Balestier is home to some spectacular architecture. Visually striking and brings to mind the cubist structures of Pablo Picasso, Balestier Point was once declared the "The New Boy on the Block" by The Straits Times shortly after it opened in 1986.
When Balestier Point first opened, the complex housed 62 retail units on the first two floors, car parks on the third and fourth levels and 13 floors of residential apartments with two or three bedrooms. The designers, RDC Architects, were inspired by Habitat '67, a cellular housing project in Montreal, Canada, created by the renowned international architect Moshe Safdie, whom they had earlier collaborated with.
Balestier Point was designed with privacy in mind. The ‘foot’ of the pyramid shielded the residences from the sound of traffic. The building sits on the site of the former Ruby Theatre, which opened from 1958 until the early 1980s. It's no wonder that Balestier Point received an Honourable Mention Award from the Singapore Institute of Architects in 1987.
