Plant a slice of rainforest in the heart of our city
You recently reported that Chief Secretary Henry Tang Ying-yen - head of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority - had suggested planting vineyards in the area ('How about a vineyard, says wine lover', October 27).
We should commend him - assuming his suggestion was meant to illustrate the sort of out-of-the-box ideas his colleagues on the authority should put forward as they brainstorm alternatives. However, on the chance its mention wasn't metaphorical, allow us to suggest an alternative that is more appropriate for our subtropical ecosystem.
Participating in last year's design competition for Central waterfront, we proposed a botanical garden that would wind between buildings and along the waterfront. We termed it an 'arboretum walk'. A great botanical garden - like that found in Sydney - can be a wonderful legacy.
Unfortunately, such gardens are often so large that they see light use; people simply don't have the time or inclination to cross them. That led us to the idea of a relatively narrow and linear park people could use in their daily movements from A to B. Anyone who has ridden downtown from Singapore's airport or walked along Orchard Road knows the singular impression large trees can make.
Hong Kong already has a collection of 'great trees' - the government's register of old and valuable trees. The authority could do worse than to consider creating a manicured slice of tropical rainforest in the heart of our city. Michael Chugani's subsequent criticism of Mr Tang's idea leads to several other points the authority should consider: it should look wide and far for talent and ideas. It should determinedly benchmark related projects around the world. And it should consider keeping the more imaginative ideas it surfaces (eg, a subtropical, urban vineyard) to itself until it has completed its research and brainstorming.
Dick Groves, Retail Development Consultants, Wan Chai
