Galleries, apartments planned in Old Town

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The city administration is inviting the State Ministry for State Enterprises to develop Jakarta's Old Town by allowing businesses to make use of the ministry's vacant buildings.

Jakarta Culture and Museum Agency head Aurora Frida Tambunan said Tuesday her agency working to accommodate businesses expected to flourish in the area.

"The Old Town should be a cultural tourism site featuring both city heritage and high economic values. It's the ultimate goal of the Old Town's revitalization," she said at City Hall after a meeting with State Minister Sofyan Djalil and Governor Fauzi Bowo.

"We are now seeking business opportunities with the private sector to have 12 abandoned state-owned buildings (under the ministry's management) in the area (opened for other uses)."

Parts of the 283 preserved buildings in the Old Town heritage site, the 12 vacant buildings are situated on West Jakarta's Jl. Pintu Besar Utara through to Jl. Kalibesar.

Among the buildings' owners are PT Dharma Niaga, PT Cipta Niaga, PT Aneka Niaga, PT Kerta Niaga, Bank Mandiri, Bank Negara Indonesia and United States-based bank Standard Chartered's former branch.

She said a number of local and foreign investors had expressed interest in using and transform the state-owned buildings into restaurants, art galleries, museums and apartments.

"Many investors are interested in using the Old Town's preserved buildings to run their businesses but constraints have since emerged as to where they have to ask for a permit or what policies they should comply with," she said, while declining to provide further details on the investors' identities.

"Therefore, the administration will forge a team to thoroughly examine this plan."

In response, State Minister Sofyan said he endorsed the administration's plan and had promised the governor they would "save the Old Town and let the abandoned buildings be taken care of".

"I'm looking forward to seeing the buildings, which predominantly belong to state-owned enterprises having financial difficulties, being renovated and used to the administration's plan," he said.

Meanwhile, city planner M. Danisworo who joined a city-appointed team in drawing up the Old Town master plan, said the state ministry must first deal with its own regulations in order to make the administration's plan work.

"Businesses, as designed in the Old Town master plan, are mandatory to help spur the Old Town's revitalization and development," he told The Jakarta Post.

"But they need first to address a major obstacle -- a state ministry policy prohibiting the use of state-owned buildings for business purposes like the administration is planning for."

Both parties, he said, should also consider providing prospective investors with regulation, tax and fiscal incentives.