Built by the Housing and Development Board (HDB) in 1977, Rochor Centre comprises a three-storey building of shops and offices, and four blocks of flats each painted in different shades of blue, green, red and yellow. For the past decades, the brightly coloured flats have become an iconic landmark at Rochor area, bounded by Sungei Rochor, Bugis Village and Sim Lim Square.
The flats at Rochor Centre began like any other flats elsewhere in Singapore, with the normal all-white appearances. It was not until 1994 when they became the iconic buildings of the Rochor area after given the painting of the four vibrant colours in an upgrading program.
The Rochor flats are designed in a podium and tower style, where its bottom three storeys are shops, and its fifth to 16th level are residential units. There is a playground at the fourth floor.
Out of the 180 shops at Rochor Centre, 15 are involved in the business of ceremonial goods, selling traditional religious materials such as joss sticks, kim zua (paper money) and candles. This provides convenience for the Taoist devotees that regularly visit the famous Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple at Waterloo Street, which is only 350m away. Others are provision shops, beauty salons, hardware shops, eateries and kopitiam, where the popular Song Fa Bak Kut Teh is located.
In the seventies and eighties, residents of the Rochor flats had to put up with a strong stench due to the night soil deposit centre opposite of the flats. The night soil system walked into history in 1987, and the site had been redeveloped into Albert Complex.
The residents also faced another awkward scene in the late eighties, when the transvestites from the old Bugis Street, shut down in 1985, began frequenting around the Rochor Centre to pose with tourists for photos.
Some of the shops and offices have been operating here since the first day of the opening of Rochor Centre, including the Hokkien association Sin Chew Hu Chi Sia. One of its honorary chairman was Ho Pao Jen 何葆仁 (1895-1978), a Chinese banker and principal of The Chinese High School between 1925 and 1928, who was actively involved in the anti-Japanese resistance during the Second World War.
Previously, there was also an old folks’ home at the Rochor Centre. Officially opened by Deputy Prime Minister Dr Toh Chin Chye in 1977, it was called the Rochore Kongsi Home for the Aged, and was set up to provide a clean shelter and a happy and healthy living for the destitute elderly in the Rochor area, when in the seventies many were found sleeping at the public staircases and corridors. Due to the pending closure of Rochor Centre, the last batch of elderly was relocated to other old folks’ home by mid-2015.
Others were former shopowners at Blanco Court. They had shifted to Rochor Centre when Blanco Court was acquired in 1997 to become the private general hospital Raffles Hospital.
In the eighties, Rochor Centre was popular with Malaysians, and the place became well-known as the Little Johor. There was a Ban Ban Street Taxi Kiosk nearby, where passengers could flag a Malaysian-registered cab to go to Malaysia.
At the ground floor of Rochor Centre, a fortune telling machine and a weighing machine have been standing there for years. These nostalgic old machines, however, fail to attract the attention of the passers-by these days.
In November 2011, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and Singapore Land Authority (SLA) announce that the land where Rochor Centre is situated will be acquired to make way for the new North-South Expressway, which means the 34-year-old Rochor Centre and its trademark flats will be demolished by the end of 2016. The nearby Victoria Street Wholesale Centre will also be torn down.
Also read The Vanished Colourful Landmark of Rochor.
Published: 18 November 2011
Updated: 15 April 2019
Remember Singapore 
Thanks for the beautiful pictures taken at my hometown.. My very hometown.. Really appreciate it.. Indeed it’s such a wonderful place to stay in, I believe I cannot find another strategic and convenient place like Rochor Centre anymore..
This really colourful history of Singapore will become what Marc Auge calls a “non-place.” How awful.
Will you also put up any articles of the Victoria market and other places which will be gone due to the NSE project? It’s really sad to see these places which we have known from young to be gone just like this!
Sigh… Sad that this place gonna be no more by year 2016. I must faster capture this place with my toy camera.
I protest against this.
Me too!!! How could they demolish such a beautiful place?
One of the Rochor Centre flats (the current blue block) spotted in this 1986 photo of Queen Street Bus Terminal
I was born in 1986! This was the first house I lived in and I still remembered how spacious the interior of the flat was! If I did not remember wrongly, one of the hawker centres inside also served very nice wanton noodles 🙂
Had really fond childhood memories there..will miss this place.
hey there I am really interested to know what rochor centre was before it was built in 1977. does anybody know?
Hi Remember Singapore, I invite you to join SkyscraperCity, a forum site. I have created a thread for pictures of en bloc flats under demolition. You might want to post your pictures there.
Sure, I visit that forum occasionally too 🙂
Hello, I am referencing your article about Rochor Centre Coloured Flats in my blog about colorful architecture. I am very grateful for your answer to my question, “What is that cool building in Singapore?”
I would also like to use one of your pictures in my article if you don’t mind.
Thank you!
Have a walk in the Rochor Centre & is about to finish serving their some of her resident before demolished the blocks. For all photographers your shots will count.
Hi, is Rochor Centre still open? I plan to make a visit there to capture last shots this weekend.
Here are some pictures I took of Rochor Centre today. It is still open as there are residents who have yet to move.
http://88uranus88.blogspot.sg/2016/11/rochor-centre-before-it-is-gone-forever.html
Nice pictorial records!
Thank you Remember Singapore, I also made a video about it.
Demolition of Rochor Centre to begin from Jun 26
20 June 2018
Channel NewsAsia
The demolition of Rochor Centre will begin on Jun 26 in preparation for the construction of the North-South Corridor (NSC), said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) in a news release on Wednesday (Jun 20).
The demolition of the four residential blocks will commence from the top floors, with the structure progressively brought down floor-by-floor using machinery. The demolition is expected to complete by April 2019, it added.
“For the convenience of pedestrians during the works, temporary sheltered walkways have been erected at alternative routes around the site,” said LTA. There are also signages at public access areas to redirect pedestrians.
The work area has also been enclosed with noise barriers and dust screens to minimise the impact of noise and dust, while a water spraying system will be used “to suppress airborne dust particles” during demolition.
“The contractor is also required to monitor and comply with the permissible noise level stipulated under the prevailing regulations.”
LTA added that it will continue to work closely with the contractor to monitor and minimise inconvenience to the public. Works to construct the section of NSC near Rochor Centre will follow after the completion of the demolition works and site preparatory works, the authority added.
RESIDENTS EVICTED AFTER GIVEN RELOCATION OPTIONS
The Government initially announced in November 2011 that it would acquire the iconic rainbow-coloured estate to make way for the North-South Expressway.
Residents, who were told to move out by the end of 2016, were offered relocation benefits similar to those offered under the Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (SERS). They had the opportunity to move to a new, 99-year lease home and were given a package comprising compensation and rehousing benefits. As part of the acquisition package, they were also assured of a replacement flat at Kallang Trivista.
Authorities had earlier said the estate would be torn down at the end of 2016. However, LTA later said that demolition works would start early 2018. The demolition tender was awarded to Aik Sun Demolition and Engineering.
USED AS MILITARY FIRING GROUND
In July last year, the vacant estate was used as a firing ground for a military training exercise. The Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) said disused places like Rochor Centre provided “realistic urban training opportunities”.
“Where opportune, disused places like Rochor Centre are used for homeland security training as they provide realistic urban training opportunities for our forces,” MINDEF had said, responding to queries by Channel NewsAsia.
“This exercise is part of the SAF’s (Singapore Armed Forces’) efforts to strengthen its capabilities in homeland security operations,” the ministry added.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/rochor-centre-demolition-north-south-corridor-begin-jun-26-10450322
It’s being demolished now. That area has lost an iconic landmark.
The remaining few floor opposite MacDonald will be soo gone.
the space will be empty again so do our memories 😦