Langham Place a catalyst for Mongkok rejuvenation

Hotel, mall and office complex could drive the revitalisation of the area just as Times Square transformed Causeway Bay

A five-star hotel, 15-storey mall and 59 floors of top-notch office space certainly look out of place in the heart of Mongkok. But Great Eagle Holdings believes its 1.8 million square foot Langham Place project there - which opens later this year - will give a new face to one of Hong Kong's liveliest but often rundown areas.

Great Eagle has undertaken an expensive marketing push for the project. Half a floor of the Great Eagle Centre in Wan Chai has been devoted to an impressive show suite with wall-projected videos that show beautiful people shopping, dining and working in the complex. The suite also includes models of the development; one showing the setup of the mall cost $1.5 million. Even the books that visitors are given showing the layout of the development cost $500 each to produce.

Yet a recent trip to the site on Portland Street revealed a stark contrast between the development and its environs. Walking south down Portland Street, one can see the mall and grade-A office tower on the right. On the opposite side are saunas, pawn shops and from behind the frosted glass doors comes the clatter of mahjong tiles.

Walking round the complex and heading north along Reclamation Street with the hotel on the right, one can see the other side of the street is completely lined with machinery and tool shops.

Langham Place Hotel is scheduled to open in July, with the shopping mall and office tower due to come on stream later in the second half.