SLA launches tender for pre-WWII heritage bungalow cluster at historic Adam Park site

[SINGAPORE] The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) on Tuesday (Feb 3) launched a tender for a cluster of 19 residential heritage bungalows at Adam Park.

With a 30-year leasehold tenure, the bungalow cluster stands on a 12.8 hectare (ha) site in Adam Park, which is zoned for residential use.

The site is situated on high ground off Adam Road and near amenities along Dunearn Road. It has an existing gross floor area of 9,137 square metres (sq m).

Tan Puay Joo, SLA director of land sales (private), noted that Adam Park, a battleground site during World War II, “is a unique site that represents a significant part of Singapore’s built heritage and history”.

“This tender aims to bring renewed life to the estate that will cater to evolving lifestyle trends, while ensuring its history is respected and honoured,” Tan added.

To ensure that the selected concept proposals align with the vision for the site, a concept and price revenue tender approach will be adopted for the tender, SLA said.

Under this approach, tenderers submit their concept proposals and tender prices separately.

Concept proposals are first evaluated against criteria outlined in the tender, which covers the overall development concept, quality of building design, rehabilitation and maintenance plans and tenderers’ track records.

Only compelling proposals are shortlisted to proceed to the next stage of evaluation, which is based on price.

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The tender will close on Aug 4, 2026. Details about the land parcel are available on SLA’s website.

Historic pre-WWII site

The conserved buildings on the site are a mix of black and white and Art-Deco style colonial bungalows of different sizes, ranging from 350 to 623 sq m.

They were constructed in 1929 by the British government as municipal staff housing before World War II, and were used for officers and families of the Municipal Council and Singapore Improvement Trust.

SLA noted that the bungalows are “a good example of how a residential estate built by the Municipality was laid out and organised”.

It added: “Within the grounds, the large lawns, winding roads and spacious bungalows for municipal accommodation remain largely intact.”

Adam Park became a battleground during World War II and the bungalows served as prisoner-of-war (POW) camps during the Japanese occupation of Singapore, housing up to 3,000 British and Australian POWs.

Vision for the site

The site is envisioned to be used for serviced apartments that will be surrounded by greenery, with minimal changes to the current residential function of the bungalows, SLA said.

The authority said that only “limited” infill development and extension works may be carried out on the site to adapt it for modern living, while retaining its rustic charm and landscape.

Such works can be conducted for up to 2,000 sq m of space on the site and must be limited to a single storey.

SLA said that office, childcare centre and food and beverage uses are permitted at 7 Adam Park, whereas 11 Adam Park has the option of being converted into a clubhouse.

Preserving heritage

SLA noted that the bungalows have been conserved “in recognition of their architectural and heritage significance”.

“The successful tenderer is required to retain the rustic charm of the existing site, preserve its heritage significance, and encourage concepts that celebrate the rich history of the site, and heritage bungalows at large,” it said.

This includes implementing measures to promote the site’s history and significance, particularly at bungalows 5 Adam Park and 11 Adam Park, where wartime artefacts are located.

These measures may be in the form of heritage markers or storyboards, murals, walking trails and publications, among others.

As the site has been designated as a conservation area, the successful tenderer must comply with measures to retain the heritage of the bungalows, SLA said.

“Any restoration, repair, or addition (works) must comply with conservation guidelines. Subdivision of the site or strata subdivision of the bungalows will not be allowed,” it added.

To safeguard the site’s archaeological significance, the successful tenderer is required to appoint a project archaeologist to conduct mitigation works, and to recover and document archaeological materials and features.

SLA is a statutory board under the Ministry of Law. It manages some 11,000 ha of state land and around 2,600 state properties.