TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Architect Yori Antar hoped to change the image of Kalijodo, once Jakarta’s infamous red light district, into a tourism icon. "Kalijodo, once despised by people, now has become a public space and must be promoted. If you haven't been to Kalijodo, you haven't been to Jakarta," Yori said by the end of February 2017.
Yori was one of the people involved in transforming Kalijodo from a red light district into public open space and a child-friendly space.
Together with his colleagues in Han Awal and Partners Architecs, Yori is responsible for dozens of spatial development programs in Jakarta. “We don't get these kinds of projects too often, this is our chance to make something for the people," Yori said.
In the future, Yori hoped that Kalijodo can become an iconic landmark like the Merlion Park in Singapore or the Manneken Pis in Belgium.
Yori explained that there are two more stages of development that will take place in Kalijodo area, including the construction of a mosque and the revamping of the Krendang river basin.
EGI ADYATAMA
