New restoration contest proposed
Damar Harsanto, Jakarta
The Jakarta Culture and Museum Agency will hold a contest for architects to support the restoration of the former Central Jakarta immigration office on Jl. Teuku Umar No. 1, Central Jakarta, to revive it as a venue for the arts and cultural shows.
"We need a new design for modern facilities around the heritage building to support the function of the main building as an art gallery," said the agency's head Nurhadi Sastrapraja at City Hall recently. The facilities include road access, a car park and elevators.
The contest will be the second held by the agency but it has yet to reveal the date of the contest.
Last year, the agency held a similar contest to redesign the main building, which is believed to be the first concrete building built during the Dutch colonial era.
Nurhadi said the administration planned to revive the original function of the building as a center for the arts.
"During the Dutch administration, the building hosted opera performances," he said.
The administration has allocated Rp 6.1 billion (US$670,330) from this year's city budget for the project.
"Hopefully, the renovation work (of the main building) can be completed this year," he said, although the renovation has not started yet.
The Jakarta Post observed on Tuesday that the old building was in poor condition. Most of its window panes and door frames are missing. Many parts of the walls also have gaping holes.
Indonesian Institute of Architects (IAI) Jakarta chapter chairman Bambang Eryudhawan called on the administration to immediately begin the renovation work of the main building.
"We are racing against time to restore the building as many parts have already been damaged. With many parts of the roof leaking, rainwater easily enters the building, increasing the humidity inside and speeding up the deterioration process," he said.
Bambang also warned the administration to be careful in appointing a developer in the renovation project.
"So far, the administration has mismanaged heritage buildings by treating them in the same way as other buildings. Of course, such mismanagement will only further worsen the condition of our heritage buildings," he said.
The building originally named the Netherlands-Indische Kunstkring (the Netherlands-Indies Art Circle) -- was designed by Dutch architect Pieter Adriaan Jacobus Moojen in 1912 and its construction started in the same year.
Until 1997, the building served as the Central Jakarta immigration office. The building was then handed over to private developer PT Mandala Griya Cipta in 1998 through a land swap deal. The developer planned to demolish the building in order to build a new building.
Fortunately, the public as well heritage lovers strongly opposed the plan, forcing the administration to reclaim the building from the developer for a hefty Rp 28 billion in 2002. Unfortunately, most of the antique fixtures -- including lamps, window and door frames -- were lost under the ownership of the private company.