SINGAPORE: A resident at a Bedok HDB estate was left puzzled after recent repainting works at the void decks resulted in oddly placed squares and rectangles of colour on the pillars.
On 6 September, the resident shared his frustration on TikTok in a post titled “Triggering my inner OCD”, which has since garnered over 95,500 views.
The images showed geometric shapes in various colours painted on white pillars, which appeared misaligned and did not follow the indents of the existing tiles.
The resident, who goes by the username bensolo219 on TikTok, expressed his frustration and questioned, “AHTC, why can’t you just paint the entire tile!”
In the comments, he clarified that he had no issue with the painting itself or the pattern.
His concern was that the contractor had chosen not to paint the entire tile, instead creating their own patterns.
He added that if the entire wall were flat, it would be acceptable, but since the wall has tiles, the result looked odd.
He likened it to a children’s pattern toy, where a triangle is placed into a square hole.
It was noted that in his June post, the void deck had a somewhat similar design, but it was coloured orange with some random square patterns in brick colour.
Mixed Public Reactions
The TikTok post attracted nearly 400 comments, with netizens expressing mixed opinions.
Some said the painted pillars looked fine from afar, while others joked that the patterns resembled QR codes or speculated that the design could be a cost-saving measure.
One resident claiming to live in the block commented: “We want something pleasing to the eyes when we go home. Instead, we see these mix-and-match patterns, which give me more headache.”
However, some netizens defended the work, noting that at least the pillars had been painted and given a pattern, whereas other blocks in the area had not been repainted for 10 years and many only had a single colour.
Possible Dementia-Friendly Design
Others suggested that the coloured patterns might be part of an initiative to aid dementia patients with wayfinding.
Prominent, contrasting colours and symbols on HDB blocks and public spaces help people with dementia navigate their surroundings more easily.
Town Council Response
Aljunied-Hougang Town Council explained that the repainting was designed to align with a designated colour scheme for the block, which had been selected by residents through a poll.
“However, we noted that the specifications were not closely followed, and the final outcome did not meet the Town Council’s expected standards,” the council said.
AHTC confirmed that it would follow up with the contractor to address the matter.
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