Singapore Badminton Hall, Jurong Hill Tower among 5 sites earmarked for conservation
SINGAPORE: The Singapore Badminton Hall along Guillemard Road and Jurong Hill Tower will be mooted for conservation by Singapore's urban planning agency.
National Development Minister Desmond Lee said on Wednesday (May 14) that the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) will propose to conserve "significant buildings" at five sites, as part of its upcoming Draft Master Plan 2025.
The other three sites are:
The former Royal Malayan Navy Admin Block in Woodlands
Six blocks in Dakota Crescent estate
The two grandstands at Turf City in Bukit Timah
In a Facebook video on Wednesday, Mr Lee noted that the sites and buildings "help tell the story of Singapore's progress in the last 60 years", and their conservation is an "important way of anchoring our sense of place and identity as Singaporeans".
URA also said the sites and buildings reflect "significant aspects" of Singapore's development, underscoring its "strong, continued commitment to conservation".
SINGAPORE BADMINTON HALL
The history of the Singapore Badminton Hall (SBH) at 100 Guillemard Road can be traced back to the first few Thomas Cup tournaments, URA said.
Designed by pioneer Singaporean architect Ng Keng Siang and completed in June 1952, the hall hosted the third and fourth editions in 1955 and 1958.
It became the nurturing ground for top local badminton talents in the 1950s, such as Wong Peng Soon, Ismail Marjan and Ong Poh Lim.
The multi-purpose hall hosted other sporting competitions such as sepak takraw, table tennis and billiards, as well as entertainment events like movie screenings.
In 1962, the hall was used as the vote-counting venue for the referendum to merge Singapore, Brunei, Sarawak, Sabah and the Federation of Malay States to form Malaysia.
"These are important milestones in the development of Singapore's local sports scene as well as historic events in our nation's history,' said URA, adding that the National Heritage Board had marked the hall as a historic site in 1999.
"Today, it stands as an important marker of local identity and a repository of social memories."
URA said it will propose to conserve the building as a 'symbol of Singapore's humble beginnings and to mark historic moments in the local sports scene and our nation's evolution".
JURONG HILL TOWER
Jurong Hill Tower and Jurong Hill Park were planned by JTC in the late-1960s in tandem with the rest of Jurong New Town and the broader Jurong Industrial Estate, URA noted.
Featuring a unique spiral ramp and a viewing deck that offered visitors panoramic views, the tower was often visited by foreign heads of state and dignitaries between 1969 and 1984, as part of their tours of Jurong Industrial Estate.
'Jurong Hill Tower is a notable landmark in Jurong representing Singapore's economic transformation and industrialisation achievements after attaining independence,' said URA.
The authority also cited the tower's "historical, social and architectural significance" as reasons behind its conservation proposal.
DAKOTA CRESCENT
URA will be proposing to conserve a cluster of six blocks at Dakota Crescent estate – comprising four seven-storey blocks, one three-storey block, and one two-storey block.
Dakota Crescent is one of Singapore's oldest public housing estates and was built by the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) in 1958 to address overcrowding in the city centre and provide affordable homes to improve living standards of residents.
URA said that the cluster of six blocks surrounds the estate's courtyard where the dove playground is located. That playground has also been retained.
Four of them were laid out to form a square courtyard that is well-shaded and set apart from Old Airport Road, while the other two blocks had a waterfront view along Geylang River.
The design of the blocks' balconies were a unique feature of the estate, with some protruding from the facade and some recessed, URA said.
It added that two SIT projects built around the same era - the Tiong Bahru and Kampong Silat estates - were conserved in part in earlier years to commemorate Singapore's public housing story.
TURF CITY
Turf City in Bukit Timah was formerly home to Singapore's second racecourse from 1933 to 1999 and a popular horseracing venue, before the Singapore Turf Club's (STC) relocation to Kranji.
The site later served as a recreational and commercial hub, with spaces leased out for interim lifestyle and recreational uses until end-2023.
While about 15,000 to 20,000 public and private homes are planned for a new housing estate at Turf City in Bukit Timah over the next 20 to 30 years, URA said it will propose to conserve both the north and south grandstands as they are "significant landmarks in the area that had housed thousands of spectators".
"They are tangible reminders of the development of horse racing as a popular spectator sport and reflect Singapore's journey from colonial to post-independence periods."
URA noted the north grandstand is a "notable" example of Modernist architecture in comparison to the classical-style south grandstand.
"Both grandstands will be adapted to new uses and will be integral as focal points for the new community."
URA added that government agencies are studying the potential retention and adaptive reuse of 25 other buildings and structures on site, including the former secretaries' bungalows and Bukit Timah Saddle Club Clubhouse, with more details to be shared when ready.
EX-ROYAL MALAYAN NAVAL BASE ADMIN BLOCK
Completed in 1953, the former Royal Malayan Naval (RMN) Admin Block encapsulates decades of naval history, spanning Singapore's colonial era to post-independence.
The premises served as training grounds for generations of navy personnel, including locals recruited by the British in the 1950s, those serving Malaya after the RMN was handed over to the Malayan government in 1957, and RMN recruits who continued to train there even after Singapore gained independence in 1965.
'Over the years, the former RMN Base hosted major naval events and bore witness to the significant contribution of generations of Singaporeans, to naval defence,' URA said.
The site was eventually returned to Singapore in 1997 and repurposed as the Admiralty West Prison from 2011 to 2018.
URA said the site has been planned for a future residential estate since 1998 to offer Singaporeans more housing options in the north region.
Given the "heritage significance" of the former RMN Base, the authority added it is proposing to conserve the three-storey Admin Block and is studying potential new uses for the building to complement the future 'Housing by the Woods' development by the Housing Board (HDB).
The block was designed in Art Deco style, with features such as the former parade square and a rooftop observation deck.
Agencies and stakeholders are also exploring creative ways to celebrate the heritage of the site, such as recalling significant features in the design of future developments, said URA.
URBAN CONSERVATION PROGRAMME FIRST LAUNCHED IN 1989
The authority noted that since Singapore's urban conservation programme was launched in 1989, "over 7,200 buildings and structures in more than 100 areas" have been conserved.
According to URA, the Draft Master Plan 2025 is a key SG60 programme that translates land use strategies developed with Singaporeans and stakeholders into detailed plans for the next 10-15 years.
The authority said it will present the conservation proposals of relevant buildings at these five sites at the upcoming Draft Master Plan 2025 exhibition in June.
"Further plans for our built heritage will be announced at the same time," it added.
"Beyond retaining the physical form of our built heritage, URA and partner agencies will continue to work together with stakeholders on other ways to recall significant heritage that contributes to our collective history and culture."
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