A dozen years of pillage

Twelve years ago, Manila lost one of its iconic structures: the Art Deco masterpiece known as the Jai Alai Building. It was the most modern structure in the city before the war and spoke of the optimism of the 1930s as the Philippines looked forward to independence.

That optimism was crushed with the start of World War II. Liberation came in 1945 but at a heavy price, as most of Manila was in ruins. One of the few structures in the central area that was spared was the Jai Alai. Welton Becket, the famed American architect from California, had designed it well. Either that or it was very lucky not to be chosen as a hideout by the cornered Japanese Marines left in the city as American forces arrived.

The reason that Intramuros and several of the civic buildings in the district were blown to bits is that the stragglers hid in them and the Americans used brute force to flush them out. The Jai Alai was spared and in short time converted for use by the liberating forces as a temporary R&R center called the Roosevelt Club.

The elegant GSIS building in Arroceros is being targeted next for demolition, in clear violation of the law on heritage.

In the late ‘40s the Jai Alai reverted to its function as venue for the world’s fastest ball game. The Basque sport is a legacy from the Latin world and is something we share with the likes of Florida, Cuba and, of course, Spain.

The ‘50s saw the Jai Alai rise to prominence as the place for entertainment with its popular Sky Room. The best big bands played nightly and dancing was the second activity other than the competitive Jai Alai that the place was known for.

Sadly, the place started to deteriorate in the ‘70s and ‘80s. The focus for night time entertainment moved to Roxas Boulevard and Malate and then to the fringes of Makati and Quezon City towards the ‘90s.

The Art Deco structure could have been converted into a wonderful museum (for architecture and allied arts) or a boutique hotel. It actually could have been adaptively reused for a dozen other functions. But the powers-that-be had another fate in mind.

The Heritage Conservation Society sought to stop its impending demolition in the early months of 2000 but it ran up against a brick wall, in the person of then incumbent Manila Manyor Lito Atienza. The HCS found itself between a rock and a hard place and in July of 2000 the wrecking balls started to demolish the historic building.

This Art Deco masterpiece would have been 72 years old today if it had been spared the wrecking ball.

The HCS’s valiant stand was not a total loss. The demolition brought the issue of heritage loss to the front pages and TV screens. With each structure afterwards that was defended by the HCS, the public, private developers and the government gained an awareness of the issues. This consequently led to the passing of the heritage law known as the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009.

In the 12 years since the loss of the Jai Alai, many more heritage structures have gone the way of the wrecking ball. Many more have been saved but it is an uphill battle. Let me end this piece with an open letter from the HCS, which calls on everyone’s vigilance, lest we lose any more of our heritage, our links to our past, and the legacies of our culture.

An Open Letter Against Demolition Of Built Heritage

The liberation of Manila flattened most of Manila but the Jai Alai escaped only to be laid to waste by the city government itself, then headed by Mayor Lito Atienza.

The Heritage Conservation Society, the country’s leading conservation NGO, remembers the Jai Alai and the start of its demolition on July 15, 12 years ago. Public outcry and his promise to not demolish one of the largest and finest Art Deco structures in Asia did not stop Manila Mayor Lito Atienza from ordering the demolition.  Like a sacrifice, its loss was part of the genesis of Republic Act 10066 of 2009, also known as the Heritage Law.  But the sacrifice seems to have been in vain, because the law is flouted today in an unending pillage of the national patrimony.  In Manila alone, pre-war landmarks such as the Art Deco Laperal Apartments and the old Juan Arellano-designed Meralco headquarters were bulldozed early this year.  The owners of the old GSIS Headquarters right behind Manila City Hall have been asked by Manila City Hall when they were going to demolish this Federico Ilustre landmark.  In Mandaluyong, the Laurel Mansion, which was supposed to be the heart of a condominium development, will now be obliterated by it. Through this open letter, the Heritage Conservation Society calls on the main proponent and implementing agency of the Heritage Law, the National Commission of Culture and the Arts, to stop the pillage.

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Feedback is welcome. Please e-mail the writer at paulo.alcazaren@gmail.com.

Every year we lose dozens of heritage structures, erasing little by little what is left of the city’s character and history.