The Taipei Urban Planning Commission yesterday decided that the historic Mitsui Warehouse (三井倉庫) would be moved 51m to the east to avoid possible problems with a proposed road adjustment project near the Taipei Railway Station.
The commission meeting came in the wake of the demolition of an elevated onramp for the Zhongxiao Bridge, which had been right next to the North Gate (北門), a 132-year-old building on Zhongxiao W Road dating to China’s Qing Dynasty.
The meeting was called to review nine options being considered to further improve the traffic situation in the area and pick one of them.
Photo: Chung Hung-liang, Taipei Times
The traffic improvement plan is part of the city government’s Western Area Gateway Project, which seeks to transform the North Gate into a figurative “gate” for Taiwan and use it to help attract investment to the older Wanhua (萬華) and Zhongzheng (中正) districts and increasing job opportunities.
The proposed relocation of the warehouse — one of the few remaining historic freight-transport buildings near the rail station — has been strongly criticized, with opponents calling on the city government not to sacrifice historic value for the sake of road traffic.
Lin Quei-miao (林奎妙), who opposes the move, said that with the recent demolition of the onramp, the North Gate is now part of a city skyline along with the Taipei Beimen Post Office and a contemporary Taiwanese-style building.
She said that the warehouse should remain at its original site to preserve that skyline.
The city government had behaved “undemocratically” and in a procedurally flawed way in its dealings with the warehouse.
The city government at the beginning of this month told residents on a plot of land belonging to the Taiwan Railways Administration to move to free up space for the relocation of the warehouse, which had not yet been approved, she said.
Furthermore, officials at the Department of Urban Development rejected all proposals by experts that would achieve a balance between historic preservation and traffic developments at workshops, she said.
Department officials said a proposal put forward by preservationists to envelop the warehouse between two roads would turn the building into an “isolated island,” thereby defeating the goal of allowing people to visit the site.
The proposal would also result in insufficient space between the roads and the warehouse, endangering road safety, officials said.
Several commission members said that they did not understand the North Gate’s historic and cultural importance and suggested that a decision on the warehouse be made after a Cultural Assets Review Committee meeting next month.
Commission member Lin Sheng-feng (林盛豐) said that if the resolution issued yesterday meant the warehouse must be moved, the commission should insist on a stricter decisionmaking process; otherwise, the commission runs the risk of criticism if the Cultural Assets Review Committee oppose the relocation next month.
However, Taipei Deputy Mayor Charles Lin (林欽榮), who heads the commission, said that unless the committee issues a resolution convincing enough to cause the commission to review of the proposed relocation again, the warehouse will be moved.
Citing a city government announcement after the warehouse was designated a historic building in 2012, Charles Lin said that the building should be preserved as best as possible in the event of traffic development projects.
The road adjustment plan would be carried out according to the plan displayed at public hearings, which involves the construction of two four-lane roads north of the North Gate, he said.
The new roads are needed in anticipation of the expected increase in traffic in the area after Taoyuan Airport line of Taipei’s mass rapid transit system, which passes through the area, is opened, he said.
One relocation option is to dismantle the warehouse and then reconstruct it at a new site, he said, adding that the commission would respect the committee’s decision on relocation methods.
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