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Touring Mount Emily: Freehold Landed Conservation Shophouses And Terrace Homes On Top Of A Hill In District 9
Published 9 Jul 2023 |
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BY TJPublished 9 Jul 20230 comments | 14min read
BY TJ
TJ's interest in property was sparked after returning from the UK- where balconies are not counted in one's square footage!- and finding that the Singapore property had totally changed in the 7 years she was away. When not reading and watching articles & videos about property, she is busy cooking and baking for friends, family & her blog Greedygirlgourmet
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A month ago, I saw a notice advertising the sale of a freehold residential conservation shophouse at Niven Road. As I mentioned in my Blair Road walkabout, I’ve always loved heritage homes, so I thought I’d check out the area and see if it was worth a feature. (If it was just shophouses, it may be too similar to Blair Road to write about, so I wanted to see if it offered another unique angle.)
When exploring the area, I was delighted to find more residential houses, including terrace units (i.e. more affordable), virtually at the top of Mount Emily (which is pretty much next to Niven Road.) In Singapore, you usually have to have an obscene budget to enjoy such scenic surroundings – or they come with a catch such as being located under a very busy and noisy flyover (as with these Macritchie houses). So I was extremely surprised to see that there were terrace houses on Mount Emily (along Upper Wilkie Road) and thought it would make for an interesting tour! (Most of the old houses there have since been converted into boutique condos but as the terraces are located right at the corner, they don’t feel too hemmed in by the condos.)
If you’re having a hard time picturing the houses, follow me as I tour the area now!
Let’s start by locating where we are on the map: you really won’t get more central than this. Niven Road and Upper Wilkie Road are pretty much in between Bugis, Orchard, Plaza Sing and Little India!
You’re actually in between a few MRT stations, Dhoby Ghaut Interchange (where you can find the Circle, North East and North South Lines), Little India (Downtown North East Lines), Bras Brasah (Circle Line), Rochor and Bencoolen (Downtown Lines.) They’re all about 6-15 minutes walk away, so you can see how well-connected the area is!
Moreover, as shown in the URA Master Plan above, the houses are also a stone’s throw from St. Margaret’s Primary (honestly, a bit too close, in my opinion.) Some are also within 1 km of ACS Junior and Farrer Park Primary School.
For those with older kids, you’re also very close to SOTA, SMU and La Salle.
Something else worth pointing out is how the houses have plot ratios of 2.1 so, as many of their neighbours have done, they can be re-developed into boutique condos (in the absence of further restrictions.) Do note that they most likely won’t be able to take full advantage of the 2.1 plot ratio (usually able to build up to 24 stories), at least for the near future, as they’re very close to the Istana.
Another thing that I had not noticed till I checked out the Master Plan is the reserve sites (the yellow plots) next to Mount Emily. It’ll be interesting to see what they’re used for in the future, and what upgrades they bring to the area.
Now that we’ve gotten the basics out of the way, let’s get started with the tour!
Niven Road runs parallel to Selegie Road and perpendicular to MacKenzie Road, where you can find the original Old Chang Kee cafe, Chef Kang’s Kitchen (highly recommended for the fish soup) and Le Cafe (heritage confectionary that has been operating for over 50 years.) (Niven Road starts from Selera Restaurant, which is really a coffee shop dating back to 1965, as shown above.) Opposite Selera is the famous Old Chang Kee cafe. (This area was famous for Rex Curry Puffs – the name of the cinema here – back in the day!)MacKenzie Road has a large open-air public car park, where your friends and family can park when visiting during the festive season (if they can’t find spaces outside your house.) It’s so close to Little India MRT, we can see the entrance to the MRT in the photo above (just behind the trees.)As indicated on the signboard to the left of the photo, Little India MRT is only 100m away!I turn around at the same spot, and this is what I see. The public car park is behind me and Old Chang Kee/ Chef Kang is right in front.Cross the road and standing just outside Old Chang Kee (slightly beyond the white pillar to the right of the photo), I see the start of Niven Road, or Selera Restaurant. (This area has quite a few old eateries which have been in existence for decades.)For those interested in food history. If you’re wondering about the history of the famous Rex curry puff, here is an article by ieatishootipost. According to the sign, Old Chang Kee started here in 1986. (The cafe was closed as it was too early in the morning, but I could see that it is decorated in a vintage style. Pretty cute.)According to ieatishootipost, Selera also serves Rex curry puffs, so it’s not quite clear whether Rex curry puffs were the ones sold at Selera or at Old Chang Kee. I actually ate those curry puffs growing up and even I am not sure!The start of Niven Road is zoned commercial and residential, so you find some commercial units here. (Plot ratio 4.2 so we may see massive skyscrapers or even a hotel here one day.)I wasn’t sure what this was and a quick Google search revealed that it is a serviced accommodation. (According to Google, prices are under $200 per night.)
I actually saw several co-living residences in this area, so I guess I’m not the only one who finds this area a good location to stay in. (If not, there wouldn’t be enough demand to support all the co-living residences, which I’ll show photos of later. If you’re curious about co-living in Singapore, you can check out my unsponsored review, though note that I stayed in Chinatown and not here.)
Immediately after the commercial units is Mount Emily Road, which leads up to Mount Emily Park. (It’s also where you enter Parc Emily, the condo overlooking Mount Emily.)Sneak peek down Mount Emily Road (which is a dead-end for cars, although you can walk into Mount Emily Park from here.)However, let’s finish our walk down Niven Road before we explore another area. Walking down the shophouses along Niven Road here, which reminds me of the Everton Road/Blair Road area.Some taller buildings in between the shophouses.Not sure what the free thing is (cloth of some kind) but nice kampung spirit. It definitely feels friendlier than most cookie-cutter condos.As you can see there’s public parking outside the houses. Moreover, the shophouses come in various, quite different styles.I think that’s Selegie Court behind the houses (based on Google Maps.) As I couldn’t enter the shophouses, I’m not sure if that grey thing sticking up above the shophouse is an extension to the house, or part of the development behind.
Some conservation areas don’t allow you to make many modifications, but from what I’ve seen done to Niven Road Studio, they don’t appear as strict here. (Basically, they built a glass extension at the rear, which you can see if you click on the link.)
In between the shophouses, there’s also a back gate to a condo (I believe it is for Parc Emily, based on what I see on the MasterPlan. I didn’t see any signage around the gate so couldn’t confirm my guess.)More shophouses, in varying styles. You may have spotted how most of the car park lots along Niven Road are empty. Being so centrally located and within easy reach of so much public transportation, you probably don’t need a car!I like this white house!The black and white one is very smart too!Love the old-school mailbox!One of the houses was under construction.Cute red door. Looks like there’s some room to customise your property, even if it is a heritage building.Note that there are steps on the pavement (between some of the properties.) However, they should be not too difficult to manoeuvre even with a pram or wheelchair as I saw people pushing prams and people pushing wheelchairs getting around easily.You may have noticed that the houses don’t come with parking space. Here’s how much you have to pay for public parking (right in front of the properties) if you have a vehicle.We were almost at the end of the road when I came across this property. It’s the one for sale that I read about, for $5.2 million. (Recognised it by virtue of its unique black and white front tiles!) If you’re wondering about the sales history of the area, click through to the article which lists the last few sales at the end. (Although this is a very exclusive enclave, sales here are quite regular – 1 to 2 houses have sold almost every year in recent history.)Across the road is a Cove residence (One of the co-living options I mentioned earlier in this article.) If I had known they had a property here, I would have applied for it!Better angle for you to get a closer look at the property. I like how some of the rooms have balconies! (Which I had not seen at the previous conservation houses.)Walking down some more.There’s a cafe cum shop! (Not open at 9 in the morning though.) Another unit is for sale/rent, but it doesn’t look to be as nice as the previous one. Not sure if this is the property listing but, if so, the inside is pretty ostentatious!It is opposite a Gurdwara (Sikh place of worship.)Pretty much at the end of Niven Road now. There’s a string instrument shop here. That’s Wilkie Road ahead, with Sophia Road behind it. Citadines, a 4-star hotel, is to my left and Twenty Eight Cafe is to my right. (It was open when I was there, so it opens pretty early in the morning. Closes early too, according to Google – by 4.30 pm.)If you cross Wilkie Road and Sophia Road, you’ll reach The Cathay and Plaza Singapura. There’s also Park Lane, Sunshine Plaza etc nearby so no lack of amenities in this area.I’m going to explore the area along Wilkie Road so I take a right. There’s a church across the road so traffic/noise may be an issue on Sundays.Along Wilkie Road, you’ll find numerous boutique condos, mostly freehold. Some have been trying to en bloc in recent times.Parking along the road is regulated, so the road is pretty clear.Another co-living place! One of the newer developments in the hood. In case you can’t tell, it has foldable shutters, which I think is a nice touch, for privacy.First landed house I’ve seen along Wilkie Road. Love these old houses. And thankfully the condos next to it aren’t too tall, so it doesn’t feel oppressed!There’s also a daycare centre here. No reviews on Google of this Maplebear centre.Another apartment opposite. Followed by a construction site. Let’s take a closer look to see what it is.Another Gurdwara here. Oh, the construction site is actually St Margaret’s Primary! Schools within 1 km can help to anchor property prices but I find myself wondering how congested the area will be during drop-off and pick-up times…..The frontage of the school site isn’t huge. As shown above, the road isn’t very wide too so I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a bit of a nightmare when school is in session. These are the terrace houses I had mentioned at the start of the article. They’re directly opposite St. Margaret’s and next to the Gurdwara so I’m not sure how peaceful they are. (It was quiet when I was there but the temple and school were both not in session.) At the end of the short row of houses is a staircase and an open space.Looking back in the direction I had come from, houses to the left and school to my right.The road ahead loops back. (The Istana is in front.) I decided to walk up the stairs to explore.Oh, another row of terrace houses at the top! This one is much nicer than the previous one as it’s elevated and much windier. Moreover, it faces an open space (albeit on slightly higher land), so it has one of the most unblocked views you can get in Singapore.The houses are also nice and wide!I think this is another entrance to the Sikh temple we had seen before. Next to the temple is this lovely house. I like its unusual roof. Apparently, it’s for rent now. Can you guess how much? Answer: $60,000 at the time of writing…… It does have a pool if that makes the price more palatable.The road ahead is a cul-de-sac.PATS Schoolhouse to your left. According to Google Maps, there’s a church on Sophia Road, just behind the property, so you’re surrounded by places of worship here! (Zoned residential on the Masterplan though.)Another vintage property at the end of the road.According to the Master Plan, this site that is under construction has a plot ratio of 1.4 so it’s either going to be a huge house or a small apartment block. We’ve pretty much seen all the properties in the area, so I decided to turn around and head into Mount Emily Park. (It is zoned as a park, if you were wondering, so the houses here don’t have to worry about losing the view.)The Park is pretty small. However, it is a great spot to have right outside your house! (And the fact that it’s small means that it’s almost like your private garden, since I don’t think it’s really worth anyone travelling here just to walk around, unlike Botanic Gardens or Fort Canning.)That’s Parc Emily on your right, one of the condos I had looked at previously. (Do note that it’s on much lower-lying land than Mount Emily though.)Mid way into the park, I turned around to take a photo. The terrace houses are (sort of) behind this white property, so you can see how much higher up the land is.Looking across. This is the view the park-facing units of Parc Emily have. Amazing unblocked view, as you can see.Continuing my meander down.Reached the bottom of the park. Which is right above the public car park I had shown you at the beginning of the walkabout. No staircase down to the car park though, so you’ll have to make a slight loop around to get down. I turn right and walk down Mount Emily, where the entrance to Parc Emily is located.Back where we started the tour.I think I’ll walk out to Selegie Road so you can get a better look at the “main road” in the area.Looking down Selegie Road.And in the other direction.
That’s the end of today’s walkabout! How did you find the area? In my opinion, this is the best it can get in terms of convenience and access to shops, restaurants and amenities. Personally, I would love to live in the area!
When we started seeing runaway prices after Covid, there was a sense of “not this again,” and most market watchers…
Ryan J ·
3 Mar 2024 ·
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Before I go, I better mention the Peace Centre/ Peace Mansion en-bloc (which succeeded after its 5th try!) The 76,617 sq ft site is zoned for commercial use so it’ll be interesting to see what upgrades it brings to the area!
TJ's interest in property was sparked after returning from the UK- where balconies are not counted in one's square footage!- and finding that the Singapore property had totally changed in the 7 years she was away. When not reading and watching articles & videos about property, she is busy cooking and baking for friends, family & her blog Greedygirlgourmet
