Lee Tung Avenue Redevelopment

Located in a strategic urban area in Wan Chai, Lee Tung Avenue is a new and unique retail concept in Hong Kong, featuring a revitalised 200-metre-long tree-lined pedestrian walkway, flanked by sidewalk cafés, gourmet restaurants, local and overseas fashion outlets, and a variety of lifestyle activities.

The area was formerly known as Lee Tung Street, or better known as Wedding Card Street due to its many small wedding card businesses. It was cleared out in 2007 by the Urban Renewal Authority for redevelopment.

The project, which was completed in November 2015, comprises two separate sites, with four residential towers atop podiums, and basements that accommodate various facilities, including retail, public open spaces, a residential care home for the elderly, a community support services centre, a public refuse collection point, public toilets, and ancillary car parking space.

THE HERITAGE CONNECTION
According to lead architect Dr Ronald Lu, the design of the avenue was inspired by the traditional streetscapes of the 1950s to capture the rich heritage of Wan Chai that paralleled the evolution of Hong Kong. Staggered building heights, with a mix of finishes and paints, stones and tiles for a combination of vivid colours and diverse textures, and antique-style Townsgas lamp posts lining the boulevard make for a pleasant walk and interesting feast for the eye. The project also includes the adaptive re-use of three historical buildings with frontage on Queen’s Road East.

The public open space and shopping arcade with its European-style design concept is meant to enhance urban social, cultural and heritage connections. It also completes the pedestrian linkage from Kennedy Road to the Wan Chai waterfront. An underground walkway directly linked to the Wan Chai MTR station was also proposed.

GREEN PLANNING
Lee Tung Avenue is designed for optimal natural lighting and ventilation, local micro-climate and building-energy performance. Careful material selections, building geometry, lighting, ventilation and acoustic design help enhance the indoor environment quality.

Innovative and efficient green installations, such as water-flow hydraulic mini-turbines, variety water recycling systems, high-efficiency solar PV panels, energy-efficient appliances and fixtures and food waste recycling machines to harvest free renewable energy, have been incorporated to promote sustainability in Lee Tung Avenue.

Extensive and diverse greenery is used throughout to mitigate the urban heat island effect, while hybrid energy (solar and wind) lamp poles are installed at the podiums.

FAST AND QUIET
Due to the tight schedule and high complexity of the project, top-down construction was used to expedite the progress, with the basement excavations and the construction of the podium and towers done concurrently.

Modular and standardized design of building elements, such as the aluminium system formwork and off-site prefabricated façade, were used for typical residential tower floors. Excavation work was done under the cover of completed ground floor slabs to reduce the impact of dust and noise as the site is located in a densely populated area.

The re-developed Lee Tung Avenue has provided a space that is able to accommodate numerous engaging and high-profile events, which will bring the best in entertainment and lifestyle to people from all walks of life. This vibrant hub not only rejuvenates its immediate neighbourhood but also the Wan Chai district as a whole, with its character and vitality.

PROJECT DATA
Project Name: Lee Tung Avenue
Location: Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Completion Date: November 2015
Site Area: 8,236 square metres
Gross Floor Area: 9,405 square metres
Client/Owner: Grand Site Developments Ltd (joint venture of Sino Land Company Ltd and Hopewell Holdings Ltd) and Urban Renewal Authority
Architecture Firm: Ronald Lu & Partners
Principal Architect: Dr Ronald Lu
Main Contractor: China Overseas Building Construction Ltd
Mechanical & Electrical Engineer: Wong & Ouyang (Building Services) Ltd
Civil & Structural Engineer: C. M. Wong & Associates Ltd
Images: Ronald Lu & Partners