Restoration of Town Hall in Kolkata for adaptive reuse: a case study

Purpose – Practical conservation of heritage buildings in Kolkata started in the 1990s and the first restoration project was the Town Hall, a public building built by the British in 1813, in the central business district by a public‐private partnership. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the restoration process and adaptive reuse of the Town Hall as a case study.Design/methodology/approach – A team of conservationists, architects and structural engineers worked during 1996‐1998. The methodology included surveying and documenting the existing structure; examining old materials and methods of construction, earlier repairs and the suitability of matching new materials; analysing the structure, defects and their causes; prescribing remedial measures; preparing items of work, estimating and tendering for appointment of contractors; allocating funds for restoration; supervision and monitoring of the works.Findings – It was necessary to undertake structural strengthening and physical restoration through...