Kuching’s built heritage — a need to treat them respectfully

4 months ago 96

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Heritage Snippets of Sarawak

By Colin MacGillivray

MANY heritage buildings in Kuching are empty awaiting either a new occupant or demolition. Some of the ones described here have an important role in the growth and history of the city. Almost all have fond memories for the many people who are sad to see them vacant, in poor condition and unloved. Even worse is the emptiness when the cranes and jackhammers have knocked them down.

One building that will never be demolished, one hopes, is the Central Post Office.

It was built in 1931 as Government Offices and originally housed the Lands and Survey and the Forestry Department and Municipal Offices. The project was designed by Denis Santry of Singapore architects Swan and Maclaren. That firm also designed the Rajah Memorial, the 6-metre tall granite obelisk in front of the Courthouse building about 100 metres away towards the river. Vyner Brooke was interested in modern ideas but these buildings don’t reveal that. Swan and Maclaren also were consultants for the Central Fire Station many years later in 1957, when Sarawak was a colony.

In addition, on the corner of the building the Chartered Bank was strategically located near the goldsmiths shops. It was the first private bank in Kuching. Later it became the Central Post Office, but even that function is now greatly reduced. There is a small post office in the central part of the ground floor which could be incorporated in a redevelopment or moved to a mall nearby perhaps.

The two-storey building is not very distinguished if it was located out of Kuching but is a rare historical landmark here with its Corinthian columns, archways and pediments. The facade is 77 metres or 250 feet long when it was drawn in imperial measurements. The five-footway is just that which is a pity as it’s rather narrow for the potentially central part it plays in the life of city people. Its modern construction with concrete floors and steel windows means it could easily be converted to a 20 all suite, boutique hotel. The very high ceilings and grandiose proportions might make it a competitor with Raffles in Singapore, the E&O Hotel in Penang or the Strand Hotel in Yangon in Myanmar. To do this real expertise would be required to treat a heritage building properly.

Another building is definitely under more of a threat from the wrecking ball. In fact demolition is imminent. The former Nurses Home was a significant building for the hundreds of nurses who lived there and worked at the hospital. Initially it housed all the nurses who worked in or were being trained at the General Hospital opposite. Since it closed there have been reports of ghosts but that seems to be the fate of every vacant building in Kuching.

It is an attractive, very unpretentious structure, built perhaps in the 1930’s and marks a heritage corner for two original roads in Kuching—Rock, now Jalan Tun Abang Haji Openg, and Crookshank. It was acquired by the innovative Sarawak Lawn Tennis Association a decade or more back for accommodation but the site has problems. It has been surrounded by new drainage work so it collects stormwater when heavy rain occurs. For this reason, the site was returned to the government and there are plans to demolish it to make a retention pond. In fact the part of the building on the corner can be kept totally dry even when the future pond is full. Retaining this small part of the land would have minimal effect on the function as a retention pond. The corner building could be used for accommodation for people of modest means from rural areas visiting relatives in the hospital.

About a dozen rooms with existing shared bathrooms, cooking facilities and a communal sitting area are feasible.

The former European Hospital built in 1909 stands opposite the Post Office and is now not used at all. This three-storey building has extensive balconies on two sides and is in that way, similar to the Raffles Hotel in Singapore. The balconies have Ionic columns, this time, more plain than the elaborate Corinthian style opposite. Many buildings in the early 1900’s reflected Roman stylistic devices to enliven their facades.

It was the Textile Museum for many years but is now closed and needs a new reason for being there. The enclosed balconies should be altered back to the original open concept. It could even be an annex to the hotel opposite if that were to be done. It would provide 12 more rooms on the upper two floors and perhaps a cafe at ground level.

The building was constructed during the Rajah Charles regime but he was not keen on spending fees on outside consultants when he had a number of engineers in the Public Works Department. The European Hospital was the last of his reign designed by Singapore architects. Vyner Brooke, as mentioned before, started using foreign architectural design input when he was in control. Pictures of the original building show decorative blinds in every opening of the balcony, an attractive addition to the streetscape.

Kuching has few buildings to preserve compared to Penang, Taiping or many other Malaysian cities. It was always a nation with limited financial resources and few large international institutions to lavish money on buildings to display how important they were. In Sarawak, utilitarianism and value for money prevailed. That is all the more reason to treat the ones we have with kid gloves—carefully and respectfully.

Some of the dates and a few facts, and none of the opinions mentioned here come from the excellent book—“The History of Architecture in Sarawak before Malaysia” by John H.S. Ting. The photos are by the author of this article or approved by a Facebook site administrator.

Colin MacGillivray is a British born, New Zealand trained Australian retired architect who first came here in the 1983 as the resident architect for the Hilton Hotel. He retired here in 2009 and is very interested in Sarawak’s built heritage and how to preserve what is there.

“Heritage Snippets of Sarawak” is a fortnightly column.

— DayakDaily

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