CommercialCOMMERCIALConservation999-year leaseholdDistrict 1 · Singapore River

Boat Quay Conservation Area

Reviewed by Nathan TangUpdated 8 November 2026Data through Apr 2010
Quick Summary

Boat Quay Conservation Area is a commercial building in District 1 · Singapore River, on land zoned COMMERCIAL under the URA Master Plan. It is 999-year leasehold. 1 transaction is on record since 1995, most recently in Apr 2010. ACRA records 2 live company registrations at this address.

1

What are the key facts about Boat Quay Conservation Area?

Key takeawayBoat Quay Conservation Area is a commercial building in District 1 · Singapore River, zoned COMMERCIAL, held 999-year leasehold.
Asset class
Commercial
Land-use zone
COMMERCIAL
Gross plot ratio
Subject to Evaluation
Tenure
999-year leasehold
District / Area
District 1 · Singapore River
Address
8,8a,8b Canton Street
Land area
—
Completed
Not on record
Storeys
Not on record
Submarket
City Fringe
Transactions on record
1 (records start 1995)
Live listings
None
ACRA registrations
2
2

About Boat Quay Conservation Area

Boat Quay Conservation Area is a commercial conservation area in Singapore River (District 01). It is located along Canton Street, Singapore 049748.

Under the URA Master Plan it sits on land zoned commercial. The site falls within a conservation area, so external alterations are subject to URA conservation guidelines. It lies inside the Central Area.

The site is 999-year leasehold, with about 799 years remaining on the lease.

1 transaction has been recorded here, at a median of S$3,416 psf. The most recent was in April 2010.

3 businesses are currently registered at this address with ACRA.

The nearest MRT is Raffles Place MRT, 341 m away (about a 5-minute walk). The closest bus stop (Boat Quay) is 156 m away (about a 2-minute walk).

3

What is Boat Quay Conservation Area zoned as?

Key takeawayBoat Quay Conservation Area sits on land zoned COMMERCIAL, with conservation status, inside the Central Area.
Land-use zone
COMMERCIAL
Gross plot ratio
Subject to Evaluation
Conservation area
Boat Quay
Conserved building
Yes
Urban design area
Udga
Central Area
Yes

URA has not published a fixed plot ratio for this site — the Master Plan records "EVA" (Subject to Evaluation), meaning intensity is decided case by case on application. Do not quote a plot ratio, and do not compute buildable GFA from it.

Run the full zoning report for this building →

4

What has Boat Quay Conservation Area sold for?

Key takeaway1 transaction is on record since 1995, most recently in Apr 2010 — too few to support a median, so the deals themselves are listed instead.
DateUsePriceAreaPSF
Apr 2010Shop HouseS$2.00M586 sqft$3,416

URA/JTC records from 1995 — that is where the record starts, not when the building was built. Strata and land deals can mix in one building's history; compare like with like. sqm ↔ sq ft converter

5

What does space at Boat Quay Conservation Area rent for?

Key takeawayNo street- or building-level rent is published here. Across District 1 retail, retail space rented at a median of $10.02 psf a month in 2026Q3, with the middle half of leases between $8.23 and $15.92. That is not this building's own rent, and never a quote for a particular unit.

Retail space — District 1 retail

Region band · 2026Q3
25th pct
$8.23
$88.64 psm
Median
$10.02
$107.81 psm
75th pct
$15.92
$171.42 psm

S$ per sq ft per month

A REGION BAND — URA's grid for the whole district or location, not this street or building. Say "across <district/location>, …", never that this building rents for it. The middle of URA's retail grid for District 1 across every floor and size band — a ground-floor shop and an upper-floor unit sit at very different points in it.

Source: URA REALIS retail rental analysis (district × floor × size grid).

6

Market context around Boat Quay Conservation Area

Key takeawayBrokers' retail figures for this part of Singapore — a broker's market figure, not this building's rent.
CBRE, 2Q 2026 (island-wide)
  • Islandwide: Rent S$28.15 psf/mth
Singapore Figures Q2 2026
Cushman & Wakefield, 2Q 2026
  • Other City Areas: Rent S$21.21 psf/mth · Vacancy 7.4% (1Q 2026) · Planned / under construction 0.73m sq ft
Singapore Retail MarketBeat Q2 2026

Official series (URA, 2026Q3): Retail vacancy rate (Whole Island) 6.5 (-0.4 pp on the year) · Retail rental index (Central Region) 81.2 (+1.4% on the year).

Brokers draw submarkets and grades differently; each figure is the broker's own, for its own area, cited to its report. Rents are per square foot per month.

7

What's been approved at Boat Quay Conservation Area?

Key takeawayURA has approved 4 changes of use at Boat Quay Conservation Area since 2000, most recently in 2025. This is the building's planning history, not today's approved use of any unit: confirm a unit's approved use with URA before signing.
F&B and nightlife here

No new bars, pubs, nightclubs or karaoke lounges (a Historic Conservation Area).

Per URA's Use of Buildings in Conservation Areas. A planning guideline for the area, not a decision on any unit; it applies to new eating houses and bars, not to one already approved.

  1. 8 Dec 2025Approved
    Change of use: shop → beauty salon with ancillary cafe

    Proposed change of use at the 2nd storey of the 3-storey building from shop to beauty salon with ancillary cafe at 8 canton street

  2. 29 Sept 2025Approved
    Change of use: shop → restaurant and bar

    Proposed change of use at the 1st storey of the 3-storey building from shop to restaurant and bar at 8 canton street

  3. 11 Mar 2025Approved
    Change of use: restaurant → shop

    Proposed change of use at the 1st storey of the 3-storey building from restaurant to shop at 8 canton street

  4. 23 Apr 2024Renewed
    Continued use as restaurant

    Continued use at the 1st storey of the 3-storey building as restaurant at 8 canton street

  5. 4 Jul 2023Renewed
    Continued use as restaurant

    Continued use at the 1st storey of the 3-storey building as restaurant at 8 canton street

  6. 2 Jun 2022Approved
    Change of use to restaurant

    Proposed change of use at the 1st storey of the 3-storey building to restaurant at 8 canton street

Source: URA planning decisions (URA Data Service), matched to this building by address or land lot. A past approval can lapse (a temporary permission) and belongs to the unit it names. The authoritative approved use of a unit comes from URA's Enquiry on Approved Use of Premises (S$54.50 per unit).

8

What do commercial rents run near Boat Quay Conservation Area?

Key takeawayURA publishes contracted-rent percentile grids quarterly (latest: 2026Q3) — the benchmark evidence an asking rent should be weighed against.

Indicative area yield — District 1 retail

Gross yield (area)
3.4%
3.0% net of property tax
Rent side (median of bands)
$107.81 psm/mo
2026Q3
Price side (strata, 5y)
$3,561 psf
90 sales

An INDICATIVE AREA yield for District 1 retail — NOT this building's yield, and not any unit's. Commercial rents are published as a district percentile grid, so both halves describe the district.

Priced on STRATA sales only: rent is quoted per unit of lettable area, and commercial land PSF runs far above strata — mixing them would shift the ratio sharply.

Net deducts the 10% non-residential property tax ONLY — not vacancy, maintenance, agent fees, financing, or the 9% GST on purchase.

Retail rents — District 1 ($ psm/month, 2026Q3)

Floor level · size band25th pctMedian75th pct
Level 2 & 3 · 30 & Below$82.69$99.35$120.39
Level 1 · 30 & Below$172.73$245.52$332.57
B1 & Below · 30 & Below$87.33$172.91$321.72
Level 2 & 3 · >30 - 100$77.43$95.09$183.52
Level 1 · >30 - 100$106.77$168.33$217.05
B1 & Below · >30 - 100$117.40$198.29$365.38
Level 1 · >100 - 300$115.69$148.57$187.43
B1 & Below · >100 - 300$148.73$233.33$396.56

Office rents — Central Area ($ psm/month, 2026Q3)

Building class · size band25th pctMedian75th pct
Category 2 · 100 & Below$54.65$69.39$88.80
Category 1 · 100 & Below$103.62$122.24$132.43
Category 1 · >100 - 200$116.28$126.99$148.35
Category 2 · >100 - 200$65.57$82.87$97.63
Category 1 · >200 - 500$114.67$128.09$145.77
Category 2 · >200 - 500$64.83$82.57$94.73
Category 1 · >500 - 1000$106.56$137.78$148.23
Category 2 · >500 - 1000$85.04$89.34$109.80

URA REALIS rental-contract percentiles for the district/location — an area benchmark, not this building's own rents. Office and retail are dimensioned differently and are never mixed.

9

What is near Boat Quay Conservation Area?

Key takeawayThe nearest MRT/LRT is Raffles Place MRT, about 341 m away — and 2 competing retail premisess operate nearby.

Getting around

Amenities nearby

Cosmopolitan Clinic · 76 mBoat Quay · 156 mHotel · 176 mPlace Of Worship · 187 mParliament Promenade · 253 mRaffles Place MRT Exit G · 277 mEducational Institution · 853 mKreta Ayer Community Club · 913 m

Competing premises nearby

Retail and F&B premises competing for the same footfall — context for an occupier, not a selling point.

Market Street Hawker Centre · 285 mOne Raffles Place · 294 m

Straight-line distances. Source: PropKaki amenities data.

10

Getting there and parking at Boat Quay Conservation Area

Key takeawayThe nearest station is Raffles Place (EW14 / NS26), 277 m away — one of the busiest stations, with about 133,000 taps in and out on an average weekday. 19 public car parks are within 500 m.
Foot traffic: busier than 72% of retail buildings

nearest MRT/LRT Raffles Place (EW14/NS26) 277 m, about 133,000 taps a weekday; 10 more stations within 1 km; bus stops within 400 m: 8, about 16,000 taps a weekday; Singapore River: 18,341 resident workers (Census 2020, by workplace); about 9,512 residents within 1 km (June 2026); 10 other malls within 1 km. Ranked against 12,856 retail buildings by PropKaki's model: a relative score, not a footfall count.

A relative score from PropKaki's model (station and bus taps nearby, workers and residents around, and competing malls), not a count of people.

Stations within 1 km

  • Raffles Place (EW14 / NS26)277 m · about 133,000 weekday taps
  • Clarke Quay (NE5)374 m · about 31,000 weekday taps
  • Telok Ayer (DT18)438 m · about 37,000 weekday taps
  • Chinatown (NE4 / DT19)496 m · about 97,000 weekday taps
  • Maxwell (TE18)788 m · about 23,000 weekday taps

Taps are fare-card taps in and out at the station's gates on an average weekday (Jul 2026 to Sep 2026) — people passing through, not visitors to Boat Quay Conservation Area. Transfers between lines don't tap, so interchanges read low.

Bus

8 bus stops within 400 m, with about 16,000 boardings and alightings on an average weekday.

Public car parks within 500 m

  • Circular Rd (URA)29 m
    S$1.20 per half-hour at midday on a weekday · 34 car lots
  • Backlane (Lor Telok - Circular Rd) (URA)43 m
  • Lor Telok (URA)91 m
    S$1.20 per half-hour at midday on a weekday · 21 car lots
  • North Canal Rd (URA)99 m
    S$1.20 per half-hour at midday on a weekday · 24 car lots
  • Backlane (North Canal Rd - Circular Rd) (URA)132 m

Nearest URA season parking: Mohd Sultan-River Vall Ey Road Area, 1.2 km away, S$80/month.

Public car parks only, by straight-line distance, with the operator's published rates. Boat Quay Conservation Area's own car park, if it has one, and its charges are not in the open data.

11

Who's registered at Boat Quay Conservation Area?

Key takeaway2 live companies (and LLPs and branches; sole proprietors are not counted) list Boat Quay Conservation Area as their registered address. These are registered businesses, not who occupies the space.
  • Accommodation and food services
    2
  • Wholesale and retail trade
    0

Registered businesses, not who occupies the space: companies, LLPs and branches whose REGISTERED address is this building (ACRA), by industry. Sole proprietors are not counted; no business is named. ACRA, as of 2026-09-16.

12

Frequently asked questions about Boat Quay Conservation Area

Where is Boat Quay Conservation Area?⌄

Boat Quay Conservation Area is at 8,8A,8B Canton Street, Singapore 049748, in the Singapore River planning area.

What is Boat Quay Conservation Area zoned as?⌄

Boat Quay Conservation Area sits on land zoned commercial under the URA Master Plan.

What is the tenure of Boat Quay Conservation Area?⌄

Boat Quay Conservation Area is 999-year leasehold. About 799 years remain on the lease.

Is Boat Quay Conservation Area a conserved property?⌄

Yes. Boat Quay Conservation Area falls within a URA conservation area, so external works are subject to conservation guidelines.

What have units at Boat Quay Conservation Area sold for?⌄

Across 1 recorded transaction, the median price is S$3,416 psf. The latest was in April 2010.

What is the nearest MRT station to Boat Quay Conservation Area?⌄

Raffles Place MRT is the closest, 341 m away (about a 5-minute walk).

How many businesses are registered at Boat Quay Conservation Area?⌄

3 businesses are currently registered at this address with ACRA. That is a measure of registered addresses, not of how many businesses physically occupy the building.

For agents · in the PropKaki app

The facts are here — now get the verdict on Boat Quay Conservation Area.

Ask what a unit here would fetch, what the zone allows, or how it compares.

PropKaki
Tell me about Boat Quay Conservation Area — recent transactions, zoning and what's listed there.

Here's the building's zone, its recorded deals and every live unit — and where the asking prices sit against them.

Ask anything about Singapore property…