by Tay Suan Chiang
FOOD lovers know it as the place to have a sumptuous bowl of prawn noodles or yong tau fu. While architectural buffs know it as the semi-circular Art Deco building near the start of Jalan Besar.
The charm of the building at 290 Jalan Besar, which houses the Earnest Restaurant, a coffeeshop where People's Prawn Noodles and People's are, and the International Hotel, a backpackers' inn, is likely to stay for years to come.
The three-storey building together with 50 other buildings and two structures in the area will be conserved. They complement the 466 conserved buildings in the area.
Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan announced the conservation on Monday at the Urban Redevelopment Authority's Architectural Heritage Awards.
The additional 51 buildings and two structures selected for conservation have a rich variety of architectural styles and designs, ranging from the Transitional, Late and Art Deco style of the early 1900s to the Modern style shophouses of the 1950s and 1960s.
Some of the Late style shophouses have highly decorated and ornamented facades with fine artisan workmanship, while the Modern style shophouses have clean geometric lines and well-proportioned facades. Their unique architectural features and details showcase the diversity and richness of Singapore's built heritage.
100 Architectural Heritage Awards since launch
Under conservation guidelines, the external facade, the original structure and defining features must remain untouched. Owners may modify the interior to suit their needs.
Since 1995, well-restored monuments and conservation buildings have been given Architectural Heritage Awards. This year's award recipients are 36 Armenian Street, a row of shophouses at Murray Terrace; St James Power Station; two Victorian-style bungalows at St Patrick's Road; a single storey Art Deco style bungalow at Chapel Road and three terrace houses at Spottiswoode Park Road, Blair Road and Cairnhill Road.
The awards are given to the buildings' owners, architects, engineers and principal contractors. There is no prize money involved. A total of 100 projects have received the awards since its launch.
The awards come under two categories. Category A is for national monuments and fully conserved buildings. Projects are assessed on how far they adhere to restoration principles.
Category B is for integrated old and new conservation developments. Projects are assessed on both the quality of restoration and the innovation and architectural excellence of the new elements.
An exhibition showcasing this year's eight winners is on at The URA Centre at Maxwell Road from today until Nov 30.