HK$10 million to be spent removing ancient well from future MTR station

The government announced yesterday that it would accept its heritage advisers' recommendation to dismantle, remove and then reassemble an ancient well unearthed at the future To Kwa Wan station on the MTR's Sha Tin to Central rail link, saying it did not want to cause further delay to the project.

The project is already 11 months behind schedule because of the archaeological dig, and as a result the section connecting Tai Wai to Hung Hom will not be able to open by December 2018 as scheduled.

The Development Bureau's announcement came after the Antiquities Advisory Board last week endorsed the cheapest of four options to conserve the ancient well, which dates to the Song (960-1279) or Yuan (1279-1368) dynasties.

Under the HK$10 million plan, the well would first be removed from what will be the roof of the To Kwa Wan station, and then rebuilt nearby. Development Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said authorities would allow flexibility on how to restore it to increase the education value.

"If we can remove the well and dismantle it after a detailed recording, then we can get a better understanding of its structure and the techniques used in building it," Chan said.

Chan's announcement came less than a month after the government proposed preserving seven other archaeological features, including two square wells, where they lay in the site. He insisted the decision was not made hastily and there was enough time for the public to study information available in the past six months.