$4 million restoration for heritage house

The unique features of this heritage house include a glass box entrance which links to a central swimming pool.

Tue, Oct 04, 2011
AsiaOne

 

A Singaporean spent nearly $4 million to restore this bungalow built in 1913.

Mr Ong Kok Thai, the managing director of a furniture company told The Straits Times that he bought the house in 2003.

Restoration work took place between 2007 and 2009.

 

Related: » Inside a club house on Sentosa

The unique features of this heritage house include a glass box entrance which links to a central swimming pool.

RT+Q Architects, the company who carried out the work of on the house, retained its original floor tiles on the ground level as well as original fittings such as the timber windows and doors as a nod to the house's 1920s charm.

 

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1900s shophouse gets revamp on shoestring budget

 

This early 1900s two-storey shophouse was restored on a budget of $400,000.

Its most striking feature is an industrial-looking spiral steel staircase in a cage of aluminium.

HYLA Architects' principal architect Mr Han Loke Kwang told The Straits Times that a conscious effort was made to restore and preserve walls, roof and timber floors.

To minimise construction costs, much of the old structure, such as timber floor boards were reused.

The unit was bought by a lawyer for $1.5 million and is currently being rented out to an expatriate couple.

 

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Contemporary home with pre-war shophouse character

 

A pre-war shophouse in Cairnhill Road retains its 1930s look while having a new modern feel.

The owners of the house added several contemporary features to the terrace house while maintaining its historic structure.

These features include a central courtyard with a koi pond, a retractable skylight and a roof terrace.

Principal artchitect Richard Ho, of RichardHO Architects told The Straits Times that the house is contemporary and yet "unmistakably tropical with a strong sense of place and history".

The house, which is owned by a Singaporean couple, took about 13 months to restore.

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