North Point's business clusters : rediscovering North Point's cultural identity and characters through its community business

Abstract

The conservation of modern architecture has been the talk of the town recently. However, there is a lack of recognition of modern architecture globally and locally. Hong Kong started a series of conservation of modern architecture in Hong Kong since 2006 when people started to protest against the demolition of Star Ferry Pier. People are more aware of conservation of modern architecture in Hong Kong erected after the 1950s such as General Post Office, the headquarters of the Garden Company Bakery and the Excelsior Hotel. People started to pay attention to the conservation of modern architecture only until the buildings were about to be knocked down. Therefore, the awareness is relatively low in Hong Kong as well. Hence, the Antiquities and Monuments Office is forming a seven-member team to carry on a preliminary study of post-war buildings after examining the 1,444 pre-war sites. However, the major challenge is how to conserve. Most modern buildings are believed to be characteristic that the Antiquities Advisory Board is hesitant about how to assess them. It is also stated that the government is needed to give greater importance to a building’s community influence when assessing its cultural significance, and a call for wider participation of people in decision making. Conservation is not only about conserving the iconic places, but also the memories and sense of belonging. It is of paramount importance to strength the identity and sense of belonging through conservation, which can let more youngsters know about the story of Hong Kong. It is therefore, proved the importance of incorporating elements of community in conserving modern architecture which is also of the greatest significance when experts determine how to conserve. This thesis focused on North Point community in terms of clusters of businesses by defining the connections with community: 1) historical value; 2) architectural value, & 3) social value. The values are modified solely for the conservation of modern architecture as new approach. These help figure out the heritage connection of North Point people to the focused area which created the cultural identity and sense of place. The study area is due East from North Point Road to Tin Chiu Street; due North from Fort Street / Tsat Tsz Mui Road to Java Road.