Jui Residences: A heritage icon along Kallang River

/ EdgeProp Singapore |

October 28, 2022 12:06 PM SGT

The art deco features of the 18-storey high-rise, 117-unit Jui Residences and the conserved National Aerated Water Co. Ltd. Building (Photo: SDB Asia)

SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - Jui Residences is an 18-storey residential block on Serangoon Road, with the Kallang River running along one side. Developed by SDB Asia, the property development arm of Malaysian-listed Selangor Dredging, Jui Residences was completed in September 2021. It has won Top Development award for a mixed-use, completed development at the EdgeProp Singapore Excellence Awards 2022.

Aron Teo, senior project manager, SDB Asia (left), receives the Top Development award for Jui Residences from Simon Wong, managing director of Geberit (Photo: Albert Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)

Designed by London-based architectural firm Carver-Haggard, Jui Residences pays homage to the art deco style of the National Aerated Water Co building, which is located in front of it and sits within the compound of the 31,705 sq ft, freehold site.

National Aerated Water Building - EDGEPROP SINGAPORE

The conserved National Aerated Water Building is a standalone two-storey commercial building, although it sits within the development (Photo: SDB Asia)

URA gazetted the National Aerated Water building for conservation in 2017, a year after SDB Asia purchased the property for $47 million in December 2016. Given the significance of the mixed-use development in the rejuvenation of the area around Kallang Basin, SDB Asia worked closely with URA for the conservation of the National Aerated Water building.

Built in 1954, the building was the former bottling plant for soft drinks such as Kickapoo, Royal Crown Cola and Sinalco. The L-shaped building’s unique architectural features include a tapering balcony at the front with a fair-faced brick parapet and a concrete sunshade projection that runs from the side of the building across the top and ends in a spiral around a circular window.

Architectural features of the heritage building include the flagstaff mounted on the signature column, a tapering balcony at the front with a fair-faced brick parapet and a concrete sunshade projection (Photo: SDB Asia)

Art deco features

The centrepiece of the heritage building is a flagstaff mounted on the signature column, with a 1950s petrol pump that has also been conserved and relocated within the development.

Beyond its riverfront location, Jui Residences has a direct link to the 9km Kallang River Park Connector, which leads to the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, the Kolam Ayer Waterfront and Singapore Sports Hub.

The contemporary design of Jui Residences, a new development, has art deco features visible in the vertical flutes of its facade, the arched detailing on the balconies, and the wide inset curves at the podium. One-bedroom apartments make up 26 units, with two-bedroom apartments accounting for 39 units and three-bedroom apartments, 46 units. Close to 80% of the units boast a view of the Kallang River. The interiors of the apartments enjoy natural lighting and cross-ventilation.

A 1950s petrol pump that was conserved and relocated within the development (Photo: SDB Asia)

Subtle art deco features in the interiors of the apartments include mosaic wall tiles in the kitchen and bathrooms, terrazzo-patterned homogeneous tiles in the living and dining area, and herringbone timber flooring in the bedrooms.

On the fifth floor of the development is a sky terrace, with shared amenities such as an infinity lap pool, where residents can enjoy views of the Kallang River. There is also an aqua fitness pool, a wading pool and a pool deck with lounge chairs. A multi-purpose activity area and viewing deck for residents are set against a landscaped terrace.

Swimming pool on the fifth floor facilities deck (Photo: SDB Asia)

Artwork inspired by the former bottling factory

As a tribute to the National Aerated Water building, sculptor and landscape architect Dr Colin K Okashimo created an artwork specially for the development. Named “The Bottle Assembly: Filling Voids and Voids Filling”, the artwork draws upon the notion of a factory, with bottles in shelves and boxes giving a sense of things being “assembled” and “crated” for distribution. The bottles of various shapes and sizes are in the pastel-coloured hues of the Miami art deco style and adorn the walls of the sky terrace.

Artwork created by sculptor and landscape architect Dr Colin K Okashimo specially for the development, named “The Bottle Assembly: Filling Voids and Voids Filling”, adorns the walls of the sky terrace which has a 4.3m ceiling height (Photo: SDB Asia)

The sky terrace has a 4.3m ceiling height and the entire area, while sheltered, is open and airy. The flooring of the sky terrace is of cement finish and is a reinterpretation of the 1950s industrial look.

One of the design considerations was that the heritage building can be appreciated by people in the neighbourhood, and not just the residents within the development. Hence, the building’s prominent frontage along Serangoon Road is designed as a plaza that is open to the public and seamlessly connected to the Kallang River Park Connector. SDB even installed permanent visual boards about the building’s history and restored the old petrol pump.

The plaza has a landscaped lawn, and lush plantings along the Kallang River, which extend upwards to form a vertical greenscape across the first four levels of the car park and end at the fifth-level sky terrace.

Jui Residences is integrated with the Kallang River Park Connector, which leads to the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park, the Kolam Ayer Waterfront and Singapore Sports Hub (Photo: SDB Asia)

To promote sustainability, 50% of the plants featured in the landscaping are native to Singapore or Southeast Asia. They are therefore suitable for the local climate, and hardier, which lowers the cost of maintenance and replacement. The greenery in the development, including the vertical greenscape, will be irrigated using a smart auto-irrigation drip system to further promote sustainability.

The restored National Aerated Water build- ing, with its white, pink and blue façade, is a standalone building and is separate from the 18-storey Jui Residences tower block located behind it.

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