparkletots Preschool

Sunbird-Apollo Community Garden

In the far northern side of the Sunbird-Apollo Estate lies our Community Garden, a sanctuary of a wide variety of plants ranging from fruit trees to edible plants, located along the stretch of land opposite 51 t0 55 Sunbird Circle.

The community garden is a green space kindly granted by the Singapore Land Authority and the Changi-Simei CCC, where residents from all around the estate and neighbourhood come together to appreciate nature and to re-live the kampung spirits in everyone.

The garden is also a favourite outing and learning venue of the childcare centres in the estate, where teachers bring the young students for an educational experience and their weekly dose of nature and sunshine.

On the 10th July 2021, the Sunbird-Apollo Residents' Network (formerly Sunbird Apollo Neighbourhood Committee) successfully held the first Sunbird-Apollo Community Garden Day, where an assortment of plant saplings was given out to residents to encourage and foster the spirit of sharing and interest in planting.

Plant Variety:

• Thai Basil

• Aloe Vera

• Ball Cactus

• Pandan Plant

• Rooster Head Plant

• Drimiopsis Maculata

• Winter Melon

• Pineapple Plant

• Chili Padi Plant

• Citronella Plant

• Pucuk Manis (Mani-Cai)

• Tillandsia Air Plants

• Sawtooth Coriander

• Lady Finger Plant

• Torenia Plant

• Caladium Plant

• Begonia Plant

• Indian Borage

Our History

1960 – 1980 – Hainan Village

Prior to the houses one see in Sunbird Apollo Estate, this area was a tropical fish farming village. Due to the large number of Hainanese living in the village, it was often referred as “Hainan Village”. In fact, several original villagers still live in the estate till today.

In the 60s and 70s, this area was also referred as Changi 10 Miles. Before Simei HDB estate was built, much activities was centred near the old Changi Simei CC located opposite the present Shell Station along Upper Changi Road East.

_{How Sunbird estate got her name is not clear. But the truth is that Sunbirds, such as the one shown above, are a common sight in our estate and have probably visited many gardens of our fellow residents.}

1980 – 2000 – Development of Apollo Gardens and the 1st housing projects of Sunbird Apollo estate.

The initial development was the rows of semi-detached and terraces houses facing Sunbird Circle and along Sunbird Avenue. These were built from 1980 to 1983. Mr Chia who was the architect of this development still lives along Sunbird Circle.

Original designs of the houses consist of triangular walls design which one presume was to give is a space or aerodynamic look. Over the years, the triangle walls design were slowly reshaped and blended into new renovations when new owners moved in.

_{North-eastern corner of Sunbird Park looking westwards along Sunbird Circle}

_{Junction of Sunbird Road & Circle looking northwards}

^{South-western corner of Sunbird Park looking eastwards along Sunbird Circle}

^{Part of Sunbird Circle looking northwards towards Simei Green Condo}

Some local residents recounted stories that the developer of the estate was advised that for better FengShui, they need to have a block of higher development to contain the “good fengshui and prevent it from escaping” from the estate. This was the local myth why Apollo Garden was subsequently built in late 1986. It is a walk-up cluster house concept consisting of 38 units and the addresses are numbered as 581/581A to 617/617A Upper Changi Road

All 38 units in Apollo Gardens were double-story apartments and had an average built in area of 2000sq ft each. Features of this development include a common pavilion that can hold up to 50 persons and common BBQ pits. She also has an auto gate and security features such as surveillance cameras. There are 38 dedicated sheltered and 20 common open parking lots within the apartments. The apartment is managed by her own elected Management Committee. Interesting the design of Apollo Gardens was built to face inwards to the park rather than the main Upper Changi Road.

^{Apollo Gardens}

How Apollo Gardens got her name are many residents’ guesses. Amongst many logical explanations was that the apartment was named after the USA NASA Apollo Lunar Missions which started in 1961 till 1975. Other reasons were that it was built with the intended market of RSAF personnel serving Changi Air Bases and the newly built Changi International Airport which came into service in Dec 1981. Records confirmed that former Singapore Cabinet Minister and former Republic of Singapore Air Force General; General George Yeo once lived in Apollo Gardens.

Historically, Apollo is the name of a Greek mythical god. He is the son of Zeus and the nymph Leto, and the twin brother of Artemis. The Greeks often thought of Apollo as being the same as Helios, the Sun god, and so he is one of the sky gods who always beat out the earth gods in Greek myths.

Sunbird Playground – Quiet and tree-shaded park bounded by Sunbird Circle

Sunbird Playground is located within Sunbird Circle. This is where many events of the neighbourhood were held. This park is special in that the trees are at least 30 years old or more meaning some of them has been here before the estate was even built.

1990s – Coming of Sunbird Park, houses from 1 to 181 Sunbird Road

Sunbird Park was a development by a company called Duchess Development Pte Ltd. Houses numbered 1 to 181 Sunbird Road and Sunbird View were projects from this company. In Sunbird Park Phase 1, houses numbered 101 to 181 Sunbird Road, a total of 41 houses were built and completed around 1991/92. These sold well during the period of property boom in the early 90s.

_{Sunbird Phase 2, the same number of 41 houses numbered 1 to 81 Sunbird Road were built and completed around 1993 consisting of 41 houses.}

_{Sunbird View, a 4 storey walk-up apartment was added and completed by 1997. Here another 15 households were added to the growing estate of Sunbird Apollo. This development is manage by a Management Committee who takes care of all maintenance matters such as the Security Camera system, Auto-Gate and the general cleanliness of the surrounding grounds and gardens.}

Final 8 semi-detached houses

The final and last addition to Sunbird Apollo Estate were these 8 semi-detached houses built along Sunbird Avenue and Sunbird Circle. It was believed that these houses was built on a vacated land previously an open waste water sump which was unused for many years and backfilled.

222 households of Sunbird Apollo Estate

As of today, the estate has a total of 222 households. From the look of it, it is unlikely that there is any more land for more houses to be built within Sunbird Apollo estate except for bigger houses when new residents rebuild or existing ones upgrade.

Trivia

How many species of Sunbirds are there in Singapore?

Six.

Which Minister had lived in Apollo Gardens?

 Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. George Yeo Yong Boon, who was a RSAF Officer before joining politics.

What was at Sunbird Playground before it was built?

Secondary Forest

What used to be located at the site of Apollo Gardens?

Tropical fish ponds and farms.

What used to be located at Sunbird Road Phase I and II?

Vegetable Farms

What used to be located near the old Changkat Changi Secondary School / Jalan Tiga Ratus?

Beehoon Factory

Residents' Network Committee

The Residents' Network Committee currently consists of the following members who are all volunteers and residents from the estate. They are appointed by the People’s Association and their term of office is from 01 July 2025 to 30 June 2027.

Objectives of our RN

1. To look after the general interests of our estate

2. To promote neighbourliness and a community spirit among our residents

3. To promote security and prevent crime in our estate

Formative Years of our RN

The Sunbird Apollo RN (formally known as Sunbird-Apollo NC) was officially formed on 1 November 2000. It has its roots way back in 1993 when 2 families (Steven Lau and Roland Boh) decided one late night to form a small neighbourhood group to get to know our new neighbours who have just moved into Sunbird Road Phase 2 and to promote neighbourliness. We managed to gather 4-5 interested families and met regularly.

In 1997, when Mr David Lim Tik En was elected as a Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC (Changi Simei), of which Sunbird-Apollo Estate was part of, he encouraged us to form what was then known as a Residents’ Association (RA) for private estate residents. A meeting with the residents of Sunbird-Apollo was called to explain the purpose and objectives of forming a RA for the 220 households in our estate.

Most of the residents present at our first meeting at the Changi Community Center on 29 August 1997 gave positive and constructive feedback. Our first RA committee comprising of 12 members was thus nominated on 3 October 1997 with the following objectives:

1. To look after the general interests of our estate

2. To promote neighbourliness and a community spirit among our residents

3. To promote security and prevent crime in our estate

In 1998, our RA was renamed to Area Sub-Committee (ASC) and a few years later in 2000, our ASC was renamed to Neighbourhood Committee (NC) under a new initiative by the People’s Association to cater to the needs of Private Estate Residents in the designated neighbourhood. Since then, we have worked closely with the various government agencies such as NPC, NParks, NEA to look after the general interests and security of our estates. Over the past years we have also organized numerous activities to promote neighbourliness. These include:

Chinese New Year Celebrations
Bowling Competition
Farm Tour
Mid-Autumn Festival
Malaysia Tour
Residents’ Night
MP Estate Walkabout
NPC Estate Walkabout

Contributions

Our Beautiful and Special Estate

A contribution from Ms Yoo Peck Sze from 104 Sunbird Circle

Up in the morning, the Sun arises
A yellow birdie hopping onto my window still
Singing beautifully in top notch voice

The houses, the gardens all adorned with flowers
The eager children all out to play
Chasing in circles round and round
No happier are than others!

The sun god Apollo shines on us
Which I shall be proud to say
This is here where I stay,
Sunbird Apollo Estate

Oh, What a joy to stay here
Oh, What a place to play
Peaceful, safe, warm and united
I am sure we are happier than others

The lanterns, candles, mooncakes & tea
Come and join on this happy day
Together we shall enjoy
The mooncake festival celebration!!

Follow us on social media!

Sunbird Apollo RN Facebook Page