A subsidiary of Li Ka-shing's Cheung Kong Holdings pays $325m for the right to develop the site into a tourist attraction The historic marine police headquarters in Tsim Sha Tsui will be turned into a 'heritage hotel' after the right to develop the site was awarded to a subsidiary of tycoon Li Ka-shing's Cheung Kong Holdings. It was announced yesterday that Flying Snow Ltd had had won the redevelopment tender, agreeing to pay $325.8 million for a 50-year land grant on the site. This will give the company management rights to develop the 11,000-square-metre site for commercial purposes. Under the proposal, Flying Snow will turn the main building of the former headquarters into a 'heritage hotel'. The other parts of the site will include restaurants and shops to attract tourists. The project is due to be completed in early 2007 and the construction phase alone is expected to create 315 jobs, plus a further 500 vacancies when the facilities open to the public. It is the second tourism project in Tsim Sha Tsui to receive finalisation this month. Last week, New World Group said it would develop a Hollywood-style 'Avenue of Stars' on the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront costing $40 million. Both of these projects are part of the government's $250 million plan to revitalise Tsim Sha Tsui as a tourist attraction. Five companies had bid for the marine police headquarters project, including one which proposed creating a maritime museum. Names of the other companies were not disclosed. The government put the project out to tender in November. It asked for proposals to preserve and restore the 119-year-old structure, built at the height of the Victorian era in the so-called tropical colonial style. One requirement was that it be a tourism development. The building, on a hill overlooking Tsim Sha Tsui ferry terminal with prime harbour views, is a rare example of a colonial-era building that has retained its original charm, and was eyed hungrily by commercial developers after the marine police vacated it in 1996. Representatives of the Antiquities Advisory Board and Hong Kong Tourism Board made up the panel that picked Flying Snow's bid. 'Hong Kong's colonial past is something that interests tourists, including those coming from Japan and the mainland,' said Bonnie Ngan Suet-fong, spokeswoman for the Tourism Board. 'It's very important that we can showcase the heritage. It makes for an additional tourism attraction for Hong Kong.' In a statement last night, Cheung Kong promised to develop the site in a way that respected the building's heritage value. 'This project allows us to preserve its heritage and create major employment opportunities during and after the construction period. It caters to the best interests of history, tourism and economic considerations,' he said. 'We believe converting an historical building into a development project of practical value is an opportunity to extend Hong Kong's past glory well into the future.'
