History Forgotten
Many of our heritage buildings could soon face destruction.
STAR FERRY AND QUEEN’S PIER
Edinburgh Place, Central
The history: Parsee businessman Dorabjee Nowrojee founded the Kowloon Ferry Company in 1888 (renamed the Star Ferry in 1898). Now, 12 ferries carry over 70,000 passengers a day. The Star Ferry Pier itself was built in 1957. The Queen’s Pier is located close by, just in front of City Hall. It’s been the landing point for six former governors and the first port of call for British royals.
Why it’s threatened: With a just completed new “Star Ferry” terminal built in an Edwardian style near the Islands Ferry terminal and massive reclamation continuing where the existing one already is, both sites are clearly threatened. Plans call for a four-lane road linking Central with Admiralty, in which case, the pier would be destroyed in November. The government currently claims the pier has no heritage value. Fortunately, last week, a motion by Legco lawmakers to save the 49-year-old Star Ferry passed unanimously. They are requesting that the government reverse it’s decision on the tower, still scheduled to be demolished early next year. But as of press time, future government plans for the pier call for 11 hectares of open space.
What the experts say:
“There are a lot of collective memories there. Since the 1950s, the Star Ferry has been a common form of transport across the harbor. Even after the 70s, the Star Pier and the Star Ferry were still very important landmarks in Hong Kong – very popular with tourists, of course. It’s also part of the life of the people who work in Central. The clock tower is called the ‘heartbeat’ of Central. People find that they have a very strong bond with the Queen’s Pier. During the colonial period, when the Royal family came to Hong Kong, they would have their ceremonies here. After 1997, for a few years, the law community would have the opening of the legal year ceremony at the Queen’s Pier. It’s meaningful because there are so many official ceremonies at Queen’s Pier.”
- Martin Wan, Conservancy Association
“The current Star Ferry is a collective memory. It’s also the mark of Hong Kong city culture. And Queen’s Pier is not really a building, it’s a structure. There’s a lot of history there. Even though there is reclamation, it should be kept as a landmark. It’s part of the city’s culture. There’s no reason why it can’t be kept as an open space.”
- W.K. Chan, Conservancy Association
“Nothing can replace the landmark quality of the Star Ferry - the arrogant splendor of its heyday as a point for Canton Railway. Imagine all the friendships and romances it witnessed as the meeting point it once was!”
- Debbie Wong, Architect, Education Development Manager
“Other than the architectural style, the most significant concern is that they are part of the city heritage matrix, and can be linked up to other nearby heritage sites. Star Ferry and Queen’s Pier together with City Hall and the carpark structure was an integrated design by a single government architect in 1956.”
- Tony Lam, AGC Design
“It’s not so much the building that we’ll miss, but also the location and ease of access from the city will soon be gone. We would be better off with a tin shed in the existing location than any new building reached by an aerial walkway, as it will be in the new location. The proposed arrangement completely negates the current, relatively smooth pedestrian experience of ‘jumping on the ferry’ to cross the harbour. Let’s face it: As the distance and time required to get to the terminal increases, the distance across the harbor and time required for the actual journey decreases, making the entire process horribly tenuous from an ‘ease of travel/logic of using the ferry’ point of view. This is a massive loss.”
- Peter Basmajian, Architect, Richards Basmajian