Construction to turn the heritage-protected Old Courthouse in Nam Van into the city’s new central library, a project estimated to cost about 900 million patacas not including the “detailed design” costs, is due to start in 2019, Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Guilherme Ung Vai Meng said yesterday.
Ung made the comments during a press conference at the bureau to reveal more details of the project which has sparked ample criticism due to its huge budget and doubts whether the Old Courthouse is a suitable site for the city’s new central library.
Ung said the decision to turn the Old Courthouse, which was built in 1951, into a central library was made in 2003 by the government, adding that the bureau began planning the project in 2007.
This photo taken in Nam Van yesterday shows the Old Courthouse, one of 128 listed buildings and sites in the city.
Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Guilherme Ung Vai Meng speaks during yesterday’s press conference at the bureau in Praça do Tap Seac. Photos: Monica Leong
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