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FROM SPOT LISTING TO GRADING

Documenting historic building for heritage inventory

1.0 Introduction

Building conservationists need to give more attention to maintaining and improving the built environment in cities or towns in Malaysia, particularly the heritage buildings. Where demolition of old buildings has been a common practice in the development of cities or towns in the country, it is essential for any local authorities to carry out the work of spot listing and grading local heritage buildings or monuments in their areas. Experience over the world has shown that listing buildings may have social and political repercussions as well as architectural significance. It is important for the availability of the whole system that procedures are seen to be fair and impersonal yet achieve control over areas and buildings considered important in this context.

The practice of spot listing and grading is important in an effort to save heritage buildings from being left for market forces. It is generally considered as a new phenomena in the conservation of heritage buildings in Malaysia. However, it has been widely practised in many western countries including the United Kingdom. The main purpose of this paper is to discuss the U.K. experience in implementing the practice of spot listing and grading heritage buildings. It is hoped that this paper would create a better understanding of such practice and would also become a reference for those involved in giving encouragement to protect and conserve heritage buildings in Malaysia.

The practice of listing and scheduling* buildings in the United Kingdom was originated by the Town and Country Planning Act of 1947. The Act required the then Minister of Town and Country Planning to compile lists of buildings in every borough, urban and rural district in the country, and a specialist team of investigators was formed for the purpose. It made a new start to the protection of buildings which were of historic or architectural importance. Earlier legislation had not proved effective. However, the Town and Country Planning Act of 1968 later introduced more severe protection by requiring listed building consent to be granted by local planning authority before any tampering with a listed building could take place. The provision of this Act has greatly helped to reduce the number of listed buildings demolished. For instance, in 1965, buildings which were under the statutory list were demolished at the rate of 400 or 500 each year.

A listed building means "a building which is for the time being included in a list compiled or approved by the Secretary of State; and for the purposes of the provisions of the Act relating to listed buildings and building preservation notices** , any object or structure fixed to a building, or forming part of the land, and comprised within the curtilage of a building, shall be treated as part of the building". However, this may not apply to plant, machinery or other equipment contained in the building.

In the United Kingdom, buildings which are considered to be selected for the lists are based upon four principles. The four principles of selection are:

However, many buildings built after 1939 and are of outstanding values architecturally and historically have been included in the lists. There is no minimum age for listing but it is only exceptional circumstances that buildings under 30 years old are listed. By 1990, there are 23 post-war buildings under 30 years old are listed in England in which five are less than 30 years old. Among them is the Economist Building in London built in 1964 and was listed as Grade II in 1988.

Some contemporary buildings although not listed, can already be recognised as improving and adding interest to the urban environment. For example, the Willis Faber and Dumas Headquarters in Ipswich designed by British architect Sir Norman Foster in 1970-71 and constructed in 1973-75. With its irregular shape of black glass wall, this four-storey office building was considered architecturally outstanding. The building was designed with the concept embraced a remarkable renaissance of social ideas (strong feelings of community in working conditions) in terms of corporate feeling and used advanced technologies, then entirely new to the building industry, to support this vision. Officially acclaimed as the finest work by a British designer anywhere in the world completed between 1965 and 1983, the Willis Faber and Dumas Headquarters was awarded the 1990 Trustees' Medal by Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Architecture Awards Trust. It has been listed as Grade I in April 1991.

At present, for the purpose of statutory protection the listed buildings in the United Kingdom are classified into two grades which are:

Formerly there was a further category of Grade III which were buildings of importance to the streetscape and townscape for their group values. The grade has been abolished. Instead, the buildings were either moved up to Grade II* or informally notified to local planning authorities. Thus, in 1968, when the first listing was completed, there was a total of over 115,000 listed buildings in England and Wales. 4351 of which were listed as Grade I and 111,300 as Grade II. Since then, the number of listed buildings in the country has been increased; and more will be added to the lists as resurveys continue. In March 1990, for example, a total number of 447,724 listed buildings were recorded in England and Wales. 1.5% of all the listed buildings are classified Grade I.

In the United Kingdom, it is the government, particularly the Department of the Environment (DOE) under the supervision of the Secretary of State, which has the responsibility to record and compile lists of such buildings. The Secretary of State may amend and list compiled or approved; and consider in any respect the way in which the building exterior and man-made objects or structures fixed to the building contribute to the architectural or historic interest.

The procedures of listing begin with the initiation of spot listing in which a specialist team of the Department of the Environment investigators visits an area to see which buildings may deserve listing. Buildings that are to be selected for the list could come from historic areas, towns and cities; and places where there are existing old buildings. The buildings visited may be of in immediate danger of being demolished or at high risk to the future of their properties such as for sale by auction or private treaty. Private individuals may propose buildings for listing. It is usual for conservation groups to be active in this process. In selecting the buildings to be listed, special criteria should be considered:

Generally, the list does not have to be a long document but a series of lists divided in street alphabetical order. Each list refers to a particular local authority area. To verify the consideration of requests to list buildings, it is important for the team during the listing to be accompanied by a location plan and up-to-date photographs of the main elevation of the buildings as well as any information about the buildings such as date when built, architect, historical associations and details of any interesting interior features. Buildings, which are considered to be listed, are then recorded by the team in a provisional report in a descending order of importance either Grade I or II.

The report of the investigation is later sent to Chief Investigating Officer before it is presented to the Department of the Environment Administrative Officer for further acceptance. The report is subject to a thorough check by members of the departmental staff. All sorts of information related to the buildings are carefully considered at this stage. If the selection becomes unconditional, the decision of listing the buildings is made by a Higher Executive Officer. However, any provisional decision may just well be made by an Executive Officer.

Upon deciding the listed buildings, a list is prepared and presented through the Head of the branch to be signed by an Assistant Secretary on behalf of the Secretary of State if that has statutory status. Once a signature and date are obtained, the list is considered operative. Local planning authorities are then informed by letter including a copy of the list indicating that the related buildings have been selected for listing. It is responsibility of the local planning authorities to notify each owner or occupier that the buildings have been included in the list. At the same time, a copy of the list is also made available at council offices for public inspection free of charge at reasonable times and in a convenient place. The list is then registered by the local planning authority.

Once the date of the signing of the list has been obtained, the listing is then considered effective. If permitted development is being carried out and later a notice is received, the building owner or occupier must terminate the work immediately. It may require good judgment to consider whether the work he is carrying out would effect the special characters of the building's architectural or historic values.

Any works for the demolition, alteration or extension of a listed building (regardless of the grade of the building) must first obtain a Listed Building Consent (LBC) from the local planning authority. This is to ensure that the proposed works are approved and satisfactory to the requirements of building conservation and preservation. In some circumstances, the consent is needed from the Department of the Environment in which the Secretary of State is being notified. Application for the Listed Building Consent should be accompanied by plans and drawings illustrating the proposed development. It is important to ensure a good quality of drawings and plans because an inadequate presentation may lose the application. Listed building applications may require careful consideration and consultation. Time is required for this. The statutory period for a decision to be made is therefore increased to three months.

When a Listed Building Consent is granted for the demolition or alteration of a listed building, a notice of the proposed works is required by the local planning authority to be advertised outside for a minimum period of seven days. All reactions and comments should be forwarded to the local planning authority and the Department of the Environment for further considerations.

Where the local planning authority plans to grant Listed Building Consent to allow any demolition or alteration of a building, it must first notify the Secretary of state who may call in the application for his own decisions. Also, a prior notification should be given to the following six conservation bodies:

1. Ancient Monument Society (est. 1924)

2. Council for British Archaeology (est. 1944).

3. Georgian Group (est. 1937).

4. Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (est. 1877)

5. Victorian Society (est. 1958).

6. Royal Commission on Historical Monuments in England (est. 1908)

or Royal Commission on Ancient Monument in Wales and Monmouthshire.

If anyone carries out works for demolition, alteration or extension in a way which would effect the character of the listed building without the prior approval from the local planning authority, he may be penalized on conviction imprisonment of up to 12 months or fine; or both. In case where unoccupied listed buildings need repair works, the local planning authority has power to carry out the works and to recharge the owner.

Although the number of the heritage buildings in Malaysia are small compared to the total number of listed buildings in the United Kingdom, there are a few lessons that can be learned and applied from this discussion. The first lesson that can be considered in view of the U.K. experience is the criteria of selecting and grading heritage buildings for the purpose of statutory lists. Unlike the heritage buildings in the United Kingdom which have a long history of survival, most of the heritage buildings in Malaysia either of the traditional Malay houses, Chinese shophouses and temples, Indian temples or the colonial buildings have a relatively short history of national consciousness. Nevertheless, such heritage buildings of Malaysia can be selected for listing and grading purposes based upon the following principles:

· Grade I

Buildings of architectural excellence and historical importance. It is essential to the national interest that they may be preserved.

(Examples: the Railway Station and Administrative Buildings, Selangor Club, Sultan Abdul Samad Building and Jamek Mosque in Kuala Lumpur; Porta de Santiago, St. Paul's Church, Stadhuys Building and Christ Church in Malacca).

Buildings of architectural and historical interest and value to the state.

(Examples: the Johore Royal Museum in Johor Bahru and Penang Court Building in Georgetown).

Buildings of special characters architecturally or historically which may have a good claim for survival. Such building are of either religious, cultural, social interest or be examples of a particular culture and craftsmanship.

The second lesson is the procedures of listing buildings used in the United Kingdom in which similar procedures may be applied to the heritage buildings in Malaysia. This may begin with the initiation of spot listing in every district and state in Malaysia carried out by a specialist team formed by the Museum Departments and assisted by representatives from local planning authority. This is because some heritage buildings may need special permission for entrance; and access is required for sight of building plans and details of their origin.

The third and final lesson is the effects of listing buildings, particularly where there is a threat of demolition, alteration or extension in such a way which would affect the character of the heritage buildings. Since such buildings are considered of value to the Malaysian heritage and should be automatically listed, it is important to have a strong legal protection for the future sake of these buildings. For example, the idea of issuing Preservation Notice and granting Listed Building Consent (LBC) should be incorporated in order to ensure that any proposed demolition works are controlled and approved by a local planning authority. Anyone who carries out unauthorized works may be severely penalized on conviction, by imprisonment of up to 12 months or a fine to the amount of the current market value of the site; or both. If a Listed Building Consent is granted, the local planning authority should notify the Museum Departments and also local conservation bodies and units.

In conclusion, it is clear from the U.K. experience that the practice of spot listing and grading heritage buildings serves an important scope in building conservation. It should be considered as a continuous process which should be carried out by knowledgeable, competent, experienced and specially trained people. In supporting such practice, it is important to have proper systems of discovering and recording the heritage buildings in Malaysia.

References:

	Cunnington, P., (1984), Care for Old Homes, Dorset: Prism Alpha.
	Department of Environment, (1990), The Heritage of England and Wales: Environment in Trust.
	Hodgkinson, P., "Foster Wins First Trustees' Medal, RIBA Journal, September 1990, p. 56.
	Insall, D.W., (1972), The Care of Old Buildings Today: A Practical Guide, London: Architectural Press.
	Saunders, M., (1987), The Historic Home Owner's Companion, London: B.T. Batsford Ltd.
	Suddards, R.W., (1982), Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice, London: Sweet & Maxwell.

Dr. A. Ghafar Ahmad HBP,USM

utm.doc/95 11-12 Jan. 1995.