Anna Chan

Following the Vietnam War, Saigon was a city rife with political and social turmoil. The widespread destruction of farms and villages in the South Vietnamese countryside turned thousands of villagers into refugees.

Tackling the issue of de-militarization and de-colonization, the scheme is a speculative masterplan involving the de-construction of a military administrative building into a self-contained city for returning refugees. The project serves as an example of how military infrastructure could be re-purposed into spaces of opportunity and refuge.

Constructed in 1964, The Pentagon East was the joint-service command of the United States Department of Defense in Vietnam. It's long corridors and fortress-like design was a symbol of the United States military prowess in Vietnam. However, in 1975, during The Fall of Saigon, The Pentagon East was attacked by a series of rocket launches - critically damaging the building and leaving it in a state of severe disrepair. The Pentagon East was eventually abandoned and demolished.

In an alternate reality, international negotiations led to an agreement, which transformed The Pentagon East into an autonomous, cease-fire zone. Self-governance was granted to the local Vietnamese community, in which experts came together and re-purposed the military structure into a self-contained city.

The process of transformation began with the de-construction of The Pentagon East into six smaller interventions based on its existing typology. With every dismantled wall and re-purposed administrative room, the colonial legacies of the structure began to dissolve. Temporary facilities emerged including spaces for housing, classrooms, and community.

This autonomous zone would become a City of Resistance for returning refugees and those internally displaced with no homes to return to. Over time, the re-imagined military building evolved into a small village of 500 residents.

War debris was re-purposed as much as possible from the existing structure and the rubble from the nearby buildings in Saigon. Structural materials were salvaged, including recycled concrete, steel, corrugated iron sheets, and breeze blocks. Ready-made materials were integrated, including fabric, rope, and ironwood.

The transformation of The Pentagon East was a testament to how architecture could be used as a form of protest and served as an example of the potential of re-purposing military infrastructure through community-driven initiatives.