Revitalize or replace : creative and cultural industry and the urban revitalization of Tai Nan Street, Sham Shui Po

Abstract

In recent years, new shops are emerging in the old district Sham Shui Po – clustering on Tai Nan Street. The newly formed streetscape is being labelled as ‘The New Brooklyn’ of Hong Kong, which refers to the formation of hipster community. Sham Shui Po is one of the oldest yet vibrant and lively urban district in Hong Kong, where we could find a rich mix of commercial activities that defines its uniqueness. The focused area of this study – Tai Nan Street as part of the garment cluster, representing the industrial heyday back in the days which contributes to the historic significance of Sham Shui Po. Moreover, as an aged community composed with old local shops and dwellers, it fabricated the unique social setting where community attachment, bonding and collective values are exceptionally strong. On one hand, with the influx of new businesses, many worried that the evolution of Sham Shui Po is showing a tendency towards commercialization and gentrification – leading to increase in rental prices and cost of living will deteriorate the liveability and eventually drive old local shops and dwellers out of the district. On another hand, instead of being the root cause of decline, some believed that new businesses are in fact bringing opportunities and innovation into the already deteriorating urban area. In this thesis, new businesses are identified as Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI), such as exhibition places, themed café, workshops, select shops and studios etc. By studying the relationship between culture, creativity and urban area – how cultural and creative industries utilize cultural capital to revitalize a urban area, hence, gradually becoming part of the social and cultural context. Thus, uncover the embedded social value of the old district, identify alignments or variations between the value interpretations and cultural expressions of organic community and new businesses. Hence, evaluate the impacts of cultural and creative industry and justify it as the key driver to promote a sustainable urban area.