Macau (MNA) – A total of MOP6.7 million has been spent so far in the renovation of five houses located in the former Ka Ho leper colony in Coloane, the Macau SAR Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) has told Macau News Agency (MNA).
The ensemble comprises six houses built in the 1930s. The first house to be renovated, serving as a pilot project for the restoration of the site, was completed in 2014 at a budget of MOP1 million.
The Bureau told MNA that it expects to complete the renovation works of five houses ‘within this year.’
IC stated that a total of four houses have been completed as of today, with two pending renovation.
Speaking to MNA on the phone, an IC spokesperson clarified that the renovation of one of the two last houses pending restoration is being co-ordinated with the Church, which is the owner of that property.
The Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows, which integrates the complex, was erected in 1960.
The site served as a village for leprosy patients from 1930 to the late 1990s, since when the place has been abandoned.
The Macau SAR Government has not yet revealed its plans for the cultural and touristic uses of the site.
[Corrects information about number of houses pending renovation]
