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For other places with the same name, see Peranakan Place (disambiguation).

Peranakan Place is a row of 8 two-storey historic shophouses built in 1902 at the intersection of Emerald Hill Road and Orchard Road in the planning area of Newton in Singapore. In 1895, it was included in the Emerald Hill conservation area and was the pilot restoration and development project conducted by the Urban Development Authority (URA). It is now used as a commercial building that contains a variety of developments.

History

Establishment

Peranakan Place was named after the Peranakan people who were a large proportion of the inhabitants in the Emerald Hill area. After businessmen Seah Boon Kang and Seah Eng Kiat subdivided the land into the 28 lots as it is found today, houses were built on the land from 1902 to 1930, with the original shophouse being one of the earlier developments. Prominent late architect and conservationist Lee Kip Lin in his publication Emerald Hill: The story of a street in words and pictures (1984) reckoned that around 40 percent of the occupants in the 1930s were Peranakan, noting its popularity as a place of residence.

In the early 1980s, proposals were put forth to consider the conservation and integrity of the Emerald Hill buildings. This led to the subsequent pedestrianisation of the road in 1981 starting from the intersection at Orchard Road. The gantry of the Area Licensing Scheme (ALS), which was later replaced by Electronic Road Pricing (ERP), was thus removed with this road closure. In August 1985, the Urban Redevelopment Authority designated the Emerald Hill site as a conservation area, and with the setting-up cost of $2.2 million, restored 6 two-storey shophouses facing Orchard Road. They renamed the pilot restoration project Peranakan Place.

Old Peranakan Museum

In the early 1990s, Peranakan Place, which now included 2 Emerald Hill, housed Singapore’s first Peranakan museum. The museum was styled to resemble a typical Peranakan household. Pieces included a traditional altar, a bridal chamber, and a peep hole over the front door of the house, which still exists today. The museum was later replaced by other developments and the new Peranakan Museum has since found its way to the old Tao Nan School site on Armenian Street and was opened in 2008.

Present Day

Peranakan Place as it stands today is a commercial development that holds businesses ranging from F&B to retail. As the front faces the main shopping district of Orchard Road, the historic building receives a higher volume of traffic as compared to the quieter housing areas further in on Emerald Hill Road. The owners and tenants are thus required to abide by strict conservation standards set by the URA to ensure that the integrity of the building is preserved.

Architecture

Peranakan Place is made up of 6 separate shophouses that were combined to form a single complex. The shophouse is an iconic South-East Asian design that was popular in the 1960s and has recently experienced a revival due to the growing focus on historical preservation.

During the process of restoration, the interiors of the terrace shophouses were torn down, leaving the exteriors remaining. They were then rebuilt to include more room for business occupants. The display of a Chinese Baroque style of architecture, which uses a mélange of Chinese and European influences, can still be seen from the colourful yet structured façade.

Further, the original alley that separated the 180 Orchard Road plot and 2 Emerald Hill plot was roofed and the land leased from the Land Transport Authority in 1999 to incorporate the food and beverage option Alley Bar, showcasing the unique usage of land space in the highly sought-after conservation area.

Literature on the Emerald Hill Area

Aside from the fictional stories written by local Singaporean writers inspired by the area, such as Emily of Emerald Hill by Stella Kon, much has been written about the history and conservation of Emerald Hill and Peranakan Place. These include several of the late academic and conservationist Lee Kip Lin’s publications.

External links

• Peranakan Place website
• Urban Redevelopment Authority website