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Shenton House, Singapore

Shenton House is a building on Shenton Way in the Central Area of Singapore featuring a shopping podium underneath a 20-storey commercial tower. It was among the first buildings in Singapore to feature such a design.

History The complex, which was to be developed by joint-venture firm Kian Seng Realty Limited, was one of several in the area which intended to address the “perennial shortage of office space in the central business district.” The 24-storey complex, which was scheduled to be completed by early 1973, was to feature a tower block resting on a shopping podium, thus providing the tower with a “floating look.” The third and fourth floors were to contain a carpark with a capacity for 200 vehicles while the top two floors were reserved for a restaurant and a private penthouse. The complex would be fully air-conditioned via a central water tank and was to feature four automated lifts which could travel 700ft per minute with a capacity for 20 people, as well as two pairs of escalators between the ground and first floors and the first and second floors. The complex was designed by Tay Joo Teck Chartered Architects while Lian Hup Contractors served as the main building contractor for the project. The piling ceremony for the building, which was estimated to cost $14 mi ll i o n t oco n s t r u c t, w a s h e l d in Dece mb er 1969. T h e b u i l d in g w a sco m pl e t e d in 1975, w i t hm os t o f i t s u ni t s ha v in g b ee n so l d o ff b y M a y . I t s d es i g nha s b ee n d escr ib e d a s " m o d er n g o t hi c ". F e a t u reso f t h e b u i l d in g in c l u d e i t s " t e x t u re d " f a \overset{c}{\c} a d eo f v er t i c a l an d h or i zo n t a l ban d s, w i t h w in d o w s t ha t a rese t ba c kan d s t r u c t u r a l e l e m e n t s t ha t d o u b l e a ss u n - b re ak ers . T h e b u i l d in g^{'} ss h o pp in g p o d i u m w a s l ink e d t o t h oseo f t h e U I CB u i l d in g an d R o bina Ho u se, f or min g a " co nn ec t e d, co n t in u o u s u r ban p o d i u m w i t ha s h o pp in g b r i d g e t ha t e mb o d i e d p re v ai l in g i d e a so f m e g a s t r u c t u r a l u r bani s m ." T h eco m pl e x w a so n eo f se v er a l s k yscr a p ers f e a t u r in g s h o pp in g p o d i u m s t o ha v e b ee n co m pl e t e d in t hi s p er i o d, a l o n g w i t h R o bina Ho u se, t h e U I CB u i l d in g, t h e S hin g K w an Ho u se an d t h eD BSB u i l d in g, a s p a r t o f t h e U r ban R e n e w a l De p a r t m e n t^{'} s a tt e m ptt oco n v er tS h e n t o nWa y in t o " S in g a p or e^{'} s Wa llSt ree t ". I n 1977, a$ 2 million fully air-conditioned pedestrian and shopping overhead bridge over Shenton Way was completed. The bridge, which was named the Golden Bridge and was occupied by 18 shops and a snack bar, linked the Shenton House and the UIC Building to the DBS Building and the Shing Kwang House. Before the completion of the Sim Lim Tower on Jalan Besar in 1981, the head offices of Sim Lim Finance Limited were located within the complex. In 1981, several of the building’s tenants proposed a facelift for the building. However, several other tenants were not in favour of the plan as they had yet to obtain strata titles. The complex was one of several in the area to have undergone major facelifts in 1985. In December 1988, Sim Lim sold off the carpark, its offices on the highest office floor of the complex and a shop unit on the third floor for $2.4 mi ll i o n . I n 2007, T h e R o bina Ho u se w a s d e m o l i s h e d t o mak e w a y f or O n e S h e n t o nWa y w hi l e t h e U I CB u i l d in g w a s d e m o l i s h e d t o mak e w a y f or V o n S h e n t o nin 2013. T h e G o l d e n B r i d g e w a s d e m o l i s h e d in 2016. I n M a rc h 2012, t h e b u i l d in g w a s p u t u p f orco ll ec t i v es a l e w i t hanin d i c a t i v e p r i ceo f$ 530 million. In February 2023, the complex was again put up for collective sale with a reserve price of $590 mi ll i o n . Ho w e v er, a f t errece i v in g n o bi d s, t h e t e n d erc l ose d o n 11 A p r i l . T h e b u i l d in g w a s a g ain p u t u p f ore nb l oc k s a l e in O c t o b er w i t ha reser v e p r i ceo f$ 538 million instead. It was sold to Shenton 101 Pte Ltd. The complex has been placed on Docomomo Singapore’s “Modernist 100” list of “significant modernist buildings in Singapore.”

References

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Shenton House, Singapore

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