The former New Town Primary School and New Town Secondary School buildings, which sit next to Commonwealth MRT station, are set to be demolished to free up the space for housing developments.

Details on plans for the site have yet to be announced, The Straits Times (ST) reported.

More than ten football fields in size

The combination of the former New Town Primary School at 402 Commonwealth Drive, the former New Town Secondary School at 121 Queensway, and a track and field shared by the two schools, is estimated to be 7.6 hectares.

The site is equivalent to more than ten football fields in size.

A view of the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) 2019 masterplan shows that the site is used or intended to be used for residential development.

Examples they listed include flats, condominiums, and townhouses.

Demolition works for 402 Commonwealth Drive began on Oct. 3, 2023, according to nearby HDB block notices for residents near the site at Commonwealth Close.

The Housing and Development Board (HDB) told ST that site preparation is ongoing and demolition of structures will take place “over the next few years”.

Two former schools predate Singapore's independence

The two schools predate Singapore's independence, with New Town Primary School officially opened on July 26, 1965, by former Finance Minister Goh Keng Swee and New Town Secondary School being founded by then-Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on Jan. 2, 1965.

New Town Primary School relocated to Tanglin Halt Road in January 2009, while New Town Secondary School moved to its current Dover Road site at the end of 1998.

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