FAQ

  1. What are the objectives of the Stage 3 Public Engagement (PE) Exercise?

    In the Stage 3 PE Exercise, we present to you a proposed Development Plan (DP) based on Foster + Partners' concept after consulting the public in the previous PE Exercise. The proposed DP has incorporated desired features from the other two master plans whenever appropriate to make the Cultural District a place to relax and be inspired.

  2. What are the key features of the proposed Development Plan?
    • The 17 Arts & Culture Facilities will be totally integrated into the city, with all their visual arts, performances and educational offerings easily accessible to one another along a main vehicular traffic free artery, the Avenue.
    • A Great Park will bring the Hong Kong countryside to the urban centre, with trees offering shade throughout the hot days and months, gently undulating terrain and extensive areas of green grass. The Great Park will also host outdoor performances, sculpture displays and art activities.
    • The Avenue is colonnaded with trees down its centre to create shade for everyone. At ground level, visitors will be able to access the entrances to many of the Cultural District's new cultural buildings, as well as shops, restaurants, cafes, studios, workshops and education facilities.
    • Three civic squares - Artist Square, Xiqu Square and Central Square will serve as hives of activity and central meeting points.
  3. What are the desirable features from the other two master plans incorporated in the proposed Development Plan?

    A number of features expressed by the public in previous stages of engagement exercises to be desirable will be incorporated:

    • Relocation of Xiqu Centre to Canton Road end of the District
    • Relocation of M+ to the entrance of the Great Park
    • Realignment of the Avenue to provide room for street performances
    • Inclusion of Arts Pavilions
    • Inclusion of a Premier Theatre
    • Incorporation of 'Banyan Farm' concept in Outdoor Theatre design
    • Provision of space for literary activities and programmes
    • Proposed provision of travellators
    • Proposed provision of green roofs on buildings
    • Inclusion of arts pontoons subject to technical and statutory feasibility
    • Inclusion of piers subject to technical and statutory feasibility
  4. How will the WKCD be developed in phases?

    It is planned that the first facilities to be commissioned around 2015 will be part of the Great Park with Arts Pavilions, followed by an Outdoor Theatre and Freespace with a Music Box in the park as well as the Xiqu Centre which houses a Main Theatre and a Teahouse.

    The other facilities to be commissioned in Phase 1 include the Music Centre which comprises a Concert Hall and a Recital Hall, the Centre for Contemporary Performance made up of three Blackboxes, the Lyric Theatre, the Medium Theatre I, the Musical Theatre, the Mega Performance Venue plus Exhibition Centre, and Phase I of the main visual arts facility M+.

    A host of other ancillary facilities including the Resident Company Centre, space for literary activities, other creative learning facilities and a number of Arts Pavilions dotted in the District for visual arts exhibitions will also be constructed in this phase.

    Facilities to be constructed in Phase 2 will include the Great Theatre, the Xiqu Small Theatre, the Medium Theatre II and M+ Phase 2.

  5. How can the public participate in the Stage 3 PE Exercise?

    Exhibition and Guided Tour
    An exhibition and guided tours will be held at the Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre in the Kowloon Park. Pamphlet of the proposed DP will be distributed to the public at the exhibition.

    Development Plan Presentation
    You may register on-line for participation in these presentations. The Authority is also organising a Get-Together with Youth to present the details of the proposed DP to the students and young people. Please find out the details from the event calendar for the Stage 3 PE exercise.

    Comment Sharing
    You can voice your opinions before 30 October 2011 by:

  6. What will be the next step after the completion of the Stage 3 PE Exercise?

    View collected in the Stage 3 PE Exercise will be collated and analysed by the Public Policy Research Institute of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The Authority will take the views into consideration when finalising the DP for submission to the Town Planning Board end of the year.

  7. When will the construction of the WKCD commence? In the run-up to the commissioning of the facilities, will the Authority organise any arts and cultural programmes?

    We plan to submit the finalised Development Plan to the Town Planning Board around the end of this year. In parallel, we are preparing design competitions for a number of signature facilities so that construction works can begin as soon as possible after the statutory planning process is completed.

    While hardware development is progressing on schedule, the WKCDA has not lost sight of the need to embark on programmes for capacity and audience building as well as talent nurturing. Since last year the Authority has been working with education institutions and arts and cultural organisations to cultivate software for the benefit of WKCD and the whole cultural community.

    It is envisaged that the WKCDA could provide a temporary venue on site for both indoor and outdoor cultural activities and for visual arts displays before commissioning of the Phase 1 facilities.

  8. Are the building designs in the proposed Development Plan actual designs?

    They are only provided for reference. We are in the process of preparing design competitions for a number of signature facilities.