Former Bukit Timah Turf Club
Horse racing has a long and rich history in Singapore, dating back to the early 19th century. By 1843, the sport had become popular among both locals and expatriates.
The former Bukit Timah Turf Club was a horse racing facility located in the Bukit Timah area of Singapore. It was established in 1933, when the Singapore Turf Club relocated its original racing facility and operation from Farrer Park to Bukit Timah, and operated for over 70 years, hosting both local and international horse racing events.
The 98-hectare former rubber plantation site thrived as the main venue for horse racing in Singapore until operational demands warranted a new track and it was closed in 1999, to be replaced by the home of Singaporean horse racing today, Kranji Racecourse.
Once operations ceased, and despite the site having been allocated for residential land use, the Bukit Timah site and its collection of former racing related buildings, structures and spaces were repurposed to suit other means. The site was redeveloped into a residential area called The Grandstand, which saw major public buildings, such as the North and South Grandstands, the modest worker’s accommodation and the race track adapted to house a range of commercial and sporting facilities. This includes the Bukit Timah Saddle Club, a riding school set within the rich green landscape of trees and grassland, a nod to the site’s racing origins.
With works on the the new Cross Island Line (CRL) station at Turf City, as well as preparations for the future residential development at the site due to begin in 2023, tenants have began vacating the site. The Cross Island Line Phase 2 (CRL2) will be constructed underneath the former Bukit Timah Racecourse, and will include a new station, Turf City (CR14), which will be built near the former North Grandstand.
The site has played a significant part in the life of Singapore, and the objective of the works is to retain sufficient heritage value so to remain capable of telling the story of horse racing at Bukit Timah, and more generally, in Singapore, for years to come.
To support this, Purcell, in conjunction with the Department of Architecture, National University of Singapore (NUS), drafted a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) for the planned infrastructure works. The assessment considered impacts arising from temporary works, notably tunnelling and open-cut excavations, as well as those arising from construction of the new station building and associated works.
Purcell’s supporting conservation guidelines and interpretation plan will assist in mitigating the impacts of the proposed works and inform the site’s future redevelopment proposals. The overarching intention is to provide future residents and visitors alike with the opportunity to know more about Bukit Timah race course’s history, and to appreciate the special nature of this place by virtue of conserving the heritage elements of value and improving accessibility to them.
