The majestic City Hall building has been preserved and given a new lease of life

The Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB) has merged with the National Heritage Board (NHB) with effect from 1 July 2009. This is part of an on-going move by the Government for smaller statutory boards to merge with larger ones to facilitate the pooling of resources and expertise for greater efficiency.

Said Mr Michael Koh, CEO of NHB: “The inclusion of PMB in the NHB family adds another dimension in our efforts to nurture and enrich the entire heritage ecosystem. NHB is already responsible for our nation’s art, artefacts and historical documents. We offer an extensive array of educational and outreach activities such as the Singapore HeritageFest, International Museum Day and Explore Singapore! along with exhibitions, talks, workshops, trails and tours. Having PMB as part of our family is a natural extension as we can easily integrate its activities in our many programmes and marketing initiatives.”

While PMB is now a division under NHB, like some of its other divisions and heritage institutions, it retains its own institution board. Taking over as chairman of PMB’s board will be Mr Tham Tuck Cheong, 54, an architect who succeeds Mr Alfred Wong. We thank Mr Wong who has served as chairman since 2003, for all his invaluable contributions and we are glad that he will be staying on as an advisor until December 2009. We also sincerely thank all retiring members who have also given much of their time and advice over their period of appointment to the PMB.

Said Mr Tham: “Since 1971, PMB has been guided by the Preservation of Monuments Act. To date, 55 monuments have been preserved. Moving ahead, we hope not only to continue pursuing PMB’s ambit more conscientiously, but in a way that is progressive and proactive, as well as educational.

“This will serve the public better, and bring our monuments to “life” in a meaningful way. PMB aims to instill a sense of pride and appreciation in our country’s architectural landscape and the history behind it. Through these efforts, we hope to endear our national monuments to the public. PMB’s merger with NHB will also  grow our education and outreach efforts.”

The process of identifying and gazetting national monuments is a lengthy and exhaustive one involving on the average, 12 to 15 months of intensive research and the tracing of historical documents which includes old maps, building plans and archival photos. PMB has been working closely with the Urban Redevelopment Authority in this regard and this relationship will continue.

Ms Jean Wee, Director of PMB said: “We will build up our research capability so that the time taken to research each potential monument can be shortened. We will also be working towards completing a more holistic approach to preserving our built heritage – both pre- and post-independence. The public can look forward to exploring our national icons with specialised trails highlighting their history. In the pipeline is an education kit for schools to appreciate our built heritage and the stories behind them.

“We want everyone to know that the walls of each monument resound with pages of our history and the people behind them. They tell of struggles and sacrifices, sadness and joy. Understanding our nation’s journey through these historical buildings will help Singaporeans appreciate our shared national psyche. Even as we preserve old buildings, their functions may change. So as we preserve history, we also give these icons of the past a new lease of life.”

City Hall which has witnessed much of this country’s transformation since it was built in the 1920s, is one example of a well-loved Singapore icon. While it has been preserved, it will also begin a new chapter on our history when it is transformed to be part of The National Arts Gallery in a few years time.

To ensure that national monuments in private hands are well maintained, PMB announced last year the setting up of a National Monuments Fund. This will disburse $5 million over a five year period in a co-sharing scheme to assist  private owners of gazetted monuments maintain these national treasures.

Three applications have been submitted and a total of $619,170 has been granted in the inaugural year. Among the monuments which have benefited from this programme are the Sri Mariamman Temple, Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, and Hong San See temple.