Chun Yeung Street as a mini-HUL : assessing its vulnerability and establishing the means for its sustainability

Abstract

Since as early as 1968, there have been different discussions, internationally, on conserving heritage areas. Most recently, less than 10 years ago, the idea of the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) approach was proposed, although it was not until 2011 that UNESCO officially announced its Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape. As a more recently proposed approach to area conservation, the application of HUL is still somewhat limited from the pilot cities proposed by UNESCO. These are mostly in a wider scale and context. Hence, it would be helpful to know how the HUL approach could be applied to the local Hong Kong context, especially in a narrower, street-based area. However, before discussing the actual application of the approach in greater detail, to lay the foundation for the application of such approach locally, the development of the approach is illustrated, as well as the current practice of the approach in a global context as a reference for further application in Hong Kong. To apply the approach, Chun Yeung Street is selected as a case study due to its significant historical background in witnessing the development of North Point and Hong Kong. Therefore, the history and development of the area is investigated to set the groundwork for applying the first four steps of the HUL approach, namely: (1) assessing its heritage resources and attributes, (2) reaching consensus with stakeholders, (3) identifying its vulnerabilities, and (4) integrating the above in the management of the urban area. Due to different limitations, further application of the approach is not explored. However, this thesis aims to at least lay foundation for the application and pinpoint possible focal points that worth noticing for further processing of the HUL approach in Hong Kong in local context, particularly for a narrow street-based area, which reflects Hong Kong’s dense, urban environment and the inherent challenges of its wider, area-based conservation.