GEORGE TOWN, July 20 — The George Town World Heritage Incorporated’s (GTWHI) pilot project to come up with sustainable restoration methods in cooperation with a clan association is a move in the right direction, said property consultant Michael Geh.
He said this will encourage more heritage building owners to restore and keep their buildings instead of selling it off.
“After 10 years of these owners facing hindrances to restoring their heritage buildings with heritage activists dictating the restoration process, this is a move forward to help these owners,” he said.
He said in the past 10 years, he has been hearing a lot of things on the ground about the problems faced by these heritage building owners when they want to restore their buildings.
“They were faced with hindrances in the form of heritage guidelines and they were not given simple, straight-forward answers on what to do,” he said.
This led to 10 years of many heritage building owners being at a loss and being unable to restore their buildings.
“That was 10 years of dilapidation and dereliction to a lot of the inner city houses,” he said.
Geh believed this is the reason why most local heritage building owners decided to sell off their properties to others, including foreigners in the last three to five years.
Now, with this pilot project which is to look at how to assist heritage building owners can restore their buildings sustainably and affordably, Geh said there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel.
GTWHI today announced a pilot project with Ng Fook Thong Cantonese Districts Association on sustainable restoration.
“A lot of heritage building owners are facing problems in restoring their buildings so we have to look at proactive ways to resolve this issue,” said GTWHI general manager Ang Ming Chee.
The project will look at ways to help heritage building owners, especially those within the world heritage city, to restore their buildings according to requirements but in a simpler and cost-effective way.
