Location 3- Ngee Ann City

Ngee Ann City

Research:

Address of Location:

391 Orchard Road

Singapore 238872

History of Location:

Ngee Ann City is a shopping and commercial centre located on Orchard Road, Singapore. The S$520 million building was officially opened on 21 September 1993 by then Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong. Many Singaporeans refer to Ngee Ann City as "Taka", a slang-abbreviation of the anchor tenant's name, Takashimaya. In fact, this name is now probably more commonly-used in everyday conversation than the building's original name.

Transformation through time and space:

1950 -    The land that Ngee Ann City sits on was a burial ground, owned and managed by Ngee Ann Kongsi. It was part of a parcel of land known as Tai Shan Ting, which was bounded by Orchard Road, Paterson Road and Grange Road. A ten-storey Ngee Ann Building was then built on the site, and was demolished to make way for Ngee Ann City.

1967 -    Redevelopment of the site was first considered.

1980s-    Ngee Ann City was planned by Ngee Ann Development and the Orchard Square Development Corporation. Raymond Woo, the architect who designed the complex, drew inspiration from the Great Wall of China.

1981 -    The land belonging to Ngee Ann Kongsi was a much sought-after piece of real estate in Singapore. After a series of disputes between Ngee Ann Kongsi and the Metro Group, a joint venture resulted, in which Ngee Ann had a 73% stake, and Metro the balance 27%.

1983 -    The Singapore Government acquired half the site as a result of the disputes between the partners that left them only 28,322 square metres for development.

1993 -    Work on Ngee Ann City began 22 years after the project was first proposed. The construction of the S$520 million complex took four years. Ngee Ann City was officially opened by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on September 21, 1993.

Why location was used:

Ngee Ann City is mainly used as a new-generation shopping mall to accommodate a variety of retail shops to provide entertainment and leisure purposes to customers.

PEEs: 

NGEE ANN CITY

HIGH DENSITY LANDUSE

This picture shows a shopping mall. The building has many offices and shops. Many people go there daily to work and others go there to purchase their daily needs as well as other entertainment purposes. This implies that it is a high density building as this place can accommodate many people.

NGEE ANN CITY

MIXED LANDUSE

This picture shows a row of public phone booth. The purpose is to enable one to communicate with others remotely. This means that Ngee Ann City is not only used for retail purposes but also to house communication services to people/visitors in the vicinity.

This picture shows a Cold Storage outlet at Ngee Ann City. It means that office workers and residents staying nearby can purchase their groceries and daily needs. This shows that not only is Ngee Ann City used to house offices, provides entertainment, it is also for commercial use that provides for peoples’ daily needs.

This picture shows an ATM. It is located within the compound of a shopping centre. The ATM allows financial services. This implies that not only is the land used for shopping and entertainment purposes, but it is also used for other services such as financial.

This picture shows several cars parked at a car park in Ngee Ann City. Shoppers can park their cars at the car park when they shop there. This shows mixed land use at Ngee Ann City that is it not only functions as a shopping centre but also provides parking space for its shoppers’/customers’ vehicles.

This picture shows a convention hall. There are many workers working to set up a Sales Fair. This means that not only is the shopping centre used to house retail shops, it also has a convention hall used to organize fairs and major events.

NGEE ANN CITY

INTERACTION BETWEEN DIFFERENT NATIONALITIES/GENERATIONS

This picture shows a street sale along the vicinity of Ngee Ann City. It highlights the interaction between different nationalities and generations. It shows a group of teenage boys selling balloons to families with little children. It also shows that the space used is for retail purposes. This means that the families have to interact with the teenage boys in order to purchase the balloons for their kids.

This picture shows a family facing one another even though they are sat in a straight role, side by side. It highlights the interaction between different generations. It shows from the way the family members’ heads are positioned that they are chatting. It also shows that the space used is for resting after a tiring walk at the shopping centre. This implies that the three members of the family are probably using this place as a form of family outing.

This picture shows a sales lady serving her customer, a Japanese couple. It highlights the interaction between different nationalities. The sales lady is seen promoting the types of cakes sold to the couple. Apparently, the space is used for retail purposes. This means that the couple is probably using this place as a form of family outing.

This picture shows a Pakistani mother and daughter buying yoghurt from the shop. It highlights the interaction between the different generations and nationalities. It shows the little girl pointing out the flavors she would like to the worker who seemingly is a Singaporean. It is apparent that the space is used for retail purposes. This implies that they are communicating with each other in order to complete the yoghurt sale.

Compare & Contrast:

The site where Ngee Ann City now stands is different in the past and now with regards to its purpose of usage. In the past, the land that Ngee Ann City now sits on was a burial ground, owned and managed by Ngee Ann Kongsi. It was part of a parcel of land known as Tai Shan Ting. However, in 1957 the cemetery was cleared and a ten-storey Ngee Ann Building was built on the site. Ngee Ann Building stood on the land for a while before being demolished to make way for Ngee Ann City. This means that the type of usage for this area of land have transformed over the years from residential to commercial purposes.