Case Study: OMA Kota Tua
Would it be more sensible if we preserve old disused buildings by injecting modern programmes rather than proposing a full scale design intervention?
Should we must appraise that new is always better?
Kota Tua was built and functioned since 1619 when Batavia was established as a trading port during Dutch colonization – once a major commerce hub serving as an administrative and financial hub for Dutch East Indies Company. However, the old town was left abandoned ever since Indonesia declared its independence in 1945. Now, it is commonly known as Old Batavia.
Kota Tua carries 300 years of history and evolution of Batavia, consisting a fusion architecture style of Colonial-Art Deco that integrated with Traditional local construction method. The characteristics of the buildings reflect local cultural elements and respond towards tropical climate condition in order to maximize thermal comfort for users.
The planning of Kota Tua constitutes within an orthogonal grid complete with a series of blocks arranged surrounding the open public space that represent as an intermediate scale building. During the colonization era, the buildings’ convention, form and materialization style produced a unique identity for Kota Tua with vernacular architecture style.
Preservation is crucial in maintaining cultural and architectural heritage in the historic city of Kota Tua. The relationship between the society and a building for such urban revitalization effort is important to produce a symbiotic connection, as a building ‘lifespan’ is depended on the determination of their value to the society – there’s no architecture without user, the values must be beneficial for both ends.
“Various efforts have been attempted to revive the colonial district; all have suffered the same fate due to a lack of incentive for investment and crumbling infrastructure...”
Office for Metropolitan Architecture
The lack of monetary support and the collapse of structural integrity in the area eventually triggered a causal sequence resulting to a much serious issue that is the disappearance of local culture and history which is crucial to retain, a tragic reality for a forgotten city with 300 years of East-Meets-West history.
Due to this reason, urban planners had to overcome forms of challenges in order to ensure consistency of the revitalised structures aligned with historical features needing to be preserved - which also would function architecturally and structurally as the original designs. However, the government and project operators when faced with adversity, more often than not would struggle between commercial potentiality and sustaining culture/heritage. The situation reveals a great deal of struggles in heritage conservation and development projects.
Every project consequently involves a distinct set of complexities which demand a specific set of strategies/solutions. Addressing such solutions requires critical thinking, evaluations, observations, options analysis and intimate collaboration between parties. It is essential that continual efforts are made not only to preserve the structures, but whenever possible, also to generate these revitalised structures to good public use too – as the main challenge for revitalising Kota Tua has been to maintain its heritage and culture while maximising local economic growth opportunities.
“Rather than restoring and isolating Kota Tua, we propose to integrate and evolve Kota Tua with the rest of Jakarta - perhaps the very thing Batavia was missing from the beginning…”
Office for Metropolitan Architecture
The idea of modernising the heritage and architectural value of Kota Tua with high-quality design intervention is a necessary initiative that will offer exciting urbanism opportunities – and this, would lead the crumbling city of Kota Tua the way to the modern future.
The architectural revitalisation proposal undertaken by OMA concerted at Tjipta Niaga block, which was once an insurance office building by the name of Koloniale Zee en Brand Assurantie. Here, the Dutch architectural firm explores the potential ideology of Diverse Space – a space with a range of functions that can be carried out collectively, where a set of diverse programmes such as residential programs, institutions and commercial activities can juxtapose and create a distinct dynamism that the old building lack. By subdividing the interior spaces into small multiple units within the building using the idea of “Matrix of Possibilities”; smaller rentable space would be widely accessible for local businesses, encouraging financial investment returns instantly.
Also, in order to elevate the connectivity throughout the building, OMA proposes to place a dynamic architecture element, the “Social Stair” that could facilitate a continuous trajectory throughout each floor which helps guide visitors, while simultaneously creating a “Social Space” where various public activities can occur – this proposal would open up the entire building mass to occupy public usage.
Historic structure does have its own distinctive beauty which would create an enduring impact towards the cityscape when incorporated with modern approach of design. This explains the design intention made by OMA for the Tjipta Niaga block; to try and retain as much authenticity as possible of the old structure’s physical appearance and integrate it with new modern elements that are designed to harmonise, while at the same time contrasting with the old.
Old structures are an incredible form of aging architecture as they provide a sense of stability that maintains a meaningful tangible interaction with the past that can be experienced by anyone. OMA’s design proposal which is more to the implementation of the theory of “urban acupuncture” clearly indicates that small-scale interventions can enhance the quality of the existing contexts and contents to meet modern-world evolving demands. This initiative to revitalise Kota Tua is essential in making the historic district livable and economically sustainable – as Kota Tua is worth returning to life.
https://land8.com/pocket-parks-as-urban-acupuncture/
“Acupuncture relieves stress in the body, Urban Acupuncture relieves stress in the environment...”
The emergence of this urban theory isn’t new – in fact, the term “urban acupuncture” was originally conceived by Manuel de Sola Morales and have been recently developed by Marco Casagandre who described it as a sense of fusion that combines sociology and urban design with the traditional Chinese acupuncture medical theory.
The modern urban-ecological intervention theory of urban acupuncture mainly addresses human needs that includes the needs of its local urban organism, the same as the ancient Chinese acupuncture medical treatment – which only response to the needs of human organism.
This pinpointed intervention method forgoes enormous urban renewal projects in preference to a more localised approach which better offers remission to local urban inhabitants. Said intervention – urban acupuncture idealises mainly on local resources and is less-inclined towards capital-incentive urban renewal projects; at the same time it further instils community morale and act as a catalyst towards urban revitalisation.
The urban-concentrated design proposal made by OMA can be seen as a proper logical move to revitalise Kota Tua – as such intervention would demonstrate the infinite possibilities of a space in a way that motivates others to engage with local community, generating a much-needed dynamic energy for local community of Kota Tua that will optimise local economic and cultural growth.
In addition, a sustainable space recycling strategy is developed by injecting new modern programmes into the existing context – resulting to a successful urban acupuncture performance; as injecting new programmes would turn blighted urban zones into a vital new civic space contributed with overall aims of the engagement process.
Implementing urban acupuncture births a sense of continuity through the additions of new dynamic public spaces that will act as a catalyst for interaction in order to encourage a healthy mix of urban activities which invites a limitless cycle of public interaction.
When applied in practice, urban acupuncture would not only be a cataclysmic to a greater urban transformation, but, can also interact with the perception of the local people that will lead to increased public engagement with local society. All in all, because of the qualities of urban acupuncture to revive and sustain the existing context; these measures will trigger a constructive chain reaction that will strengthen the whole system, which will signify a benefit in quality of life and solidarity.
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