The complex of buildings was constructed in 1889 to serve as the Jawatta Lunatic Asylum in what was then considered a rural edge of the recently developed garden city of Cinnamon Gardens in Colombo. After the asylum was moved further out to the suburbs of Colombo, this complex was occupied by a series of government institutions including the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC), the Public Administration Department, the Auditor General's Department, and the Government Analyst's Department. Throughout this period, numerous additions were made to the complex to accommodate the various, often conflicting, needs of the different departments. The main entrance building was the focal point of Torrington Square, one of the garden squares in the city plan. Soon after independence in 1948, this square became an important focus of the city with the Independence Memorial Hall being built at its center. Later, this entrance building was converted into the offices of the chief minister of the western province, before it was once again being abandoned for new offices elsewhere. With its significant location, now renamed Independence Square, this area became one of the key focuses for urban renewal in 2009, after the end of the 30-year civil war in Sri Lanka. The urban fabric of this particular area had deteriorated significantly. Therefore, to revitalize the area, the Urban Development Authority prepared development proposals, declared, and gazetted Independence Square with its surroundings as a special development area. This complex of buildings, that was formally the Lunatic Asylum, became the focal project in this urban renewal scheme.
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