Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Wan Chai Market

The Wan Chai Market was constructed in 1937.It is located at 264 Queen's Road East Wan Chai,Hong Kong Island. It is a Grade III Historic Building.

Its architectural style is influenced by Streamline Moderne architecture, a popular style of building of the 1930s. It is often erroneously referred to as a Bauhaus-style building.

History


During , the basement of the Wan Chai Market was occupied by the Japanese troop for the storage of corpses.

In 1961, the Market underwent a renovation to improve its facilities
and environment so that the Market could compete with other market places in the district.

The Land Development Corporation obtained approval from the to acquire land in Wan Chai, including this site, for redevelopment as part of an urban renewal project. A consortium was formed comprising Chinese Estates , Kwong Sang Hong , Chi Cheung Investment and .

Chinese Estates, controlled by , agreed with the Urban Renewal Authority in 1996 to jointly redevelop the site into a luxury residential-commercial complex. Phase two of the project, which requires the demolition of the building, was scheduled to start early 2008 and completion by mid-2011.

In 2007, the Urban Renewal Authority and the Development Bureau jointly announced that the facade and the front part of the historic market building will be preserved in the redevelopment project; the front part will be used as a
shopping centre. A residential building will stand at the back of the market building.

Facilities


There is a basement and staff quarters in the building.

In Popular Culture


In the successful video game by , ''Deus Ex'', Wan Chai Market is used as the basis for a portion of the game.

Gallery

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