In this case Wat Yannawa appears to be doing something detrimental to community interests for the sake commercial gain. The temple's action seems at odds with its religious mission. Even though the 81 year old buildings don't meet the 100 year criteria for historical sites set by the Department of Fine Arts, the area has a rich history. We're still destroying a cultural heritage. But preservation doesn't just mean leaving the buildings as they are. Preservation comes at a price. It entails restoring the old buildings and maintaining them. Who's going to foot the bill?

What are the alternatives? It's unlikely the existing tenants can afford it. Unless we're prepared to preserve their traditional way of life and let the buildings go to rot over the years. Even if Wat Yannawa can afford it, the buildings when restored, in all fairness, must be for the benefit of the general community, not just the existing tenants.

Private developers expect a return on their investments. Private ventures into such projects have been criticized for preserving the shell, the buildings and killing the soul, the old way of life. That's the social price to pay. If the original occupants were left intact, who would sink a single cent in the project? Landlords will be very reluctant to spend huge amounts on preservation when the rents for residential property are much less than that of commercial property.

That leaves the government. Any government will be hard pressed to justify spending public funds to preserve buildings for private use. One way is to enact laws to preserve the exterior of historical buildings with internal use left to the discretion of the developers. Old buildings can be converted to small offices, shops, trendy restaurants, cafes and wine bars.

The conclusion is inevitable. Unless the residents can pay for the preservation, they're going to lose their homes. There's a price to preserving our cultural heritage. It's a matter of how much we're willing to pay and how much to forgo. Someone's got to pay for it, but who?

I visited Wat Yannawa on 3 March 2008 and passed Soi Wanglee. The old buildings have been completely leveled. The area is fenced off and used as a temporary parking lot. Time has run out for the Wanglee community. In developing cities, the old frequently has to make way for the new. Years later, we might well ask ourselves, where have all the old buildings gone?

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