On the afternoon of November 11, the leaders of Dong Nai Provincial People's Committee met with departments and branches to discuss the preservation of the century-old villa (of Governor Vo Ha Thanh, also known as Ong Phu's mansion) in Buu Long ward, Bien Hoa city.

Vice Chairman of Dong Nai Provincial People's Committee Vo Van Phi noted that in preserving ancient villas and preparing records for ranking relics, departments and branches need to carefully calculate arising issues.

At the same time, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism is required to develop a conservation plan such as funding sources for restoration, embellishment, management and exploitation mechanisms when ranking the hundred-year-old villa relic.

Previously, the departments and branches agreed on the viewpoint of straightening the project road along the Dong Nai River to preserve the century-old villa. However, the heir of this villa has not been identified yet, so all compensation and support funds for the house are being temporarily held at the State Treasury.

"Mr. Phu's house" of Governor Vo Ha Thanh was built in 1922 and completed in 1924. It had a similar structure to Bien Hoa's palace and was the largest private residence in Bien Hoa province at that time. All construction materials were ordered from France and transported by ship.

When Bien Hoa city carried out the Dong Nai riverside road project, the authorities assessed the compensation for this ancient villa at nearly 5.4 billion VND.

After public opinion spoke out, the Standing Committee of Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee decided to keep the century-old villa to preserve and promote its cultural, historical and architectural values.

The leaders of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism also assigned the Dong Nai Museum to add the century-old villa to the roadmap for ranking provincial-level relics, period 2020 - 2025.

Time to complete the monument ranking dossier before April 2025.