The public tender for a cluster of 19 black-and-white bungalows at Adam Park in Bukit Timah was launched by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) on Tuesday, Feb 3.
The heritage properties are colonial bungalows built by the British as municipal staff housing before World War 2. They were used as a prisoner-of-war (POW) camp during the Japanese occupation of Singapore.
The conserved bungalows range from 3,766 to 6,703 sq ft, and were constructed in 1929 for the officers and families of the Municipal Council and Singapore Improvement Trust. Within the grounds, the large lawns, winding roads, and spacious bungalows remain largely intact.
These Art Deco-style bungalows will see a new lease of life as serviced apartments if a successful tender is awarded. The state-owned properties have been launched under a Concept and Price Revenue Tender on a 30-year leasehold tenure.
Under this approach, tenderers submit a concept proposal and tender prices separately. The concepts are evaluated first against criteria such as the overall development concept, quality of building design, maintenance plans, and the track record of tenderers.
Only compelling concept proposals are shortlisted and evaluated based on their tender prices.
Typically, the government rolls out this tender approach to ensure that historically significant sites are meaningfully repurposed and utilised, while respecting strict conservation guidelines and the overall vision.
So we can expect the residential concept coming up for this site will retain Adam Park’s rustic charm and honour its historical significance.
The site was a battle ground during the Battle for Singapore during the Second World War, and up to 3,000 British and Australian POWs were housed there during the Japanese occupation. Its wartime role can still be seen from a painted chapel wall mural on the upper storey of 11 Adam Park and the remnants of a POW calendar etched into the wall at the outhouse of 5 Adam Park.
You can read up on the history of the site here.
So, it makes sense that the government is making it a focus of the development plans for the site. For example, we know that some of the tender conditions include concepts that highlight the history of the site and the heritage properties, especially the bungalows at 5 and 11 Adam Park, where wartime artefacts are present.
The tender suggests heritage markers or storyboards, murals, walking trails, and publications, among others.
The entire site spans 12.8 ha, and the government expects minimal changes to the existing residential use. Moreover, SLA says that only limited new construction and extensions are likely to be approved to bring the site up to modern living standards.
One bungalow, 7 Adam Park, may see non-residential uses such as office, childcare centre, or F&B. Meanwhile, the bungalow at 11 Adam Park has the option to be converted into a clubhouse.
“Adam Park is a unique site that represents a significant part of Singapore’s built heritage and history. This tender aims to bring renewed life to the estate that will cater to evolving lifestyle trends, while ensuring its history is respected and honoured,” says Tan Puay Joo, Director of Land Sales (Private) of SLA.
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Frequently asked questions
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1 Comments
I am a retired small property developer; retired since 2001. Reason for retirement IS that land cost has increased too much to risk for profit and regulations too onerous. However, there are still need for small “projects” to fulfill small needs in society.
The Adam Road site is impossible to duplicate in today’s Singapore and the idea to conserve is excellent.
The govt should not look to profit from the land by sale; some form of conservation should be achieved to allow Singapore history to continue.
How to balance this is tricky; No business group would throw hard-earned money to try ideas if reward is uncertain because of unreasonable regulations..News ideas can be copied easily.
The successful tenderer should be treated as a partner to the project, providing the land and vacant property to enable successful operator to same financial reward.
All said, i hope the tender be big success for Singapore’s future.