2 historical buildings in Pearl's Hill to make way for new homes

Three housing sites and one white site being primed for development in the area

- Ng Keng Gene

Two historical buildings in the Pearl's Hill vicinity are set to be demolished to make way for new housing developments, as part of government plans to build 6,000 new homes in the area over the next decade.

The former Singapore Restricted Passport Centre at the now-vacant 240 Outram Road - originally built as Coroners' Courts - and the former Pearl's Hill School at 175A Chin Swee Road each sit on a site that will be developed for residential use, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) confirmed with The Straits Times on April 19.

A proposed amendment to the URA master plan that was published on April 12 indicated that three housing sites and one white site are being primed for development in the area.

The third housing site is located at the intersection of Chin Swee and Outram roads, while the white site sits largely atop the underground Outram Park MRT station.

The note on URA's website said the proposed amendment will "facilitate public housing and a mixed-use development at Pearl's Hill as part of larger plans to progressively develop the area into an inclusive and community-centric neighbourhood with a mix of public and private homes".

This suggests that the three housing sites in the proposed amendment will be used for Housing Board flats, while the mixed use development is likely to include new private homes.

URA added that "the proposed developments will support demand for housing and allow future residents to tap the neighbourhood's proximity to workplaces in the city centre, amenities and transport nodes, such as Outram Park and Chinatown MRT interchange stations".

Two private residential projects in the area are also currently under construction the 774-unit One Pearl Bank, on the site of the former Pearl Bank Apartments, and the 396-unit The Landmark, located next to the former Pearl's Hill School.