The Taichung City Government on Tuesday said that it would not hand over the Taichung Prefectural Hall — which was built during the Japanese colonial era as the seat of government for what the Japanese called Taichu Prefecture — to the central government to become the second exhibition hall for the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts as previously agreed.
Taichung Prefectural Hall was one of five major prefectural halls constructed during the Japanese colonial era. It was designed by architect Matsunosuke Moriyama, as were the halls in Taipei and Tainan, which are now the Control Yuan and the National Museum of Taiwan Literature respectively.
Turning over the building to the central government without any compensation is unacceptable, Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) said, adding that such a decision belittled the hall.
Photo provided by the Taichung City Government
The hall was supposed to be turned over after being renovated, she said, adding that the central government was providing NT$200 million (US$6.7 million) and the municipal government NT$300 million for the renovations.
The city government had received multiple complaints regarding the decision, which was made under former Taichung mayor Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), Lu said.
Lin had previously signed an agreement with the Ministry of Cultural Affairs to turn over the hall and “upgrade” it to a national-level museum.
After the renovations, the hall would not completely be used for tourism, as the city government’s Urban Development Bureau, Transportation Bureau and Environmental Protection Bureau would remain in the building, Lu said.
Aside from maintaining a city government presence in the building, other portions of it would be repurposed for tourism or culture-related events, she said.
By maintaining the hall’s historic status, the municipality hopes to draw more tourists to West Central District (中西), Lu said.
Lu also said that the city government would help improve infrastructure in the area.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS