COMPANIES in Singapore should really stagger their lunch hours. The way it is now, you have to jostle the masses during peak-time lunch hours at HDB coffeeshops.
Chances are, all the seats will be taken, people will be milling around waiting for a space to open up, and you will feel frustrated, especially if you have driven to the place for a bite.
But if the coffeeshop is next to an HDB block with a void deck, I wonder why that space can’t be utilised to contain the overflowing crowd.
In Chai Chee, I have actually seen enterprising hawkers in a busy kopitiam put up tables and chairs in the void deck of an HDB block facing the eatery.
Five or six tables were provided and they made for a happy gathering point for the lunchtime crowd. The tables were quickly cleared after the human traffic thinned.
But, in recent months, I have not seen the tables there. Maybe someone complained to the town council that the void deck was being used for unauthorised purposes?
Perhaps the hawkers were warned not to repeat their space-invader action?
I know residents in the block probably did not like the din created by the chattering lunch-time crowd.
They may also have been concerned about the issue of hygiene, from floors splattered with food stains and sauce to how quickly the leftover food and plates and utensils were cleared.
These are valid concerns and no one wants his immediate environment to be tarnished.
But in space-jammed Singapore, there is also the need to maximise the usage of space and allow community needs to prevail over personal ones, if they make sense.
People needing to eat lunch surely qualifies as a necessity.
Eating in a coffeeshop is a popular option. So, what if hawkers could be allowed to "borrow" the void-deck for a fixed duration, say from noon to 2pm?
What if they hire cleaners or staff to ensure that the space used is kept spotless after each usage and that rubbish is removed as quickly as possible?
What if only a portion of the void deck was used, and that this space was far away from the lobby and lift areas?
What if the town council actually levied a charge on the hawkers and that money in return went towards reducing the monthly service and conservancy charges of residents?
These issues could well be food for thought the next time you are desperately hunting for a lunch-time seat lunch in a coffeeshop.
What do you think of this idea? Leave your comments below.