Exciting projects of world-class proportions are taking shape in a nondescript waterfront area of Hongkong. Kenneth Cheong and Lau Liang Tong examine the impact of this renaissance on the fortunes and image of the city.
Activity of herculean proportions has been steadily rumbling in the “land of the nine dragons” – Kau Lung, better known as Kowloon. Come 2010, a world-class megahub will be unveiled, a development expected to revitalise Hongkong’s fortunes and image somewhat eclipsed in recent years by the Mainland miracle.
A consortium of commercial developers, spearheaded by the MTR Corporation, is already more than halfway with the foundations of this ambitious HK$29 billion (US$3.7 billion) waterfront project in West Kowloon. Dubbed as “Union Square”, the 1.1 million-square-metre complex – about double the size of London’s Canary Wharf – will be home to a futuristic commercial infrastructure, high-end residences, luxury hotels and the biggest shopping mall ever built in Asia.
“Union Square represents a union of Hongkong developers and international designers and architects around the world who are working together to create one of the world’s most spectacular landmarks in Hongkong.” says Thomas Ho, property director, MTR Corporation. “It is going to be the focal point for people who are working, living and shopping at this place.”
Kowloon suffered much scrutiny in the past when compared with its dashing sibling across the harbour, Hongkong Island. There was hardly any competition as it was a rag-tag peninsula littered with low-lying “tumbledown” architecture, an odd feature for a space-hungry metropolis. It was also notorious for housing some of the city’s most hardened criminals, who made Kowloon the base for their questionable dealings.
This hackneyed profile has since changed due to a number of government initiatives that included land reclamation works and an extensive infrastructure build up. Union Square is undoubtedly one of the glowing results of these efforts. Its location above the Kowloon MTR station, with access to three major railways being a key incentive for travellers who shuttle regularly between Hongkong and China, is unbeatable.
Regional developers have always been eager to better their rivals’ records with their latest trophy projects, and the International Commerce Centre (ICC) is no exception.
Upon completion, this 118-storey column will stand at 490m, exceeding the current behemoth, the IFC 2, by a whopping 70m. For that, 40 double-deck elevators and 18 high-speed ones by the Schindler Group are being installed to serve the influx of daily commuters up and down this massive superstructure, something certainly the cleaning lady will be overjoyed to learn.
Even in the early stages, interest in the ICC Interest was already keen, reaching fever proportions when international names like ABN AMRO, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley among others announced they would relocate as soon as they were permitted to, and despite the fact that construction work would continue furiously around them.
“Relocating to the ICC is a good strategic move for us,” says Hans Schuettler, Asia CEO of Morgan Stanley. “ICC will provide us with the necessary flexibility for expansion and growth, a brand-new working environment with improved amenities, and first-class client facilities. Most importantly, it allows us to create a ‘One Firm’ experience by keeping all of our employees in the same complex.”
This sentiment is shared by Deutsche Bank Asia-Pacific’s CEO, Colin Grassie, who thought that ICC delivered a “world-class space solution”.
With the completed Arch, Cullinan, HarbourView Place, Sorrento and Waterfront residential and serviced apartment developments surrounding ICC, the inventory will consist of well over 2,000 units that promise priceless panoramas of the Victoria Harbour. Hotel tenants include Starwood’s W Hotel, which slipped unobtrusively into town on the opening night of the Olympics last month, and the Ritz-Carlton slated for a 2010 debut.
The leisure component of Union Square is represented by Elements, Asia’s biggest (at press time) retail, dining and entertainment mall, themed according to the five traditional elements of nature. MTR Corporation’s chief retail development manager Betty Leong is confident that the sprawling 93,000-square-metre mall will be more than capable of being “(the) place that Hongkongers visit most frequently after their homes and offices”.
Certainly, there is a lot to keep them occupied. They can browse in high-end, double-storey boutiques in the Metal Zone, enjoy gourmet meals at the posh dining area in the Water Zone or try defying gravity in the ice rink at the Fire Zone. Lovers of nature and the outdoors can find their own piece of heaven in the beautifully landscaped rooftop gardens.
Swanky developments aside, Kowloon still has much to offer. A short 10 minutes down Jordan Road, life still explodes in the riotous bustle so associated with the Yau Tsim Mong district (Yau Ma Tei, Tsim Sha Tsui and Mongkok). Of these three cultural precincts, Mongkok has undergone the most noticeable transformation, with the end still not yet in sight.
This host to a variety of quaintly named bazaars and streets, from the famous Ladies’ Market to the aquarium haven of Goldfish Street, is dotted with so many antiquated buildings that should they be demolished, presents a prime opportunity to create a new hub in the same way the previous exercise did for Langham Place, which consists of the high-tech Langham Place Hotel and the adjoining commercial complex.
Progress, however, can be difficult to accept, especially for long-time residents like freelance yoga teacher, April Shum, who has called Mongkok home for the past 38 years. Now geared up the worst, she says: “The (old) buildings near Langham are rather endangered. Since the Langham was built, land around here has risen in value.
“If the buildings get acquired, for sure, another mall will be built. That would be a great pity, considering the area’s colourful history.”
Crucial planning will be paramount if such a development were to take place. Langham Place, for example, was a lengthy 15-year land acquisition project that started in 1989 and was completed only in November 2004. Nevertheless, the entire project, which cost over HK$10 billion (US$1.3 billion), has proven a worthy investment. Since opening, the complex, made up of a 15-storey shopping mall with over 300 shops, a 60-storey office tower and a cutting-edge 700-room five-star hotel, has evolved to become a prominent Mongkok landmark in a short span of time.
The Langham Place Shopping Mall has already become such a huge draw for both locals and tourists alike, while the hotel building has little problems of being spotted from miles away, being the tallest structure there.
Meanwhile, the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) – the same team behind the development of Langham Place – is now masterminding another iconic project: Sports Retail City. Identified to occupy some 2,500sqm of land bordered by three streets, Fa Yuen Street, Nelson Street and Sai Yee Street (or “Sneaker Street” due to the large concentration of sports shops in the area).
Costing approximately HK$3.14 billion (US$402 million), this large-scale revamp is expected to affect 500 residents currently living in about 14 buildings, aged between 40 and 55 years old. Many of these people are known to fear and resent change.
Stephen Lam, URA’s district development director, however, says: “The construction of the Sports Retail City would not only achieve the purpose of preserving local character, but it also produces a synergistic effect with the nearby Macpherson Playground and the planned Macpherson Indoor Stadium to form a sports activity zone.” Unlike your usual residential and retail building, it will have an exclusive first-of-its-kind “Hongkong Sports Hall of Fame”, which will feature an array of exhibits commemorating the achievements of outstanding athletes in Hongkong.
With all these feats, Kowloon looks set indeed to be on a home run to claim the title of The Next Big Thing.
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