Hall of shame

There is a glimmer of hope for one of the city's most dilapidated buildings, as MHADA actively seeks an NOC to restore the Esplanade Mansion to its glorious past

Hall of shame

There is a glimmer of hope for one of the city's most dilapidated buildings, as MHADA actively seeks an NOC to restore the Esplanade Mansion to its glorious past

More than a century ago, it was Mumbai's Hall of Fame. The Watson Hotel in South Mumbai, currently known as the Esplanade Mansion, was one of the swankiest hotels in the city.
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But, for the last four years it has been listed in the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority's (MHADA) pre-monsoonu00a0 survey as a dangerous building, which needs immediate attention.

The former Watson Hotel

Some of them say, the building needs to be pulled down completely and it should be replaced by a new one, others advocate restoring it to its former glory. But all parties concerned agree on one thing the building needs help. A meeting of government bodies was held on March 24 to end the stalemate and decide on a plan of action to begin restoration.

"We had a discussion with MHADA on a methodology for restoration work. The work will be carried out in seven phases," says Dinesh Afzalpurkar, chairman, Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC). The MHCC will soon issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to the Mumbai Building Repair and Reconstruction Board (MBRRB), which is a part of MHADA and takes care of dilapidated buildings, to proceed with restoration of the building. "In the meeting the MHCC has agreed to give us the NOC.
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So by this week we will have the NOC in writing and we can then actively begin the work in a phased manner," says A.D. Shintre, project consultant for restoration of the Esplanade mansion, MBRRB. But the MBRRB faces a cash crunch.

"The MHCC has asked various NGOs and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to chip in, to carry out repair work," adds Shintre. A total of Rs 15 crore is needed to renovate the structure. "For Phase 1 itself we would need Rs 2 crore. But if the entire project gets delayed for another three years, the entire cost of the project will escalate to around Rs 17-18 crore," says a concerned Shintre.

Hurdles
Cash crunch is not just the only problem for the MBRRB. Occupants refuse to vacate the building in spite of notices issued by MHADA. Apart from the occupants, there are allegations of unauthorised extensions. "I sympathise with MHADA and I know that it is not easy for them to get rid of the occupants. Moreover, the building is privately owned, at the same time it is a heritage structure, all that makes it difficult for them to carry out their work," says Afzalpurkar.

The occupants, however, are reluctant to leave their offices because they argue that the authorities are not competent enough to repair the building. "Some portions are dangerous, not the whole building and there are no occupants in those parts of the building. If MHADA asks us to vacate the building, we will again appeal to the court because we know that it does not have funds.
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We will only vacate if the authorities can show us that they have funds and permission and can convince us of their capability to carry out the work," argues Yadunath Chaudhari, advocate, Bombay High Court who has his office in the building since 1988.

MHADA on the other hand is trying to get other authorities involved. "The Esplanade mansion is a cess building and since the repair work of the building exceeds MHADA's estimated budget and there is cash crunch, the tenants are required to contribute towards the repair work, which they are reluctant to do," counters Shintre.

Demands
The building, currently listed as a Grade II-A heritage structure has around 140 tenants out of which 45 are residential and the rest commercial. Due to its proximity to the High Court, most of the tenants are lawyers but a stock broking firm as well as an art gallery also have their offices in this building.

A lawyer who has his office in the building for almost six years,u00a0 said on condition of anonymity, "I have spent money to refurbish my entire office. During the monsoons, water would seep in from the walls and spoil the printers and computers so I had to put asbestos sheets as a permanent solution.

So, one fine day if MHADA asks me to leave my office and move to a transit camp, say in Dahisar, then why should I go? Also I am paying Rs 15,000 for a 250 sq. feet room in such a locality.The authorities should give me an office in South Mumbai, only then I will shift," states the lawyer.

The tenants and the authorities refuse to budge from their current stand. "We will provide transit camps to the residential tenants. The commercial tenants will have to look for a place on their own," states Shintre. The MHCC has clearly stated that all the demands of their tenants cannot be accommodated. "It is impossible to accommodate all their requests," ends Afzalpurkar.

Solution
Some tenants believe the entire structure needs to be razed. Tenant Shivajirao Satpute, advocate, Bombay High Court says, "The pillars are rotten and the wooden flooring has been split by white ants. The building can come down at any time.

In many cabins, the original structure has been altered. We suspect that if the structure is taken over by MHADA, then the repair work will take years. The ideal solution is to pull it down and make or create something completely new.
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Some portions of the building we think are beyond repair." But MHADA's hands are tied, as any kind of work in the building has to be approved by the MHCC, which believes that the original structure of the building should be retained.

Problems
As one enters the mansion, the apathy towards the heritage structure is clearly visible. The ballroom is now used as garbage dumping area and the atrium of the former Watson hotel is barely visible. With cats prowling all over, the mansion is now home to various commercial offices. Fighting the stinking smell of the garbage, you need to hold your breath as you climb up the shaky stairs and creaky wooden floors. Tenants say that there are common toilets, which are dirty.
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Some of them do not even have water. Says Yami Modi, who works in a stock broking company, "It is dirty but I am now used to it but during rainy season, it becomes very difficult." Her friend, Shweta Sakhalkar says that, she even finds it difficult to walk through the building. "When I had initially joined, I kept tripping for the first 2-3 days but now I have got used to it," she says.

But, the girls are quick to add that they love coming to this place as it is an integral part of city's rich history. Many lawyers prefer to meet their clients outside. "Our clientsu00a0 tell us that this building might collapse any time. Hence they prefer to meet us elsewhere," says Satpute. Some tenants are however reluctant to accept the fact that the building is not strong enough.
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"Some minor problems are there but there is nothing wrong with the building as such. I have been hearing that this building is dangerous since 1994 but as of now nothing has happened," says P.M. Palshikar, advocate, Bombay High Court.

Owner
While the building is in a shambles, owner of the building Sadiqali Mohammed Ali complains about lack of funds. "I charge the tenants 50 per cent less of the current market rate. And with those funds I try and maintain the building.

Even if I increase the rent, the tenants refuse to pay the amount, What should I do?" says Ali. Expressing his helplessness, Ali says that the condition of the building is such that he has very few tenants left and even they are contemplating leaving the building for a better place. "Many of the rooms are actually lying vacant," laments Ali.

Cracks inside the building, which houses tenants

CLEANLINESS
Leading criminal lawyer, Majid Memon who has his office in the building is also contemplating moving out. Says Memon, "There are so many people who work at my office. I cannot risk their life, hence I am thinking of moving out of the building."u00a0 Memon feels that maintenance of the building is however a concern. "The role of the landlord is rather mysterious. No doubt that it is a heritage structure but minimum level of hygiene has to be maintained.
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The garbage strewn around the place can atleast be cleaned," insists Memon. Even the owner acknowledges that the building needs urgent repair. "I bought this building from the Tatas, 30 years ago and I'm ready to cooperate with the authorities in their repair work. In the phase-by-phase restoration , the occupants of the phase, which is undergoing renovation, can be accommodated in other parts of the building and then they can later move in to their respective workplace once the renovation is complete. Hence, they don't have to move out and even I can retain my tenants," elaborates Ali.

Architects speak
If the tenants' opinions are divided so are the architects. Renowned architect Charles Correa argues the structure should not be pulled down, "Esplanade Mansion is one of the oldest buildings in the city and one of the earliest examples of pre-fabricated building technology.

Apart from its historic role as Watson's Hotel, even just as a piece of engineering ingenuity, it is well worth preserving. Rather than pull it down, we should first see what it would take to rehabilitate it.
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And in the process, retrofit the electrical, plumbing and other service systems so that it can be put to contemporary use."

But Mumbai's well-known architect Hafeez Contractor has a different take on this, "The entire structure should be dismantled first and then the elements should be systematically preserved. Keeping the original fa ade of the building intact, a new structure exactly similar to the old structure can be created.

However, facilities like a parking lot, a service area, and air conditioners in various rooms have to be incorporated." Conservation architect Abha Narain Lamba says that the Esplanade Mansion is no ordinary building and to resolve the funding issue, the heritage committee should encourage private-public partnership(PPP).

"The organisations are reluctant to take up the renovation work. There are so many ifs and buts. The tenants have to vacate and after that there are various permissions that one needs to obtain from the heritage committee."

Several project consultants of MHADA have also resigned because the renovation of the project has hit a deadlock. "Tomorrow if this building collapses then I am the person who will be held responsible. Hence, everybody is apprehensive to become part of this project," says Shintre, who has been part of the project for a year now.

History
The structure was built in 1871 by Rowland Mason Ordish and named after its owner John Watson
This is the first structure to be built on the periphery of Kalaghoda
The cast iron pillars were directly shipped in from London
The locals were afraid to even pass by the hotel as they thought it was some kind of a prison!
The first film in India was screened here in the year 1896 by the Lumiere brothers.u00a0
Philosopher-scholar Mark Twain is believed to have stayed here

Rs 15 cr: Total amount for restoration work

Rs 2 cr for Phase I

Rs 17-18 cr: If the project gets delayed by another 3 years