By Himanshu Bhatt.

IF YOU happen to pass along Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, still known to many locals in Penang island as Northam Road, chances are you would notice a quaint-looking high-rise apartment building completed just a few years back.

With its combination of sharply angular and linear aesthetic features, the building appears contemporary in its design as it juts into the blue sky. But what gives the structure its peculiarity is not its height or modern appearance, but the much smaller facade on the ground floor – a replica of a pre-war colonial bungalow.

Things came to a head on the eve of Christmas in 1993, when the historic bungalow was illegally demolished to make way for the high-rise structure that now stands there. The incident provoked an outcry from heritage activists, who pointed out that the bungalow, which once also housed

Metropole Hotel, had been listed as a heritage building.

Amid the outpouring of protests, the company that demolished it was charged in court and fined RM50,000. Many quarters felt that the punishment was not severe enough, even describing it as a mere slap on the wrist.

What made the matter quirky was that the company was also ordered by the authorities to rebuild the facade of the old bungalow on its new high-rise project. This by no means appeased the activists and heritage lovers who were shocked by the destruction of a historic building.

Today, looking ornate and old-styled, the heritage frontage lends a rather strange juxtaposition with the rest of the building which is made to look contemporary.

"This is not conservation, but pastiche," said Penang Heritage Trust president Khoo Salma Nasution.

"We argued that the penalty should not only be the maximum fine allowed in the Town and Country Planning Act, but that planning permission should not be given for decades afterward and that the site should be restored to the original condition (that means the building would have to be rebuilt) as provided for under the Act."

As if to reignite this old controversy, in July last year, another historic bungalow along Pykett Avenue – uncannily enough once occupied by the family of the same Khaw Sim Bee – was illegally torn down to make way for a high-rise condominium project.

A similar gush of protests took place, and this time the court fined the developer RM6,000. Once again, this was for many hardly the deterrent they were asking for to prevent ambitious developers or property owners from annihilating historic buildings.

"The penalty has to act as a deterrent to other developers contemplating illegal demolition of their heritage buildings as a strategy for by-passing planning approval," Khoo said.

Khoo even recounted a meeting she had attended in 1992 with the Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) when the then municipal secretary declared that the buildings along Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah would be conserved.

"One developer stood up to ask, ‘If someone demolishes their building, how much would the fine be?’ Upon learning that the fine was just a few thousand ringgit, the developer left the room, banging the door as he went out," Khoo said.

"A few days later, the century-old building was reduced to rubble."

Some 18 years later, with George Town having been bestowed Heritage City status by Unesco, there are calls for the authorities to take a hard stance on those who flout the law by destroying buildings, particularly those of historic value.

And the vision of Asdang House, brought about by the bizarre replica of its facade, may well serve as a continual reminder of the legacy and lessons its destruction has left, for generations of Penangites to come.

** Republished with permission. This article first appeared in the Feb 10, 2011 issue of theSun. Himanshu is theSun’s Penang bureau head.