Experts are called in to restore protected villa
Print Edition
CHANGNING District yesterday said an illegal structure built on an historic villa had been removed and invited experts to restore the home to its original appearance.
The Daxi Villas are on the city’s immovable cultural heritage list. The villas are on Yan’an Road W. and one was found to have an additional floor while one exterior wall had been painted a different color and the windows had been changed, an official with the district’s housing bureau said.
The 17 villas were built by a British real estate company in 1924 and have nice gardens. The wood and brick structures are all different with painted walls, steel windows and wooden floors. The villas are surrounded by plants and most are privately owned homes.
Each house has been classified as an “immovable cultural relic” by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, which means the owners cannot change any part of the buildings without approval from the city’s historic building protection authority.
The building that has been illegally renovated was converted from three floors to a four-story modern house. The exterior wall had been painted in a lighter yellow than neighboring villas. Wooden fences surround the villa and nobody lives inside.
The inner structure has also been changed. A wooden staircase was demolished and replaced with modern stairs in a different location, said a resident living nearby surnamed Zhang, who tipped off local media and the housing authority.
Zhang said renovation work on the villa started late last year and was apparently completed without the permission of the authority.
A housing official said the villa was sold by a private owner to a company in 2014.
The housing authority said yesterday it had inspected the house last year and asked the company to preserve the building and make sure to keep its original appearance.
The company agreed, according to the official, and consulted the former owner about repairs since he was born and raised in the house.
However, the house was later renovated and many illegal changes were made.
“The house has an additional level along with a new structure between the main building and the garage,” the official said.
The company behind the illegal renovation work will be punished, the official added.
Wang Weiqiang, a professor with the College of Architecture and Urban Planning at Tongji University, said: “Any individual or company that damages a protected building can be fined up to 500,000 yuan (US$80,500).” However, Wang said fines were too low to deter those intent on renovating historic buildings.
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