Hong Kong selects Foster for 99-acre cultural district 'City Park'
Can financial hub Hong Kong use a new cultural district to reinvent itself as a multi-talented global city?
Architecture firmFoster + Partners has won a competition to design a 99-acre arts and culture district in the city, beating rival firms Rocco Design Architects and the Office for Metropolitan Architecture, or OMA, with a conceptual plan that's equally vibrant, sustainable and versatile.
The selection panel said it chose the "City Park" bid for its "balanced mix of land uses integrating arts and cultural facilities with other uses," as well as its "relaxing atmosphere" and array of green features.
The concept is designed around a clustering scheme intended to minimize its footprint and create greater cooperation between different facilities. It's also designed to be flexible during years of construction phases, allowing the public to enjoy the area without excessive interruption.
The other two plans were described as follows:
- Rocco's Cultural Connect: Key to Sustained Vitality. Integration of arts and cultural facilities with public open space
- OMA's Project for a New Dimension. A thematic layout to showcase the local and traditional characteristics of Hong Kong.
The selection panel was comprised of experts with arts, cultural and professional background.
A development plan for the project is scheduled to be unveiled o the public this summer.
"With the selected master design, we are now one step closer to our vision of having a world-class cultural district that represents the aspirations and creativity of Hong Kong," West Kowloon Cultural District Authority board chairman Henry Tang said in a statement.
Illustration, bottom: Dbox
This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com