Battle for Wan Chai Market looms
Architects say the 67-year-old building should be preserved, not demolished
Architects are planning a campaign to save the Wan Chai Market, a piece of rare 1930s architecture, which is to be pulled down by property tycoon Joseph Lau Luen-hung.
The Hong Kong Institute of Architects said it did not want the market replaced with just another commercial and residential block. Architects said the three-storey building at the corner of Wan Chai Road and Queen's Road East is historically significant and is believed to be one of only two well preserved markets in the Bauhaus style left in the world.
But the campaigners admit they face an uphill battle, as both the Antiquities and Monuments Office and the Town Planning Board have already endorsed the demolition in 2006 to make way for a 46-storey tower. Bernard Lim Wan-fung, a spokesman for the institute, said: 'It is such a shame. People are tasteless. When it is a piece of classical architecture, such as the Legislative Council Building, everyone says it is pretty and has to be preserved. But when it comes to Bauhaus, they don't know how to appreciate it.'
The institute has not decided on actions to save the market, but Mr Lim said members were being consulted.
The redevelopment of the Wan Chai Market, built in 1937, was first planned by the then Land Development Corporation in 1991. In 1997, the corporation sold the project to Chinese Estates Holdings, of which Mr Lau is chairman. The tycoon will have to build another market nearby as part of the deal.
The project was approved by the Town Planning Board in February, with the consent of the Antiquities and Monuments Office. Mr Lim, who teaches architecture at the Chinese University, questioned why the redevelopment had been approved. He said the only other Bauhaus market as well preserved as the Wan Chai Market is in Phnom Penh.
A spokeswoman for the Antiquities and Monuments Office said the status of the market was reviewed last month but it was decided the demolition could proceed. She said the office tried to persuade Chinese Estates to preserve the building, but the proposal was rejected.
Architect Chris Law, chairman of the Centre for Community Renewal, said: 'The architecture of the market is rare ... It would be such a waste if it is pulled down.'
Ng Mee-kam, associate professor from the University of Hong Kong's centre of urban planning and environmental management, said: 'I hope [Chinese Estates] can embrace corporate social responsibility and see itself more as a community builder, rather than merely a profit-driven developer.'
