Living heritage
Five turn-of-the-century shophouses in Penang have been given a new lease of life as a boutique hotel, reigniting the romance of Penang in the 1900s.
Add BT as a preferred source
Tay Suan Chiang
WITH several conservation projects in his portfolio, is it any wonder that Colin Seah can't walk past an old shophouse without his imagination going into overdrive.
The latest project of the founder/director of Ministry of Design is Loke Thye Kee (LTK) Residences - a small boutique hotel located in the heart of George Town, Penang. LTK Residences has just five suites, housed in five turn-of-the-century shophouses.
The shophouses are part of a cluster of pre-war heritage buildings abandoned for nearly 20 years, after a redevelopment plan was scrapped following the Asian financial crisis. The cluster includes the landmark Loke Thye Kee building, designed by renowned early Straits Chinese architect Chew Eng Eam, and originally owned by Penang businessman and philanthropist Khoo Sian Ewe.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
