Recently, it was noted that work at Cas Veneranda, located at Wilhelminastraat 7, has stopped, and the building’s entrances have been closed off again. The restoration project has not halted, but the first phase has been completed.
During the past two and a half months, the contractor, General Property Services, carried out the demolition of the changes made in 1978 to convert the house into the Papiamento restaurant by the Tauber brothers, Martin & Irvin. The Ellis family took over the restaurant in December 1984, and by the end of the 1990s, when they moved the restaurant, the house was left empty.
Some years later, Landa Merryweather closed the house to prevent any homeless people from entering. Unfortunately, in 2014, there was a large fire that completely destroyed the roof.
During the demolition work, the Stichting Monumentenfonds Aruba (SMFA) removed all the non-original modifications and reopened the “openings” that had to be sealed to prevent unauthorized access to the building.
In this first phase, which involved removing everything that was not original, further investigation was also carried out. Details that were previously not visible were discovered during the demolition work, providing clarity on the building’s original state. With all the information now gathered, preparations for the next phase, the actual restoration, will be finalized by next September.
In addition to the demolition work, the house was thoroughly cleaned inside, and the surrounding land was cleared. SMFA found a lot of garbage on the property, which had likely been used as a dump. Thanks to the cooperation of Minister Arends, the City Inspector team, and Serlimar, the area was cleaned up. SMFA urges the community to cooperate in keeping the area clean during and after the restoration.
