Built on the area’s highest hilltop and overlooking the sea and the island, Alexandra School was said to command a glorious view when it was opened in 1939.

The school’s original block – now largely forgotten, except by students and staff of ISS International School, which it houses – is set to become an important link to the past as one of 25 buildings slated to be retained in an upcoming housing estate at Gillman Barracks.

These buildings were among 86 that were assessed in a heritage study ahead of the redevelopment of the former military site for housing. Also assessed were various features at the site, such as key roads and the old school’s open courtyard.

In addition, about a fifth of the 40ha estate – which will feature a mix of public and private housing – will be dedicated to green spaces, blending existing vegetation with newly planted greenery.

These plans were revealed by the Housing Board on July 10, as it published reports of heritage and environmental studies carried out in the area, which is now mostly occupied by creative lifestyle, arts and food and beverage establishments.

HDB said in a press statement that along with other agencies, it has worked on a blueprint for the upcoming estate, which will offer residents “a charming and vibrant place to live, with the Southern Ridges and Labrador Nature Park Network providing green respite close to home”.

When plans for a new residential estate at Gillman Barracks were announced in 2024, it was reported that existing tenancies would progressively expire by 2030.

While the board did not state how many homes will be built at the site, the upcoming Berlayar estate nearby – which will have 10,000 homes over a 48ha site that includes 10ha of greenery – gives an indication of Gillman Barracks’ development potential.

The upcoming estate will add to existing homes in Telok Blangah, where public housing was first built in the 1970s, with the latest project completed in 2018.

The heritage study, conducted by conservation consultancy Studio Lapis, considered various chapters of the site’s history.

These include the mid-1930s to 1971, when the area was a British military camp; the 1970s to 1990s, when it housed Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) troops; and when educational institutions such as St Andrew’s Junior College (SAJC) and Pasir Panjang Vocational Institute (PPVI) opened there.

Since the 2000s to the present day, the site has been largely used as an arts and lifestyle destination.

Its 86 state-owned buildings were grouped into seven clusters – a school and a housing cluster in Preston Road, two clusters associated with Gillman Barracks in Lock Road and Malan Road, the SAJC cluster, the PPVI cluster, and a final cluster of buildings that provide public utilities for Telok Blangah.

Of all the buildings studied, four were assessed to have exceptional significance. They are the original block of Alexandra School in Preston Road, as well as three blocks in Lock Road that belonged to the barracks – a military camp completed in the mid-1930s that originally accommodated the British Middlesex Regiment.

A further 27 buildings were assessed to be of high significance. HDB said six will be demolished as they are in areas required for essential infrastructure such as roads, while 21 will be retained.

This means none of the buildings built by SAJC or the vocational institute – which both officially opened in the 1970s – will be retained based on current plans.

Among buildings that will be retained are some in the Lock Road cluster which were used for military administration, social and communal facilities, as well as some in the Malan Road cluster, which served utility and support functions, such as workshops, garages and medical facilities.

HDB said some of these buildings in Lock Road and Malan Road could be repurposed as commercial spaces and amenities to serve the area’s residents, while others could be put to community use.

In Preston Road, 14 of a string of 16 garrison-style semi-detached houses built between 1935 and 1939, which once housed military personnel and Alexandra School staff, will be kept.

Also to be retained is Telok Blangah Substation, which was completed in 1974 and continues to be in operation today.

Designed by architectural firm Kumpulan Akitek, the substation is notable for its modernist facade, which features a bronze-anodised aluminium curtain wall.

The 25 buildings to be retained do not have heritage protection, and HDB said that agencies will consider public feedback in deciding whether the buildings should be conserved.

Ho Puay Peng, professor at the National University of Singapore’s Department of Architecture, said he was encouraged that clusters of buildings are slated for retention.

“The buildings have more value in clusters, and their significance is expressed in a group rather than as individual buildings, so taking this approach is the right thing to do,” said Ho.

Asked about the buildings that will be demolished, HDB said photographic documentation and storyboards could be considered to commemorate the history of the site and its buildings.

Tan Swee Yiow, president of the Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore, said incorporating heritage buildings in the development could be a challenge if the land parcels are too small.

To mitigate this, planners will have to consider the size of development parcels such that new buildings can be inserted sensitively, he said.

He added that the authorities can also consider exercising some flexibility in implementing building rules – such as with the fire code and conservation guidelines – so working with heritage buildings does not become too onerous for private developers.

Meanwhile, the environmental study was conducted by consultancy firm Jacobs and covered 47ha, including the 40ha of land to be developed, as well as 7ha of land north of Telok Blangah Heights that is largely vegetated.

In total, the study recorded 293 plant species on the site, including 22 of conservation significance, such as the Ficus sinuata and the Antiaris toxicaria, and 178 fauna species, including 11 of conservation significance, such as the straw-headed bulbul, violet cuckoo and bamboo bat.

The HDB said these were concentrated largely in two types of habitats of high ecological value: native-dominated secondary forest and a forest stream.

To minimise impact on biodiversity, HDB said the estate will retain the forest stream and most of the native-dominated secondary forest within the 8ha that has been earmarked for green areas.

In addition, ecological corridors with a width of at least 30m will be safeguarded within the estate, allowing Gillman Barracks to serve as a stepping stone for species travelling between HortPark, Telok Blangah Hill Park, Berlayer Creek and Labrador Nature Reserve.

These corridors will include 5.6ha of existing greenery, as well as 2.4ha of new green areas – especially to the site’s south – that will be planted with native species.

This could facilitate the movement of bird species of conservation significance that have been spotted in both Keppel Club – which is being redeveloped for the upcoming Berlayar Estate – and Gillman Barracks. The birds include the changeable hawk-eagle, the cinnamon bittern and the oriental magpie-robin.

Ho of NUS said having the environmental and heritage studies conducted simultaneously allows the impact of development plans for the site to be considered holistically.

For instance, he noted that the forest stream that was identified for retention in the environmental study is an essential part of the site’s setting and terrain. Hence, keeping it would be a boon for the area’s ecology and landscape.

Public feedback on the two studies can also be submitted to the board by 6pm on Aug 6.

The board said that feedback received will inform the development plans for the sites.