Old Paya Lebar Police Station

Nestled beside the freeway hovering over the bustling Upper Serangoon Road along 11 Lorong Liew Lian, stands the Old Paya Lebar Police Station, a trademark series of colonial buildings built in the 1930s that once started out as nothing but a wooden hut in the early part of the 20th century.

In 1987 it was handed over to the 2nd Division HQ of the Singapore Civil Defence Force, but within less than a decade it was once again abandoned before the Singapore Land Authority leased it out to numerous private institutions from the year 2006.

The parade square and main officer’s quarters

Where the officers had their recreational fun

Step inside the premises of the old Police Station on a Sunday and you will find two diverse groups of individuals, the first being students from the current occupant that is Lincoln Business School, while a second group of foreign construction workers can be seen taking shade under a tree or diligently doing up the week’s laundry.

A student walks out onto Lorong Liew Lian after class at Lincoln Business School

The old station now plays home to foreign workers as well

Hanging out the laundry on a sunny Sunday.

On my count there were less than 10 buildings in the premise when I visited, with the distinguishable Commander’s Headquarters, guard post, training shed and parade square all beautifully weathered and most likely inhabited by the hardworking foreign workers.

What was probably the Commander’s HQ, now with foreign workers residing in the area

A peek into where officers used to work and sleep

The good old training shed

Just outside the premises also stands a series of abandoned squarish shophouses that used to serve the policemen of the Old Paya Lebar Police Station, the only one that seemed to be operating however was a beauty parlour with a signboard that is probably as old as the station itself.

Abandoned squarish shophouses along Lorong Liew Lian

A beauty parlour that closes on Mondays

Future plans for the Old Paya Lebar Police Station are uncertain, but judging by the hoarding around it as well as its proximity to the NEX and Serangoon MRT, I’ll be placing my bet on it being a condominium within the next couple of years.

Small signs that the Old Paya Lebar Police Station will be gone sooner rather than later