Press Releases
Celebrating our heritage stewards and enhancing Singapore’s built heritage landscape
8 November 2024
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Five project teams conferred the 2024 Architectural Heritage Awards for high standards in restoration and commitment in enriching our built heritage landscape.
Mun San Fook Tuck Chee temple at Sims Drive and 19 pre-war bungalows at Adam Park proposed for conservation in the lead up to Draft Master Plan 2025.
Beyond conserving buildings and structures of the highest significance, we will pursue other ways to recall and celebrate the rich heritage of ‘everyday places’. This will allow us to preserve memories and reinforce Singaporeans’ sense of place and belonging, even as our city continues to develop and modernise to meet future needs and challenges.
1. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has conferred the 2024 Architectural Heritage Awards (AHA) to five outstanding projects and teams, in recognition of their exemplary efforts in restoring heritage buildings and structures, and strong commitment in enriching Singapore’s built heritage landscape. Minister for National Development and Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration, Mr Desmond Lee, presented the five awards and four Special Mentions at the AHA ceremony today.
2. The AHA winners and Special Mentions are:
Award for Conservation
• 59 Emerald Hill Road
• Bukit Timah Railway Station (Distinction)
• Bukit Timah Truss Bridges
• Former 17, 19 & 21 Jiak Kim Street Warehouses
• St Joseph’s Church, Victoria Street
Special Mention
• 12 Mount Sophia
• Golden Bell Mansion
• Malabar Mosque
• Sri Mariamman Temple
3. Refer to
for more information of the projects,
for the jury citations, and
for details of the AHA scheme.
Celebrating stewards of our built heritage landscape
4. Since its inauguration in 1995, the AHA has honoured individuals and teams from different backgrounds, from building owners and developers to heritage professionals, who have made significant contributions in restoring Singapore’s conserved buildings and structures to the highest standards.
5. With the advancement of technical skills and professional capabilities, their contributions today have expanded beyond restoring and maintaining the architectural integrity of conserved buildings.
6. These individuals and professionals involved in the restoration of conserved buildings are now also exploring innovative ways of storytelling to recall our built heritage, and enhancing community outreach to strengthen the sense of identity and appreciation for Singapore’s built heritage.
Enhancing our built heritage landscape – buildings proposed for conservation
7. URA has also announced the proposed conservation of buildings in two areas – Mun San Fook Tuck Chee Temple at Sims Drive; and 19 pre-war bungalows at Adam Park.
8. These buildings were identified for conservation as a lead up to the Draft Master Plan 2025. As part of our conservation work, we are continually pursuing ways to strengthen the distinctive character and heritage of our towns, one of which is through conserving buildings that are of the highest historical and architectural significance.
9. The proposed conservation of the 19 pre-war bungalows at Adam Park as well as the Mun San Fook Tuck Chee Temple aims to protect their built heritage as important physical markers that capture the collective history and memories of our nation and different communities.
10. Refer to
for more details on the buildings proposed for conservation.
Recalling our heritage and memories beyond conservation
11. As a city-state with limited land, we take a highly selective approach to conservation, conserving only buildings and structures of the highest significance. However, we also recognise that everyday places – schools, workplaces, public spaces, and many other spaces that formed a big part of our lives at some point, can also play a significant role in capturing our memories and creating a sense of place, even if they may not meet conservation criteria.
12. To celebrate the rich heritage of these everyday places, we will explore creative ways to preserve their legacy. This includes selectively retaining key elements of buildings that are most meaningful or putting up markers to commemorate the history of specific buildings or sites.
13. These efforts allow us to preserve memories and reinforce the spirit of our city’s heritage and strengthen Singaporeans’ sense of place and belonging, even as our landscape continues to evolve and modernise.
Partnering the community to share our built heritage
14. In conjunction with AHA 2024, the month-long Architectural Heritage Season (AHS) will feature a diverse lineup of activities and educational programmes organised by URA in collaboration with community partners and stakeholders.
15. Kickstarting the AHS will be an exhibition showcasing the AHA 2024 winners at The URA Centre Atrium. There will also be tours, site visits and talks catering to both the general public and professionals to increase appreciation of our built heritage. A key highlight of AHS, the symposium “Beyond Buildings: Sustainability in Built Heritage” will bring together esteemed speakers from France and local experts to explore the themes of heritage and sustainability in architecture.
16. Through these efforts, URA hopes to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of our built heritage and the dedicated efforts that went into their restoration and upkeep.
17. Refer to
for details of the AHS.