The abandoned Batman Nightclub in Pattaya
One of my regular walking routes in Pattaya takes me via a back road with not too much traffic from Third Road – near X-zyte terrain – to Sukhumvit Road. When I first walked there I was close to Sukhumvit, after a few bends in the route, suddenly face to face with an immensely tall building, in the middle of the residential area. It looked like a castle, although it lacked a moat and a drawbridge.
The building was clearly no longer in use and I sometimes wondered for what purpose it was built on this spot. Did a wealthy family live there or did it have another destination? What would have happened, that this pompous, but also impressive building has been abandoned.
Batman Night Club
The answer to this was given by the English newspaper Daily Mirror, which published a story about the history of this building. It appears to have been built in 1994 as the Batman Nightclub. The building has six floors, where the first two were set up as discos and there is also said to be a snooker club located above. It was a great success from the start, as it was considered by many Western tourists as an excellent addition to the nightlife in Pattaya.
Closed
But unfortunately, the success was short-lived, because 18 months after the official opening, the club was closed due to the presence of minors and plenty of drug use. Shortly afterwards, a fire also broke out. The site is now owned by a local bank that has repossessed it from its original owner.
David Ward
An American photographer, Dax Ward, has made it his specialty to photograph all kinds of abandoned buildings, whether or not they are under construction, and he also visited the foreboding grounds of the Batman Club to photograph the lifeless remains of the nightclub. In the article he says, among other things: “Usually I feel relaxed when shooting decaying sites – but this was different. It was disturbing from the moment we set foot in, you get the sense that something is wrong.”
Ghosts and bats
The building is now abandoned, but it does house a colony of bats. Dax says: “'I don't really believe in ghosts or ghosts that would haunt buildings, but walking in this building you get the feeling that there is truth in this view. I certainly wouldn't come here at night, because imagine my journey would be crossed by ghosts anyway.
Photo series
The photographer has made a photo series of the abandoned Batman Club, which he says is one of his best photographic works. It shows the remains of this once beautiful building, where many graffiti drawings can also be admired. The photos show a beauty of decay that borders on sheer ugliness.
Look for this photo series on this link of the website www.daxward.com/The-abandoned-batman-nightclub
Separate building, nice to get to know the history, thanks.
Strange, given the known practices it is striking that the case was closed, not enough teamoney?
The fire must have been of a small size, given all the wood that was processed, it would otherwise have burned to the bone.
It is a pity that such an attractive building falls into disrepair, perhaps there will be a buyer who will take it over from the bank.
Nico B
The latter might happen if the building serves as one of the locations for the new Batman movie….
“The site is now owned by a local bank who have taken it back from the original owner”…..
I think that legally the building never belonged to the owners, but always belonged to the bank, as long as there is still a mortgage on it. This means that if the operators no longer (are unable to) pay the monthly interest and repayment, the building automatically REMAINS in the hands of the bank, the sole and original owner.
Unnecessary and also incorrect response, Chris
To formulate it properly, below is a quote from the Finler Encyclopedia
Contrary to popular belief, the homeowner is the mortgagor and not the bank. This is because the homeowner pledges his property to the bank. If a homeowner can no longer meet his payment obligations, the mortgage holder has the right to forcibly sell the home. This is called the right of mortgage.
Gringo, this is indeed normally the functioning of a mortgage. However, I recently read something here on the blog that things work differently in Thailand and the bank does (in one way or another) own it. But it may also be that this is only the case with a credit for a car, for example, can't find it right now.
Still, I think Chris is right. When a property in Thailand is pledged, the title is transferred to the Chanote. The lender will only have the borrower listed as the owner again when the loan has been paid in full. The point in Thailand is that if there is no mention on the Chanote, the borrower can exercise full ownership again, for example by selling it.
And if the owner is unwilling or disappears, quite common in Thailand, the bank would not be able to obtain cooperation, signature, etc. from the borrower to have the property transferred into its name. So the bank simply covers itself by transferring the property to its name and only transferring ownership once full payment has been made. This transactions via the Chanote.
Small addition. The story of the mortgage lender and so on is quite correct. But in a forced sale in Thailand, the bank still needs a Chanote, so the bank ensures that it is in its name. Because the new owner also wants this chanote again as proof of ownership.
Not in Thailand, dear Gringo.
“If the property had already been built, the transfer of property takes place once the installation payments have been completed in accordance to the signed contract. The remaining balance of the purchase price is usually paid on the day of transfer at the land office.”
I went through it myself with my ex-girlfriend. After paying the last installment, I MYSELF (with her authorization) went to the land register to transfer the property from the bank to her.
Point to you, Chris!
oh yes, the source: http://www.siam-legal.com/realestate/Transfer-of-Property-in-Thailand.php
I already indicated this in my first response, "maybe there will be another buyer who will take it over from the bank".
If the mortgagor fails to fulfill its obligations to the mortgagee, the bank, the bank can sell the property.
There is a procedure for requirements of due care in advance of reminders from the mortgagor, etc., I do not know the details of this procedure, fortunately I have never had to deal with it.
The bank also takes over the entire management of the object, in other words, ensures that no resident or user is present in the object.
The bank sometimes chooses not to sell the object immediately, but to rent it out.
After the standard procedure has ended, the bank has the option of selling the property immediately or having it auctioned, without requiring any assistance from the mortgager.
Nico B
As far as is not known, the course of a mortgage in the Netherlands is different from that in Thailand, in short, as follows.
The mortgager will continue to be registered with the Land Registry as the owner.
The mortgagee, the bank, is registered with the Land Registry as a mortgagee.
The result is that the object cannot be sold without the bank having declared that the object may be transferred, provided that the remaining debt is paid. The civil-law notary therefore checks with the Land Registry whether a mortgage has been established on the object and if so, the civil-law notary asks the bank for a statement of this residual debt and ensures that the bank is paid the residual debt. The bank thus has security.
If the mortgagor does not fulfill its obligations to the bank in time, the bank has the contractual right, by means of the mortgage deed, to make the house vacant and to sell it, in which case the cooperation of the mortgagor is not required.
Nico B
The photos evoke a special atmosphere of something that actually functioned but has now reached disrepair. The functioning of the building, for which it was made, was short-lived. However, you always ask yourself in Thailand, why? Drugs and minors are then the alibi. Too bad I would like to see it in full bloom again.
The building is remarkably similar to the KKK disco that once functioned for only a year and then stood empty in about the same place.
What a pity. That's a bad feeling you get when looking at these photos. On the other hand, if the building had still been in use, it would probably have been much less interesting. Then it would hardly have raised any questions, I think…
Great of the photographer to photograph such buildings. You can't do everything in your life, but I used to be on the road a lot with an SLR camera and this would certainly have been worth it….
Top story.
Reminds me a bit of those old concert halls that you can still find in Detroit US, for example. The Grande Ballroom, for example. Past glories…..All have their own history…..sex drugs and r'n'roll. I always get this feeling of….everything is impermanent…..when I look at those buildings….
If I remember correctly, this was a Taiwanese or Chinese project with Thai partners. Its success was of course a thorn in the side of other disco-pub operators. The question is whether enough money was made. According to my memory, the official reason for closing was that there was (were) no permit(s), so probably too little tea money for that and for drug use.
You mean that Arabian palace? With those guards at the doorways? Well, that is from a filthy rich American, I think…. certainly a man who would have made his fortune in software…..Until not so long ago he still lived there regularly. The tennis courts opposite would also be his…..I sometimes see him drive in…..I seem to remember with an Audi Q 7 or something….
On Thapraya between soi 11 and soi 13 is a failed project of a wealthy Arab if I remember correctly. It is now used, I believe, for a church service. At least that's what a security guard told me when I asked about it.
I had never seen it, but I have never been more than a regular visitor to pattaya. interesting to see that such big projects (by men with a lot of power) can also fail. wonder what went wrong, that the police come up with those standard charges of drugs and underage prostitution.
The story goes that the fire was the ultimate clincher.
Permits – such as those of the fire brigade – turned out not to be in order.
As a result, insurance did not pay out.
A story of bribes and/or teamoney only lasts so long until something happens. Because then everything collapses like a house of cards, and unfortunately there are only losers.
Curious what the future will bring for the building, this beautiful medieval fortress without windows. In my neighborhood in BKK, an apartment building has been empty for as long as I know. 20 years. And before that it had been empty for 16 years. Embroiled in legal proceedings, the monstrosity will mar the neighborhood for years to come. Hopefully the ex-Batman (Bhat-man !:~) perishes if not...
By the way, the problem of prostitution and drugs is latent and present almost everywhere in the night scene. That is usually turned a blind eye (teamoney ?;~). Until a raid happened. If there was no tip, a few arrests follow, which are then explained in detail in the media. And when the pledge of destruction closes, another one opens behind the corner.
A body was found in this building a few years ago. Since Ten, many consider it bewitched.