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The Country View Hotel, believed to have been built in 1973, was part of Kuching’s skyline a decade before Wisma Saberkas. In the 1980s, it was sold and renamed Impiana Hotel, operating for several years before closing. After multiple failed attempts to revive it, the building sat vacant for over 20 years. On 2nd April 2022, Tecktonic and Sons Holdings Sdn Bhd took on the project to refurbish and rejuvenate it as a modern hotel.

Initial inspections revealed the building was structurally sound, though perhaps a little too solid—columns in the middle of guest rooms and oversized concrete floor beams. Inside, services were stripped away, doors were damaged, and plants had started growing in the rooms. The building had become a part of local history, and we felt that the refurbishments needed to manifest themselves externally, to change its outlook so that a new chapter of its personal history could begin.

The hotel lobby was originally on the first floor, sharing space with firefighting water tanks. We relocated the lobby to the ground floor and converted the first floor into suites. The large staircase was removed to improve access to the rear, now housing a lounge and convenience store. Lush landscaping provided a new backdrop for the lobby. A steel canopy framed the drop-off area, shaded by an existing palm tree.

There was only one lift, stopping at the first floor, requiring guests to climb stairs. To address this, we added a new steel lift shaft, extending the lift to the ground floor, allowing better access. This gave the building a refreshed façade and provided access to gardens on each floor, visible from hotel corridors.

The café and dining area were on the second floor, overlooking the drop-off canopy. The floor remained as the restaurant, with landscaping added and the roof converted into a garden. The kitchen was redesigned for modern F&B needs, with a dumbwaiter linking the ground floor to the restaurant and sky bar. A seminar and private dining room were added.

The hotel had 50 guest rooms, ten per floor, with columns in the middle. The floor-to-floor height was just over 3 meters, with small windows. We kept the original layouts, making minimal changes: removing part of the bathroom wall to let in more light and extending small windows into balcony ‘pods’ to provide outdoor space for each room.

Inside, the design was minimal, using steel framing to define spaces and conceal wiring. The roof, once home to a rotting structure, was reinstated as ‘CLOUD9,’ a sky bar with stunning views of Kuching and Gunung Serapi.

During demolition, many locals wondered if we were demolishing the building. It had become part of the area’s identity—old, unattractive, and with rumors of hauntings. But it had once been the tallest structure in the area, standing proud until Wisma Saberkas was completed. We managed to add new elements, extending its history through a dialogue between the old and new.

A question I was often asked during the construction was, "Did you see any ghosts?" My colleagues and I did not see spirits, though our site meetings were very spirited—everyone speaking at once, talking over each other like friends deciding where to go after a football match.

The client was decisive, often requiring new ideas to be documented quickly. Sketches and models helped communicate ideas efficiently with subcontractors, who responded with mock-ups on-site. It was also a bonus to collaborate with my classmate, Ir. Laurence Chiam, on the steel construction details for the new lift shaft and façade.

The building’s transformation was a collaborative effort, ensuring it could start a new chapter while respecting its past, preserving memories while introducing new functions.

Text by the architect

PROJECT GALLERY