Thomson Plaza
 | |
| Location | Upper Thomson Road,Singapore |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 1°21′16.95″N103°49′51.37″E/ 1.3547083°N 103.8309361°E |
| Address | 301 Upper Thomson Road, Singapore 574408 |
| Opening date | 1979 |
| Developer | DBS Land |
| Management | CBRE Pte Ltd |
| Owner | Link Asset Management Limited |
| No. of stores and services | 154 |
| No. ofanchor tenants | 4 |
| Total retail floor area | 467,298 square feet (43,413.4 m2) |
| No. of floors | 4 |
| Public transit access | TE8Upper Thomson |
| Website | thomsonplaza |
Thomson Plaza,formerly unofficially calledThomsonYaohan,[1]is asuburbanshopping malllocated alongUpper Thomson Road,inSingapore.Opened in 1979, Thomson Plaza is best known for having aYaohandepartmental store in the 1980s and 1990s.[1]
Design[edit]
Thomson Plaza is built over 22,400 square metres (241,000 sq ft) of land and is relatively low-rise, in keeping with the neighbourhood around the Thomson area.[2]
Thomson Plaza is one of the first public buildings to be designed withbarrier-freefeatures from the onset.[3]In addition to the standardescalators,ramps were incorporated into the shopping complex's design to allow people in wheelchairs to freely navigate between different floors of the complex.[3]Other handicapped-friendly features in the complex include enlarged toilet cubicles that cater to wheelchair users and door levers, which enable people with difficulty controlling their hands to easily open doors around the complex.[3]
History[edit]
The proposal to build a residential and recreational complex alongUpper Thomson Roadwas first approved by theMinistry of National Developmentin 1977 as part of its policy of decentralizing commercial activities away from Singapore's Central Business District.[4][5]The contract to build this complex was awarded to Japanese construction companyOhbayashi GumibyDevelopment Bank of Singapore,the appointed land developer for Thomson Plaza.[5]Initially estimated to costSGD$22.3 million,[5]this project was completed eventually at a cost of $38 million in 1979.[2]
Even before its completion, Thomson Plaza attracted strong interest from retailers.[2]80% of its retail outlets were leased out within six months of their launch.[2]Thomson Plaza later attracted the attention of Japanese retailerYaohan,the pioneer of one-stop departmental stores in Singapore.[6][7]At that time, Yaohan was famous for its innovative approach to customer service; its first departmental store inPlaza Singapurareportedly attracted 955,000 shoppers a week.[7]Yaohan's store in Thomson Plaza became its third outlet in Singapore.[6]
In 1997, the parent company of Yaohan stores in Singapore was declaredinsolventdue to its over-expansion and rising retail rental costs in Singapore.[7]Thus, Yaohan closed its Thomson Plaza outlet, its last in Singapore, in 1998.[7]Yaohan's former retail space was taken over byNTUC FairPricesupermarket chain.[8]
References[edit]
- ^ab"20 Singapore shopping malls that were super happening back in the day".Asia City Online. 26 February 2015.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^abcd"Strong demand for Thomson Plaza shopping facilities".The Business Times.27 January 1979.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^abc"$39 million Thomson Plaza will be a boon for handicapped".The Straits Times.20 May 1977.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^"$490 mil projects given planning approval by ministry".The Straits Times.17 September 1977.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^abc"Japanese film to build Thomson Plaza".The Straits Times.5 July 1977.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^ab"A third Yaohan store".The Straits Times.15 March 1978.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^abcd"Yaohan (Singapore) on Singapore Infopedia".National Library Board, Singapore.29 January 2014.Retrieved22 August2015.
- ^"Fair Price moving into Thomson Plaza".The Straits Times.31 December 1997.
