The Don Mariano Ramos Heritage House: Conservation through Adaptive Reuse
Keywords:
adaptive reuse, architectural heritage, cultural significance, heritage conservation, conservation management plan, Bacolod CityAbstract
The Don Mariano Ramos Heritage House is a surviving expression of Bacolod City’s architectural, political, and socioeconomic history during the expansion of the Negros sugar industry. This descriptive, site-specific heritage assessment documented the house’s existing condition and cultural significance and translated the findings into a simplified conservation management plan for adaptive reuse. Evidence was drawn from archival and documentary research, measured architectural survey, direct observation, photographic condition mapping, non-destructive visual inspection, semi-structured key-informant interviews, and a values-based assessment completed by four assessors. During the condition assessment, the conservation experts estimated that approximately 70% of the original fabric was retained. This was a descriptive visual judgment: separate expert estimates, a component-level inventory, and a formal consensus procedure were not undertaken. The percentage is therefore interpreted as an indicative estimate rather than a reproducible quantitative measurement. Measured plans showed that 197.83 of 549.54 square meters, or 36.0%, remained under family occupancy. The survey documented roof and drainage defects, moisture-related deterioration of soffits, ceilings, finishes, and timber components, localized floor-wall separations, possible pest activity, and a reinforced-concrete terrace beam with spalling and exposed corroding reinforcement. Recalculation of the 96 recorded checklist entries produced a weighted cultural-significance score of 3.80, led by historic value (4.35) and aesthetic value (4.15), followed by scientific (3.90), social (3.30), and spiritual or symbolic value (3.13). The findings supported a phased, values-based adaptive reuse concept protecting significant fabric and family-occupied areas while accommodating potentially compatible cultural, educational, limited café-service, workshop, and small-event functions. Adaptive reuse was established as a conservation direction at the conceptual level, with implementation dependent on structural, fire-safety, accessibility, building-services, carrying-capacity, financial, and code assessments.
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