Orchard Central

{{Short description|Shopping mall in Singapore}}

{{Infobox shopping mall

| name = Orchard Central

| image = Orchard Central, 2011.jpg

| image_width = 300px

| caption = Facade of Orchard Central

| address = 181 Orchard Road

| coordinates =

| location = Singapore

| opening_date = {{Start date and age|df=yes|2009|7|2}}

| developer = Far East Organization
OCBC Bank

| architect = DP Architects

| manager = Orchard Central Private Limited

| owner = Far East Organization

| number_of_stores = ~400

| number_of_anchors = 3 (Uniqlo, Don Don Donki, Tokyu Hands)

| floor_area = {{convert|387988|sqft|m2}}

| floors = 14

| publictransit = {{SMRT code|NS|23}} Somerset
{{SMRT code|NS|24|NE|6|CC|1}} Dhoby Ghaut

| website = {{url|orchardcentral.com.sg}}

}}

File:Orchard Central Void 2010.jpg

File:Orchard Central Level 4 Void 2010.jpg

Orchard Central is a shopping mall in Singapore located along the main shopping belt at Orchard Road. It sits on the land previously occupied by an open air carpark and has a 160m frontage along Orchard Road.{{cite book|author=Collin Anderson|title=Evolution of a Retail Streetscape: DP Architects on Orchard Road|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VkWS80I1um4C|year=2012|publisher=Images Publishing|isbn=978-1-86470-462-4|pages=165–|access-date=2016-10-28|archive-date=2023-04-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403111141/https://books.google.com/books?id=VkWS80I1um4C|url-status=live}} It was officially opened on 2 July 2009. In December 2016, Forbes recognized Orchard Central as one of the top five shopping malls in Singapore.{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/bishopjordan/2016/12/19/the-5-best-shopping-malls-in-singapore/ |title=The 5 Best Shopping Malls In Singapore |access-date=2017-01-13 |archive-date=2017-12-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171231104131/https://www.forbes.com/sites/bishopjordan/2016/12/19/the-5-best-shopping-malls-in-singapore/ |url-status=live }}

Architecture

Orchard Central was designed by DP Architects. It is designed as Singapore's first vertical mall, and it consists of 12 floors above ground and 2 basement levels. Unlike traditional mall designs, a central atrium is omitted and It also features a "super escalator", which takes pedestrians on the street level directly up to Level 4. The mall is served by a total of 52 escalators (including 6 super escalators) and 12 glass elevators.{{cite news|title=Orchard Central to woo shoppers by integrating with other malls |author=Ng Baoying|date=19 June 2009|publisher=Channel NewsAsia}}

The building has space for up to 400 stores, including flagship facilities for Uniqlo, the largest in Singapore, a 24 hours Don Don Donki store and Tokyu Hands. It also contains fourteen floors of space and numerous restaurants and cafes. The mall also contains a terminal for tourist buses, a tourist information center, currency exchanges and duty exemption services catering to tourists.

The mall features a 140m shopping street discovery walk and a green roof which are both open 24 hours to the public. Designed by Japanese design house Super Potato, the green roof features 3 large living walls and balcony rail on the 11th floor and 2 lower green walls on the 12th-floor roof terrace.{{cite web|url=http://www.greenroofs.com/blog/2011/12/31/gpw-orchard-central-mall-greenwalls/|title=GPW: Orchard Central Mall Greenwalls|publisher=Greenroofs|date=31 December 2011|access-date=16 October 2014|archive-date=20 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020035742/http://www.greenroofs.com/blog/2011/12/31/gpw-orchard-central-mall-greenwalls/|url-status=live}} There is also a biological pond located on the 12th storey of the green roof.{{cite web | url=http://www.skyrisegreenery.com/index.php/home/awards/skyrise_greenery_awards_2009/ | title=2009 Winners | publisher=Skyrise Greenery | date=2009 | access-date=16 October 2014 | archive-date=20 October 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020174517/http://www.skyrisegreenery.com/index.php/home/awards/skyrise_greenery_awards_2009/ | url-status=live }}

Other features of the mall includes open sided galleries and multiple atriums.{{cite web|url=http://openbuildings.com/buildings/orchard-central-profile-10667|title=Orchard Central|publisher=Open Buildings|access-date=16 October 2014|archive-date=24 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024220241/http://openbuildings.com/buildings/orchard-central-profile-10667|url-status=live}} The mall is connected to 313@Somerset and Orchard Gateway.

Orchard Central B2 The MED 2010.jpg|B2 The MED

Orchard Central Level 2 2010.jpg |Level 2 shops

Orchard Central Level 7 2010.jpg |Level 7 Restaurant

Orchard Central Level 8 2010.jpg|Level 8 Restaurant

Orchard Central Rooftop Garden 2010.jpg |Rooftop Garden

=Art Trail=

Orchard Central has artworks that are permanently displayed in clustered locations around the mall. The display is worth over SGD$9 million. Artworks featured in the display were curated by National Arts Council. The total development cost of the project is estimated to be more than SGD$650 million.

Artworks featured in this display were specially commissioned, and they were done by artists from countries such as the U.S., Japan, Australia and Denmark.

References

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