HONG KONG | Pair of 49 stories tower may face demolition

[yumiko ^.^]

According to the latest annual budget speech, the government proposes to move out from the 3 office towers in Wanchai (Revenue Tower, Immigration Tower, Wanchai Tower) and the plot shall be sold to the private sector.

This implies that the two 49 stories towers (Revenue & Immigration Tower) may become the tallest buildings ever demolished in HK. What a fcuking waste


Revenue Tower and Immigration Tower with the Central Plaza behind

[M.K.]

Impressive.. I concern, why don't they continue using both towers as private also. There is no sense in imploding them. A small version what WTC I&II was. I mean the WTC of Hong Kong. Resemblance.... but both are in island, an a too expensive one. It is also possible to say Hong Kong is the Manhattan of China. The design and appearance is quite the same, but here a chinese smaller version.... Maybe China want follow US demolishing the twins, even in smaller version... I know China is now a super power country, but then does not need to make exactly what the first in world had happened. .. ...

[MolsonExport]

What is proposed to replace these very large structures? Can they not be recycled?

[Ducov]

seems a little wasteful to put it mildly, I mean it's not as if they wouldn't be easily converted into private office space.

[Patrick]

Thats a total waste. The two towers are an excellent feature to the Hong Kong skyline.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Patrick

Thats a total waste. The two towers are an excellent feature to the Hong Kong skyline.

Not only that, but there are SO many other, cheaper options than a demo/replacement. Recladding is possible and far cheaper, although they are pretty much capped at their current height. I would really push such a re-cladding, which could make the property much more desirable if done properly. Remodeling of the street level could also help make the tower more desirable, with perhaps a bigger/fancier lobby.

[Lecom]

Did they ever explicitly state that they may demolish them, or did they just say that they're selling them to a private developer? If it's the latter, then chances are that the developer will just refurbish them for private use. No developer in their right mind would demolish three relatively new office structures that constitute a great amount of leasable office space. It's not like what he could put up in their place would be much bigger, space-wise, anyway.

[JDRCRASH]

49 stories? This is ludicrous! I mean, this isn't simcity. They should make do of what they have to not only save time, but therefore, money.

[staff]

If they feel like wasting the money - why not? I'm sure the guy/girl who acquires the plot will have pretty much no choice but to build something amazing these.

[ardecila]

^^ Because demolishing and rebuilding 2 49-story buildings is a tremendous waste of resources. Demolishing the buildings will take a great amount of energy in the form of the fuel for the wrecking balls, the acetylene torches, the explosives, and the trucks carrying waste away. Rebuilding them will take even more energy from the huge needs of lifting materials 49 stories - concrete pumps, tower cranes, and even simple power tools in large quantities consume energy like a fat kid in a candy store, not to mention the ships, trains, and trucks that will be used to bring materials to the site.

The building materials from the old building will likely be thrown in a landfill, while the new buildings will demand that more raw resources be extracted from the earth.

A demolition of an existing building to be replaced with one that is no more, or even less, efficient (dense and energy-efficient) is wasteful and flies in the face of any sort of environmental progress.

[Nowhereman1280]

If they really want more density in this site couldn't they just fill in the space in between the buildings with a sleek addition that would merge the two buildings together as wings for a supertall central tower?

I could see a lot of creative architects who would kill do be able to do something as unique and cool as that...

[yumiko ^.^]

Originally Posted by Lecom

Did they ever explicitly state that they may demolish them, or did they just say that they're selling them to a private developer? If it's the latter, then chances are that the developer will just refurbish them for private use. No developer in their right mind would demolish three relatively new office structures that constitute a great amount of leasable office space. It's not like what he could put up in their place would be much bigger, space-wise, anyway.

They have not explicitly state that demolition is the only option but it is commonly believed that the government tend to do so. Actually to sell the plot together with the buildings offer the greatest flexibility - the developer may refurbish the buildings, demolish them by their own if they don't like it, or even demolish the shorter (32 stories) third tower to make room of retails space. However this shall violate from the normal procedure of the government, and not-following-the-procedure is virtually a taboo in today HK.

[hkskyline]

I haven't picked up a demolition plan in the news though.

More likely thing to do is to gut out the insides and renovate them to attract new tenants, such as better wiring for high-tech facilities. But then, I imagine they don't have high ceilings so the wiring is going to be a problem. Then the bottom few floors can easily be turned into retail.

[R@ptor]

Well, as long as they are replaced by a pair of 100 story towers I'm fine with it. And the location would be perfect for it.

[M.K.]

Originally Posted by ardecila

^^ Because demolishing and rebuilding 2 49-story buildings is a tremendous waste of resources. Demolishing the buildings will take a great amount of energy in the form of the fuel for the wrecking balls, the acetylene torches, the explosives, and the trucks carrying waste away. Rebuilding them will take even more energy from the huge needs of lifting materials 49 stories - concrete pumps, tower cranes, and even simple power tools in large quantities consume energy like a fat kid in a candy store, not to mention the ships, trains, and trucks that will be used to bring materials to the site.

The building materials from the old building will likely be thrown in a landfill, while the new buildings will demand that more raw resources be extracted from the earth.

A demolition of an existing building to be replaced with one that is no more, or even less, efficient (dense and energy-efficient) is wasteful and flies in the face of any sort of environmental progress.

Actually I agree totally with that... the cost and movement about that is unbelievible. If Hong Kong were still this British isolate country inside China, then ok, because of space problems, to verticalize more, but now is open, belongs to China again, it means space somewhere behind the hills or out the old frontier could be a place for a huge tower to spread the city in the third or fourth biggest country in world in terms of land space... Even the fact 49-storeys in 2 towers is not that small... and are not that ugly, in opposite they are very modern and updated as black boxy style bldgs. Maybe just a renovation of facade and review inside would be necessary.

[Aleks]

I doubt these towers will fall. If the government is leaving the towers then that doesn't mean they will be torn down. The towers would create too much waste, ruble would break many many windows in near by towers, the smoke would create health hazards and environmental ones too.

And even if they are torn down my guess would be that the government would be the ones doing it so or it would be part of the deal to tear them down. This could be because the towers may have some things the government doesn't want "normals" to see. Which I doubt. Or there may a design flaw or unworkable for the company buying the towers.

And you can't just build tall towers out of Hong Kong since Hong Kong (although belonging to China) is still Capitalist not Communist. There are also height restrictions and Hong Kong is a very valuable city which would be best to build a tower there then any other city outside of Hong Kong (excluding the large cities).

[Trantor]

haha, I really doubt these towers will be demolished.

can you point me out other BIG TOWERS which followed the standart government procedure of "demolishing" after the government gets out of them?


I bet most demolished government buildings were small lowrises that obviously were then bought and demolished because it made ECONOMICAL SENSE to build something higher there.

But it would make economic sense BUY a 50 floors building and demolishing it to make a 80 floors building.

[Fabb]

If they are demolished, they have to be replaced with very handsome towers. Central Plaza will not suffer ugliness in its vicinity.