old hill street police station​ 22 28

Wiki Article

old hill street police station

The **Old Hill Street Police Station** is a historic landmark in Singapore, noted for its distinctive architecture and vibrant, rainbow-coloured windows. Built in **1934**, the six-storey building was once the largest government building in Singapore and was nicknamed the “Police Skyscraper” due to its imposing size. Designed in the **Neoclassical style**, the building features Doric pilasters and a triangular pediment, which make it have a sense of grandeur and authority.

The building served as a police station and barracks until **1980**, with its 927 double-leaf louvred windows designed to give natural ventilation in the old hill street police station​ 22 28 tropical climate. During the Japanese Occupation, the building was camouflaged with dark paint to protect it from air raids. After the police force vacated the building, it was renamed the **Hill Street Building** before being extensively restored and gazetted as a **national monument** in **1998**.

In **1999**, a major renovation project transformed its exterior with a colourful facade, painting the shutters of its 927 windows in a spectrum of vibrant shades. This new look transformed the building from a stern colonial structure into a modern, artistic landmark. Today, the Old Hill Street Police Station houses the **Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI)** and the **Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY)**. Its main courtyard, now an air-conditioned atrium called the Artrium, is a public space used for art exhibitions and performances, turning it into a fusion of heritage, art, and government.