West Jakarta Mayor Djoko Ramadhan said Saturday he wanted his office to lead the rejuvenation of Jakarta’s Old Town because it fell within his municipality.

Ramadhan, after meeting with Old Town stakeholders at the  Mandiri Museum, said he agreed with the idea of the city having sole authority over the management of the area, but added his office should be in charge.

“The governor said to me when I took up office to take care of the Old Town,” he said.

The area’s revitalization is on the city’s “dedicated program” list, meaning it is a priority for the city administration. The cultural and tourism agency has been put in charge of the project.

The Old Town area is a heritage area because it contains several old buildings, including the former Dutch Batavia Town Hall, now the Jakarta History Museum, in the heart of the area. It spans 1.3 square kilometers, straddling both North and West Jakarta.

In 2007, as part of the Old Town revitalization plan, a pedestrian area began to be built on Jl. Pintu Besar Utara in Central Jakarta.

“There has yet to be an integrated coordination for the Old Town,” Djoko said, adding he hoped to revitalize the area starting this year, and had met with stakeholders to discuss problems in the area, prior to proposing his plans to Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo.

To revitalize the area, Djoko asked property owners to revamp the pedestrian arcade on Jl. Pintu Besar Selatan and Jl. Pintu Kecil.

Yusmada Faizal, head of the West Jakarta Public Works traffic division, said many property owners used the pedestrian arcade in front of their buildings for private use, with some even building gates or using the arcade as a parking spots.

He added property owners should agree to refurbish the arcade and provide the space for pedestrians.

“The Old Town can have the same atmosphere as places such as Braga in Bandung and Malioboro in Yogyakarta,” he said.

Djoko said the city would provide the design, while property owners should share the cost with the government for the construction.

None of the property owners from Jl. Pintu Besar Selatan and Jl. Pintu Kecil were present at Saturday’s meeting, but Djoko said he would meet with them next week.

As part of the rejuvenation plan, Djoko also proposed rearranging the traffic flow in the area, especially around Jakarta Kota Station and the Transjakarta busway shelter.

He said traffic should flow such that the Old Town became a destination rather than a transit point.

Muh. Fausal Kahar from the West Jakarta City Planning Agency said traffic around Kota Station was always packed. Despite the large numbers of people in the area, a lot of buildings remained desolate and abandoned, proof that people did not view the area as a destination.

“The only way to liven up the area is first by solving the traffic problems and making way for pedestrians. Also, abandoned buildings, some of them owned by state companies, should be revamped,” he said.

Candrian Attahiyat, head of heritage sites at the Jakarta Culture and Museum Agency, said there were 29 abandoned buildings in the Old Town, seven of which were severely damaged and could collapse if no immediate measures were taken.

One business owner said at the meeting that the abandoned buildings were also an entry point for criminals breaking into neighboring properties.

“In a year, we get three to four break-ins. The burglars come in through the empty buildings,” he said.

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