The Bartley Road land parcel and a Bodhi tree
H88
Tuesday, 1 December 2009, 12:08
URA has put a site at Bartley Road up on the reserve list and its now open to application. Located right next to
Bartley MRT, the 99-year leasehold land parcel it looks to be a location with great potential.
Looking at the site plan, we noticed something interesting -
a tree that is to be "
retained and protected". After some Googling intensive investigative work, it turns out that the piece of land has a bit of history behind it.
But before we begin, some 'boring' details first. The 99-year leasehold land parcel has a permissible gross floor area of 61,865 sqm or 665,909 sqft. Analysts say bids of
$450-$550 psf ppr are quite likely. Some siteplans below:
It is right next to Bartley MRT and for animal lovers, SPCA is right opposite. Site plan: URA
The location of the tree (shown in the dotted circle). Site plan: URA
Here's the interesting stuff, that tree to be conserved is a Bodhi tree, which is considered by Buddhists to be sacred. The tree was part of the Jin Long Si Temple, a unique 'three-religion' (Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism) temple, which had to make way when the Government issued a land acquisition order in 2003 as part of a redevelopment plan for the Circle Line. There was a bit of a 'ruckus' when the news broke, but eventually the
70-year old temple had to go.
The entrance to the temple.
The
120-year old Bodhi tree stayed on however, as part of
Singapore's 'Heritage Trees', which means that it cannot be cut down.
That tree would definitely cause a bit of a headache to any developer who wins the site. Architects planning the site will do well to take into account the Bodhi tree's stature and history. Extra care will be needed during construction too.