Adaptive Reuse of the American Style House in Sri Lanka: With Special Reference to the Satellite Towns of Ratmalana and Dehiwala-Mt. Lavinia

American Style (AS) domestic architecture in suburban Sri Lanka, once a hallmark of modernity and middle-class aspiration during the mid-20th century, now faces an existential threat. This decline is driven by socio-cultural and economic transformations, catalyzed by the state’s decision to introduce neoliberal economic reforms (NLER) in 1977. In this context, it is hypothesized that the introduction of NLER created new socio-cultural and economic demands, leading to the AS house gradually losing its domestic function to date. This functional shift, facilitated through the adaptive reuse of these houses for alternative purposes, has led to the gradual erasure of a once-prominent architectural layer from Sri Lankan suburbia, marking a significant transformation in its architectural landscape. This signifies a profound transformation in its architectural landscape. This research ascertains if this is the case.
It adopts a qualitative research approach, utilizing case studies as its primary strategy. Delving on 20 case studies of AS houses that have undergone adaptive reuse from satellite town of Ratmalana and Dehiwala-Mount-Lavinia, the research evaluates their current uses in comparison to their original domestic purposes. Subsequently, a phenomenological perspective is employed to analyze the underlying factors driving these functional transformations. The analysis is facilitated through tabulation.
The research was carried out in April 2023. It identifies that 40% of the cases preserved their domestic function, while 60% underwent functional transformation through adaptive reuse. For the 14 types of adaptive reuses established, 9 distinct underlying factors seemed to drive them. In terms of these underlying factors, demands for new Lifestyle Services emerged as the most prominent, accounting for 21.4% of the total cases. Following this, Building Industry Services, Communication and Transportation needs each contributed 14.2% of the total. The remaining categories, including Residential, Employment, Legal Services, Food/Beverages/Goods Services and Education Services, each accounted for 7.14%, reflecting a relatively balanced distribution. The post-NLER underlying factors, reflecting the unprecedented demands of suburban life, were driven by a population explosion that created a shortage of space to accommodate these needs, thereby increasing rental opportunities. The considerable loss of domestic function contributes to the erasure of the AS house, ultimately validating the hypothesis.