Can I build a rear extension to a conserved shophouse?
It depends on the area. In URA's secondary settlements, owners may conserve the main building and add a new rear extension, with heights set area by area, for example up to 4 storeys in Tanjong Katong and Tiong Bahru, 5 in Joo Chiat and 6 in Jalan Besar and Balestier. Any part rising above the main roof eaves must be set back at least 600 mm clear of the conserved building. A new rear extension is a Category 1 work needing a Registered Architect.
From the RRD Field Guide, checked against the sources cited in A&A Works to Conserved Shophouses in Singapore: URA's 3R Rules, Permits and Fire Safety. General information, not advice for your project.
The fuller picture
Any work to a conserved shophouse needs URA Conservation Permission before it starts, even repainting. URA's rule is maximum Retention, sensitive Restoration and careful Repair: the roof, party walls, front façade, five-foot way and (in historic districts) timber floors must be kept. Rear extensions and roof mezzanines are allowed only within set limits, and Fire Code clause 9.9 governs timber floors and stairs.
More questions on this topic
- Do I need URA approval to repaint a conserved shophouse?
- Which parts of a conserved shophouse must be kept?
- Can I add an attic to a shophouse?
- What happened at 32 Desker Road?
- Does SCDF allow timber floors and staircases to stay?
- Can a conserved shophouse be converted to a hostel or co-living use?
- Can a contractor do conservation works without an architect?