F

ollowing a series of protests from the local community and warnings from the local municipal administration, PD Citra Mandiri finally decided to stop the demolition of a building considered to be a cultural heritage site.

The Central Java administration-owned company, in cooperation with PT Whira Taruna, had planned to build a shopping center at the site of the building, former ice factory Saripetojo, located on Jl. Slamet Riyadi, Surakarta municipality, Central Java.

“We stopped the demolition of the building until an official decision [regarding the status of the building] is issued by the Central Java Prehistoric Legacy Conservation Agency [BP3],” PD Citra Mandiri President Director Sayuti said.

Sayuti said that from 2006 to 2010 Saripetojo incurred a total loss of over Rp 300 million (US$35,000) and had an unpaid electricity bill of over Rp 200 million.

He attributed the gloomy business outlook to the fact that many people now had refrigerators in their homes.

“Today’s households no longer buy ice blocks because they have their own refrigerators,” he said.

The company turned to investors in 2007 in a bid to help maintain operations. It formed a cooperative agreement with PT Whira Taruna to build a shopping center for the lower middle class community.

According to the agreement, the investor would have the right to manage the center for 25 years, during which time every year it would deposit Rp 250 million to PD Citra Mandiri in royalty payments. The agreed amount would be increased by 5 percent annually.

“The company is not violating any rules. We will wait for the result of the BP3 evaluation and the Culture and Tourism Ministry’s decision regarding the matter,” Sayuti said.

He argued that according to the spatial plan, the area where the ice factory is located had been designated as a trade region.