Historic buildings are the accretive result of social activity. They are also the shared cultural heritage of all humankind. Any damage to them accelerates the disappearance of urban culture.

Unlike officially designated historic structures, which enjoy protection under the law, many old buildings sit unused due to years of neglect. But, with a bit of thought, one will discover that each building has an intriguing past. Their stories are the primary source material of the history of urban development.

Following on from its “New Uses for Old Buildings” declaration, the Foundation for Historic City Conservation and Regeneration has launched a series of courses to help business proprietors learn how to go properly about reviving old buildings. (courtesy of FHCCR)

An awakening

There’s an especially high number of old buildings in Tainan because the city hasn’t been quite so badly affected as other cities by rapid development. However, while Tainan has a great deal of cultural patrimony in the form of old buildings, a group of architecture and history professors from National Cheng Kung University, which is based in the city, discovered that students in the Department of Architecture researching the preservation of historic buildings had to travel to Japan, Europe, or other distant places to visit actual historic preservation projects.

The professors started thinking about what they could do on their own to protect historic buildings, and they ended up establishing the Foundation for Historic City Conservation and Regeneration (FHCCR) in 2001. Thanks to their efforts, people in Tainan began to develop a stronger appreciation for the value of old structures.

Over a period of eight or nine years, a wave of enthusiasm for community-based efforts to revive old buildings gradually spread throughout Taiwan, and the results spurred an uptick in tourism.

As part of the “New Uses for Old Buildings Awards” launched by the FHCCR in 2006, people have been searching everywhere in Tainan for old buildings of high quality. Noteworthy structures are introduced to the public with an eye to sparking public interest.

But, with tourism in Taiwan experiencing a boom in recent years, the basic philosophy that originally inspired the drive to preserve old buildings has quietly gone awry.

The worry shared by many has been expressed by FHCCR president Yen Shih-hua: “The core value underlying the effort to preserve historic environments and old buildings ought to be the human element. Once you get away from that, you’re left with an empty shell that is devoid of spirit.” If we seek only utilitarian goals and focus only on developing tourism, says Yen, we’ll end up losing what makes neighborhoods unique. In his view, this would harm residential environments, detract from local culture, and even hasten the disappearance of urban culture.

Old cities are the heart and soul of culture. Preserving neighbor­hoods and old patterns of urban culture is a task that cities throughout the world have to deal with as societies progress.

Taking it to school

More and more business entities, touting their commitment to historic preservation, are unknowingly undertaking renovation projects that push old buildings past their structural limitations. The FHCCR hopes to launch a new campaign to remind the public about the thinking and ideals that originally inspired people to promote the preservation of old buildings. They are also planning to re-issue their “New Uses for Old Buildings” declaration, the number-one goal of which would be to teach the public about the need to meet professional standards in the renovation of old buildings.

“If a person doing a renovation doesn’t have a sufficient understanding of structural issues or other technical matters, the result will be unhealthy use that affects structural safety. And routine maintenance is more important still. Bad decisions can accelerate deterioration and affect safety.” Professor Yen, who himself teaches in the Department of Architecture, feels the matter must first be addressed through education, which is why the FHCCR has launched a series of courses via what it has named the “Old Buildings School.” The FHCCR hires experts and academics from a variety of fields to share their professional expertise in the renovation of buildings.

Courses at the Old Buildings School cover legal provisions governing property rights and leasing, building codes, fire safety, and building materials. The courses are not limited to classroom lectures: they also arrange visits to successful renovation projects so that people running businesses out of old buildings can rethink the subject.

Kimberly Lin, the proprietor of Lingo Books, a noted second-hand book store on Guohua Street in Tainan, says that although she’s been running a bookstore out of an old building for over three years, attending an Old Buildings School course has really sharpened her understanding of how to maintain the building where her store is located, and also impressed upon her the value of sustainable business practices.

Yen says that the Old Buildings School activities and courses have even elicited a lot of interest from people running businesses out of old buildings in mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and other countries. Says Yen: “The preservation of neighborhoods and old patterns of urban culture is a task that cities throughout the world have to deal with as societies progress. They start with the preservation of physical things, and then move on to the preservation of culture before finally focusing on how to make good use of buildings and keep things sustainable. We have to continually rethink the whole undertaking if we’re going to do something valuable in this modern era.”

Linking Travel Service is housed in a long, narrow 1950s row house where the original historic elements are preserved. The calligraphy on the wall is the handiwork of Yen Chen-fa, a well-known painter of movie posters.

Daybreak 18 Teahouse

Located right next to the Tainan Assembly Hall stands a wooden structure over 80 years old where Ye Dongtai took over an old teahouse three years ago and renamed it the Daybreak 18 Teahouse. In addition to promoting Tainan’s local tea culture, Ye also wanted to use that special property to get out-of-towners more familiar with the feel of life in Taiwan’s oldest city.

Ye thought long and hard about what he’d need to do to ensure that Daybreak 18 would stay in business over the long haul. On the second floor of his shop he has organized book club meetings and a cultural salon, the idea being to incorporate Taiwan’s tea ceremony culture into his activities, in a setting reflective of the local historic backdrop. Over the past three years, his teahouse has unexpectedly turned into a whole new venue for local cultural activity. In the process, Ye has come to feel that a business run out of an old building should be based on “human-centered values.”

“A city’s charm comes from new developments in these old spaces. We naturally are under pressure to run a successful business, but we’ve discovered that those spaces can bring cultural and artistic activities in. Old and new elements mix together in old buildings. What we hope is that more people will come to like Tainan, and on that score the people of Tainan have to step forward and put out an effort themselves,” says Ye, who adds that if old cities and old buildings are interesting enough, then questions about what’s new and what’s old are not an issue.

After taking over the old teahouse, Ye breathed new life into it. The building is now a living museum meant not only to be seen, but also to be touched. And it is a place where lovers of culture in Tainan can get together. In fact, it was selected by the FHCCR as one of the top ten renovation projects in 2015.

Reviving an old building creates opportunities for interaction and dialogue with the past, and serves as a salute to those who’ve gone before. Shown here is Tang Dake, the owner of a red bean soup shop.

Linking Travel Service

Another project has taken place at Linking Travel Service on Minquan Road, which is housed in a 1950s row house featuring a long, narrow floor plan that extends far in from the street. The property had previously been refurbished by a string of previous owners, each of whom was careful to preserve its historic elements. The wooden window frames and unusual courtyard design, for example, preserve an old-time atmosphere. Linking Travel Service proprietor Clinton Lu, who is a big fan of all things old, states: “Above the courtyard was a decrepit old translucent atrium roof that was leaking water. So as not to mess up the original look of the building, I installed a transparent canopy over it.”

Lu today organizes cultural tours of Tainan. Tailored to the interests of individual visitors, the tours faithfully convey the local culture and make it possible for more people to get a good feel for the old-time flavor of the city.

Since 2015 the organizers of the New Uses for Old Buildings Awards have opened them up to projects outside of Tainan in an effort to promote a proper understanding of the subject throughout Taiwan. The people at FHCCR regard this as one more way to spread culture. Whereas the organization originally focused on architectural history, it has since moved on to a deeper-level campaign to preserve culture. Hopefully the proper preservation of old buildings can further build up the cultural “soil” of our cities and nation.

Lingo Books is housed in an old two-story duplex. The proprietor has succeeded in creating a community bookshop in a location that is quiet yet not far from the bustle of city life.

Ye Dongtai has infused new life into an old building by opening the Daybreak 18 Teahouse there. The building is now a living museum meant not only to be seen, but also to be touched.

Through the preservation of its old buildings, Tainan has opened a new page in its history and laid yet another thread in the city’s rich cultural tapestry.

Since 2015 the organizers of the New Uses for Old Buildings Awards have opened them up to projects outside of Tainan in an effort to promote a proper understanding of the subject throughout Taiwan. This is one more way to spread culture.