Abstract

While Mahakan (Bangkok) (see chapter 5) reveals a lost battle in terms of community heritage preservation, Tangbu (Taipei) represents a successful case of transforming a set of sugar warehouses into a museum set within a park. The difference between the two cases can be attributed to the democratization movement in Taiwan and the resulting responsiveness of the government to local demands. The Tangbu project is also set within a historic moment, when Taipei installed its first elected mayor. This institutional change created the context for responsiveness and also the entry of more progressive elected officials. Although mobilization led to the successful construction of the Tangbu Cultural Park, there are questions about its sustainability; critics of the project see it as a white elephant (or, as the Taiwanese call it, a building that only mosquitoes visit). Thus, in the context of local collective projects, getting a project built is not the same as ensuring it is sustainable. What is needed is a continued collaboration between local government and community to keep working to make Tangbu Cultural Park appealing to visitors.

Keywords: Taipei, urban heritage, urban redevelopment, adaptive reuse buildings, community museum, community planner