Changhua City’s former Railway Hospital could become a tourist attraction after the government spent NT$50 million (US$1.63 million) restoring the 80-year-old building, the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) said over the weekend.
Funding for the restoration was furnished by the Ministry of Culture, Changhua Cultural Affairs Bureau and the TRA, the railway operator said.
The Japanese colonial era building used to house a restaurant called Kaobinge (高賓閣), established in 1937, it said.
Photo: Chang Tsung-ciu, Taipei Times
After the Second Sino-Japanese War ended in 1945, the railways acquired the building and turned it into the Railway Hospital, it said, adding that it closed the hospital in 1984 after years of financial losses.
The railways then leased the property to a wedding studio and a cafe, it said.
In 2008, the TRA planned to tear down the building and turn the property into a parking lot, but civic groups launched an initiative to preserve it and Changhwa County in 2011 designated it a historic site.
The restoration of the building began in 2016 and is almost complete, the TRA said, adding that it would announce a winning bidder to manage the building by the end of next month.
The railways and winning contractor are to sign a contract by mid-November, it said.
“We invite hoteliers, restaurateurs, and cultural and creative industry operators to establish their businesses in the building,” the TRA said. “We also hope the restoration of a historic site will help increase traffic and help boost local business.”
Kaobinge used to be a gathering place for artists and intellectuals in the colonial era, it said.
Lai He (賴和) — known as the father of New Taiwanese Literature — and Taiwan’s first professor of medicine, Tu Tsung-ming (杜聰明), were among the guests who frequented the restaurant, the TRA said.
The building’s asymmetric design was inspired by large cruise ships, making it one of the most modern buildings of the era, the TRA said, adding that it is one of only a few modernist buildings left in Taiwan.
The former hospital is only a five-minute walk from Changhua Railway Station, making it suitable as a tourist attraction, the TRA said.
Old restaurants in the vicinity sell meatballs, noodles and shaved ice with rice gluten balls, it said.
The Changhua City Office plans to open a tourist information center in the building, it added.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
About nine Taiwanese are “disappeared,” detained, or otherwise deprived of freedom of movement in China each month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Between Jan. 1 last year and Aug. 31 this year, 188 Taiwanese travelers went missing, were detained and interrogated, or had their personal freedom restricted, with some questioned in airports or hotel lobbies, the council said. In a statement ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the council urged people visiting China for any reason to be highly vigilant and aware of the risks. Of the reported cases, 50 people were “disappeared” after entering China, 19 were detained and 119 had