WILLEMSTAD — The Board of Governors has removed ten monuments from the monument list, because the latter have either collapsed to such an extent or damaged by fire beyond restoration, or have to be almost entirely reconstructed.
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A building on the list at Emmastraat 16 was demolished illegally. It regards a clearing of the monument list. Most of the buildings have been in a deplorable state for years. The scourged buildings – Gasthuisstraat 7-9, Breedestaat 170-172, Breedestraat 174 and Quintastraat 29-35 have already been demolished. Pietermaaiweg 168-170 is nothing but a ruin and cannot be restored (see picture). The same applies for Breedestraat 176 and Witteweg 52. These buildings have already been demolished. The buildings at Roodeweg 76 and Pietermaaiweg 50 have collapsed.
One only has to take a stroll through the inner city and take a good look around to see the buildings on the verge of collapsing – except for the buildings that were beautifully restored, for example in Scharloo and Otrobanda. The buildings about to collapse regard more than the ten currently removed from the list.
According to Michael Newton of Institution Monument Fund Curaçao, the government has been actively summoning the owners, encouraging them to restore their building. However, one had not gone to the limit. "That is a political choice" according to Newton, although this of course also involves financial means besides political will. For instance, the government itself could also renovate buildings and re-claim the costs from the owner afterwards. At worst, one could acquire a building compulsorily. The government regularly calls for the so-called emergency restoration if a building shows clear signs of deterioration, and the owner takes no action. This includes closing a gap, shoring up a wall or muring up a building.
World Heritance List
Curaçao has an interest in the monuments being restored beautifully as much as possible. Historic Willemstad is included on the World Heritance List from UNESCO since 1997. In that, it regards areas in Punda, Otrobanda, Scharloo and Pietermaai. There are more than 800 protected monuments in total also outside these areas.
Within the framework of the monument policy, buildings are designated as protected monument based on an Island-regulation from 1990. When no objection is made, they will be added to the list. The Board of Governors itself, or at the suggestion of interested parties, could remove buildings from the list – in conformity with article 7 of the regulation. In consultation with Drov, the Board of Governors concluded the aforementioned ten builders are no longer a protected monument, "because these monuments have lost their monumental value due to fire, near collapsing or had to be demolished, and it is therefore no longer just to include them in the register". One can lodge an objection against such.
Curaçao has an interest in the monuments being restored beautifully as much as possible. Historic Willemstad is included on the World Heritance List from UNESCO since 1997. In that, it regards areas in Punda, Otrobanda, Scharloo and Pietermaai. There are more than 800 protected monuments in total also outside these areas.Within the framework of the monument policy, buildings are designated as protected monument based on an Island-regulation from 1990. When no objection is made, they will be added to the list. The Board of Governors itself, or at the suggestion of interested parties, could remove buildings from the list – in conformity with article 7 of the regulation. In consultation with Drov, the Board of Governors concluded the aforementioned ten builders are no longer a protected monument, "because these monuments have lost their monumental value due to fire, near collapsing or had to be demolished, and it is therefore no longer just to include them in the register". One can lodge an objection against such.
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