Joint Research on Adaptive Reuse in Chittagong

In Bangladesh, many people are not aware of the importance of upkeep the history and culture of the country. As a result, many of the heritage buildings are neglected and torn down for the construction of modern buildings due to urbanization.

In Chittagong, an important building, PK Sen Sattala, faced the impending fate of being demolished. This is a seven stories building constructed approximately in 1920. It was one of the biggest Bhabans in Chittagong during the British era and, it was the first high rise building in Bangladesh.

At the initiate stage, three universities namely, Kyushu University, Premier University and Chittagong University of Technology and Engineering, supported and by an organization, AK Khan Foundation, came together to try to restore this building by first, documenting the building. Measurements of the building were done via various methods to construct the architecture plan and 3D model as a start to understanding the building. These drawings were completed in 2017.

For the next stage, Kyushu University and the National University of Singapore will collaborate and explore ways to adapt and reuse the building. Adaptive reuse of a heritage building will increase the value of the building, thus encouraging the preservation of historic architecture. They have conducted the site in January 2018 to understand the context concerning the environment, culture, economy, etc, before they can make any recommendations for adaptive reuse. Currently, the project is still on-going.