People's Park Complex
Encyclopedia
People's Park Complex is a high-rise commercial and residential building on Eu Tong Sen Street
in Outram
, within the Chinatown
of Singapore
.
Located at the foot of Pearl's Hill, the site where the People's Park Complex currently stands was an open public park. It later became the People's Market or Pearl's Market with outdoor stalls which was destroyed by a fire
in 1966.
With a height of 103 metres (338 feet), the 31-storey People's Park Complex building was the first shopping centre of its kind in Southeast Asia and set the pattern for later retail developments in Singapore
. The shopping centre was completed in October 1970, while the residential block, in 1973. Occupying 1.0 hectare
in the heart of Chinatown
, the People's Park Complex was the largest shopping complex in the shopping commercial belt along Eu Tong Sen Street
and New Bridge Road
.
) with Tay Kheng Soon and Koh Seow Chuan. In its first year, the firm was successful with its architectural proposal for People's Park Complex.
The People's Park Complex is a large mixed-use development, consisting of offices and apartments above a podium
of shopping space. The complex was envisioned as "a new nucleus within the whole fabric of the city core", and was designed to revitalise one of the most populated and traditional enclaves in post-independent Singapore. Being a "people's shopping centre", the complex is strategically located in one of the most populous areas in Singapore's central business district.
The architecture of the complex scored several firsts in Singapore. Its name as well as the block of flats was the closest to Le Corbusier
's ideal of high-rise living, as expressed in his Marseilles Unité d'Habitation
, both in concept and in form.
The building's main tower accommodates a variety of apartment sizes, and access to them is independent of the shopping centre at the podium. Its 25 levels have been nickname
d "streets in the air", a development of the Corbusian ideal, and offer convenient spots for social interaction and intermingling. Design Partnership added verticals to the building's roof, enhancing the visual impact of the residential block. The roof-level common area contains shared amenities, like a crèche
and open-air play space, built for communal use.
The shopping centre incorporates the first "city room" or atrium
in Singapore, a concept that was pioneered by several Japanese architects under the Metabolist Movement
in the 1960s. When Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki
visited the site during construction, he exclaimed "But we theorised and you people are getting it built!". The shops in the shopping mall surrounds the large internal "city room", which consists of two multi-storey interlocking atriums, where a large number of "turn-over shops" and kiosk
s are located. The "city room" serves to retain the busy character of Chinatown.
The original exterior finish of the People's Park Complex was exposed raw concrete, in keeping with the Brutalist architectural style. This was also manifested in the design of the tower and podium, and the circular pothole
s topping off the residential building. Today, the building's façade
has been painted over with shades of green and maroon
.
(SCDF) subsequently found that the presence of such storerooms on that floor were not authorized; in breach of fire safety regulations.
Eu Tong Sen Street
Eu Tong Sen Street is a one-way road located in the central part of Singapore in the planning areas of Outram, Singapore River and Bukit Merah...
in Outram
Outram, Singapore
Outram is a district in Singapore, within the Central Area, relatively near the prominent city centre and financial districts, but is nearer the border of the Central Area, and outside the Downtown Core. Outram is served by extensive public transport, including SBS Transit and a Mass Rapid Transit ...
, within the Chinatown
Chinatown, Singapore
Singapore's Chinatown is an ethnic neighbourhood featuring distinctly Chinese cultural elements and a historically concentrated ethnic Chinese population. Chinatown is located within the larger district of Outram....
of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
.
History
The People's Park Complex was a commercial housing project undertaken by the newly formed Urban Renewal Department of the Housing and Development Board's Sale of Sites programme. The project was the subject of the programme's first sale in 1967.Located at the foot of Pearl's Hill, the site where the People's Park Complex currently stands was an open public park. It later became the People's Market or Pearl's Market with outdoor stalls which was destroyed by a fire
Fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....
in 1966.
With a height of 103 metres (338 feet), the 31-storey People's Park Complex building was the first shopping centre of its kind in Southeast Asia and set the pattern for later retail developments in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. The shopping centre was completed in October 1970, while the residential block, in 1973. Occupying 1.0 hectare
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
in the heart of Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
, the People's Park Complex was the largest shopping complex in the shopping commercial belt along Eu Tong Sen Street
Eu Tong Sen Street
Eu Tong Sen Street is a one-way road located in the central part of Singapore in the planning areas of Outram, Singapore River and Bukit Merah...
and New Bridge Road
New Bridge Road
New Bridge Road is a one-way road located within the Central Area in Singapore.New Bridge Road starts at the Coleman Bridge to the south of the Singapore River and extends into Chinatown within the Outram Planning Area, before joining with Eu Tong Sen Street and Kampong Bahru Road within the Bukit...
.
Architecture
In 1967, following the break-up of Malayan Architects Co-Partnership, William Lim set up Design Partnership (now known as DP ArchitectsDP Architects
DP Architects Pte Ltd is one of the largest architectural practices in Singapore.-Corporate Profile:DP Architects started as Design Partnership in 1967, incorporated as a private limited company in 1993, and evolved to the present as the heart of the DP group of companies – a multi-disciplinary...
) with Tay Kheng Soon and Koh Seow Chuan. In its first year, the firm was successful with its architectural proposal for People's Park Complex.
The People's Park Complex is a large mixed-use development, consisting of offices and apartments above a podium
Podium
A podium is a platform that is used to raise something to a short distance above its surroundings. It derives from the Greek πόδι In architecture a building can rest on a large podium. Podia can also be used to raise people, for instance the conductor of an orchestra stands on a podium as do many...
of shopping space. The complex was envisioned as "a new nucleus within the whole fabric of the city core", and was designed to revitalise one of the most populated and traditional enclaves in post-independent Singapore. Being a "people's shopping centre", the complex is strategically located in one of the most populous areas in Singapore's central business district.
The architecture of the complex scored several firsts in Singapore. Its name as well as the block of flats was the closest to Le Corbusier
Le Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier , was a Swiss-born French architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, famous for being one of the pioneers of what now is called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930...
's ideal of high-rise living, as expressed in his Marseilles Unité d'Habitation
Unité d'Habitation
The Unité d'Habitation is the name of a modernist residential housing design principle developed by Le Corbusier, with the collaboration of painter-architect Nadir Afonso...
, both in concept and in form.
The building's main tower accommodates a variety of apartment sizes, and access to them is independent of the shopping centre at the podium. Its 25 levels have been nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
d "streets in the air", a development of the Corbusian ideal, and offer convenient spots for social interaction and intermingling. Design Partnership added verticals to the building's roof, enhancing the visual impact of the residential block. The roof-level common area contains shared amenities, like a crèche
Day care
Child care or day care is care of a child during the day by a person other than the child's legal guardians, typically performed by someone outside the child's immediate family...
and open-air play space, built for communal use.
The shopping centre incorporates the first "city room" or atrium
Atrium (architecture)
In modern architecture, an atrium is a large open space, often several stories high and having a glazed roof and/or large windows, often situated within a larger multistory building and often located immediately beyond the main entrance doors...
in Singapore, a concept that was pioneered by several Japanese architects under the Metabolist Movement
Metabolist Movement
In the late 1950s a small group of young Japanese architects and designers joined forces under the title of "Metabolism". Their visions for cities of the future inhabited by a mass society were characterized by large scale, flexible, and expandable structures that evoked the processes of organic...
in the 1960s. When Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki
Fumihiko Maki
is a Japanese architect and currently teaching at Keio University SFC.- Biography :After studying at the University of Tokyo he moved to the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and then to Harvard Graduate School of Design. In 1956, he took a post as assistant professor of...
visited the site during construction, he exclaimed "But we theorised and you people are getting it built!". The shops in the shopping mall surrounds the large internal "city room", which consists of two multi-storey interlocking atriums, where a large number of "turn-over shops" and kiosk
Kiosk
Kiosk is a small, separated garden pavilion open on some or all sides. Kiosks were common in Persia, India, Pakistan, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward...
s are located. The "city room" serves to retain the busy character of Chinatown.
The original exterior finish of the People's Park Complex was exposed raw concrete, in keeping with the Brutalist architectural style. This was also manifested in the design of the tower and podium, and the circular pothole
Pothole
A pothole is a type of disruption in the surface of a roadway where a portion of the road material has broken away, leaving a hole.- Formation :...
s topping off the residential building. Today, the building's façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
has been painted over with shades of green and maroon
Maroon (color)
Maroon is a dark red color.-Etymology:Maroon is derived from French marron .The first recorded use of maroon as a color name in English was in 1789.-Maroon :...
.
2010 Fire
On 21 April 2010, a storeroom on the fifth floor caught fire, resulting in a huge blaze and with hunted corners and triggering a massive evacuation. No-one was hurt in the incident, but substantial damage was reported by tenants caused by soot and water leakage. The Singapore Civil Defence ForceSingapore Civil Defence Force
The Singapore Civil Defence Force is the main agency in charge of the provision of emergency services in Singapore during peacetime and emergency.A uniformed organisation under the purview of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the main role of SCDF is to provide...
(SCDF) subsequently found that the presence of such storerooms on that floor were not authorized; in breach of fire safety regulations.