February 26th, 2006
one house, two faces
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大 城 小 景 by
xina 〡 
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Renewal in Hong Kong is almost equivalent to demolition + reconstruction — pull down the old and build new high rises for middle-class homes and shopping centers filled with silmilar chain stores. Those local people who can’t afford would be relocated or compensated.
Many tenament houses considered dilapidated are just 30-40 years old, they look so old simply because of lack of maintenance. An old tenament building at Star Street, Wanchai is a good example. The effect of refurbishment is best illustrated with the big difference between the 2 wings of the same building! Such facelift is mainly possible with the change of ownership or tenancy under our present market system…
If we can slow down the process of renewal, and allow more bottom-up public participation and more dialogues among the local stakeholders, maybe we can regenerate a district based on its organic past, where the old and new, the rich and poor can be blended more peacefully?
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