38 Oxley Road Gazetted as a National Monument
38 Oxley Road Gazetted as a National Monument — What It Means & What Happens Next
Key update in one minute
The site at 38 Oxley Road has been gazetted as Singapore’s 77th National Monument. This is done via a Preservation Order under the Preservation of Monuments Act 2009. Authorities have also stated that preserving the site does not automatically mean keeping the building in its current form.
What was announced
MCCY and NHB said the decision follows an assessment by the Preservation of Sites and Monuments (PSM) Advisory Board and NHB’s recommendation that the site is worthy of preservation for historic significance and national importance.
- Preserving the site ≠ freezing the house as-is: the “appropriate treatment” of buildings and structures will be studied after the Government has access to the site.
- Privacy commitments: authorities stated they will remove private living spaces from the interior, and that the interior “as Mr Lee knew” will not be displayed or reproduced.
- Next steps: the Government indicated an intention to acquire the site, assess the condition, and study future options (including a possible heritage park concept).
Why 38 Oxley Road is considered nationally significant
Authorities cited the site’s role as a venue for pivotal discussions and decisions involving Singapore’s founding leaders during the 1950s, linked to Singapore’s transition from a colony to an independent nation and the formation of the first fully-independent government after the 1959 elections.
