Chiayi Cultural and Creative Industries Park Introduction
One of the five major creative cultural parks in Taiwan, the Chiayi Old Winery is located next to the Chiayi Railway Station. It is known as the birthplace of sorghum liquor in Taiwan, earning Chiayi the title of "Hometown of Baijiu." In 1916, Japanese entrepreneur Akashi Shōtarō established the Taisho Brewing Co., Chiayi Factory here. Due to the implementation of a monopoly system, the factory was expropriated in 1922 and came under the jurisdiction of the Taiwan Monopoly Bureau's Tainan Branch. After Taiwan's restoration, the Nationalist government continued the monopoly system, and in 1957 it was renamed "Taiwan Provincial Tobacco and Liquor Monopoly Bureau, Chiayi Branch." The Chiayi Winery moved to the Minxiong Industrial Zone in 1982, leaving behind a significant amount of production machinery and related equipment, including bottle washers, storage barrels, bottle conveyors, chimneys, sorghum storage silos, and weighing devices, all valuable witnesses to the culture of liquor production. Seven buildings were designated as city heritage sites, and the once 53-meter tall boiler chimney became an early landmark of Chiayi City. The Ministry of Culture undertook restoration and reuse projects, completing renovations in 2013 and transforming the site into the Chiayi Cultural and Creative Industry Park. Among the five major creative cultural parks in Taiwan, the Chiayi Cultural and Creative Industry Park is highly anticipated. Its prime location in the commercial and geographic heart of Chiayi City makes it the starting point for the city's cultural facilities. It connects to the Chiayi Branch of the Tobacco and Liquor Monopoly Bureau (a designated heritage site), and extends northward to include the Chiayi Railway Station (a designated heritage site), the Railway Warehouse Art Village, the Cultural Center, the Hinoki Village, the Forestry Club (a designated heritage site), the Alishan Entrance North Gate Station (a designated heritage site), and the Prison Museum (a national heritage site), forming a shining cultural pearl in Chiayi, with the Chiayi Cultural and Creative Industry Park being the largest and most prominent gem among them.
