Orchard Point Research

Orchard Point :

In the past, Orchard Market stood where Orchard Point is today. In the 1960s it was a popular market that sold fresh produce to residents. Today, its is located beside the Orchard Road district , the shopping hub of Singapore . It was built in 1891, and was torn down by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, and replaced by Orchard Point in 1982.

In 1837, the site of Orchard Road Market used to stand on part of William Cuppage's estate. Cuppage's son-in-law, Edwin Koek, inherited the estate in the 1860s. In the beginning, Orchard Road Market was called Koek’s Market. After its completion in 1880, it was leased to the Municipal Authorities and became known as Orchard Road Municipal Market. In 1890, when the Municipality bought the land it tore down the building and built a new one in its place in 1891.The new market originally consisted of only one wing but extensive renovations took place later and these caused the building to be almost totally transformed.

In 1910 an additional wing and a concrete frontage were added. As the area was prone to flooding, the structure was raised a few years later to eliminate flooding of the market. In 1930 a new building was built in front of the existing one. In spite of all these renovations and additions, the Orchard Road Market still retained the original cast-iron structure into the 1970s when it was demolished.

Today , it is located beside the Orchard Road District , which is the shopping hub of Singapore . Many tourists head to Orchard Point to shop and dine today.

The Reason why it was chosen:

As the orchard road district was developing, many buildings had to be renovated. The Orchard Market which stood at the area where Orchard Point is today, was removed to allow the shopping centre to take over its place because although it was renovated and upgraded it still retained the original cast-iron structure and thus, would be unappealing to tourists and shoppers if they see such buildings in a shopping area. It will just make them conclude that the shops in the district are not as good and modern just because of that one building.