TRAJAN'S
COLUMN
NEWS
NOTES
LANDED GENTRY.
TOPICS
This column is seldom given to eulogising, but recent speeches by the then O.A.G., Mr. Claude Burgess, have made us realise that we have in our midst a champion of both Hong Kong and the English language, of quite exceptional ability. This Colony has for many years been extremely fortunate in its choice of Governors but seldom has one produced a spate of speeches such as that to which we have been treated over the past few weeks.
And at all times there was evidence of technical knowledge and accuracy of information which gave confidence in pronouncements of policy or of decisions taken by the powers-that-be. At King George V School Mr. Burgess asked for gratitude and help from the young expatriates for the land which has become their home, At Wah Yan he appealed for more tolerance of modern youth, and at the New Method College he stressed the advantages of Hong Kong's East-meets-West atmosphere.
Mr.
At the University Congregation, Burgess hit the jackpot again, this time with an exposition of enthusiasm and a review of the
big-time public works developments now taking place, and likely to take place in the future. His speech was followed by an editorial in a contemporary asking the timely question of where would the money come from to meet the unprecedented capital expen- ditures involved in building new towns and such like. A pertinent point, but not one which is likely to affect the issue, Mr. Burgess stated that the provision of land may well be the key to our survival; and how right he is.
Using land as its greatest asset, the Government should encourage the rapid expansion of industries with planned in- dustrial cstates, complete with housing and community facilities, by making the
24
sites more readily available, creating them where they do not now exist, and by streamlining its policy of leasing or selling land.
SPACE, TIME AND OPPORTUNITY,
Traffic congestion is a problem of worldwide interest. Already, if we need to shop or visit ог eat in the business areas of Hong Kong, we ask "shall we walk, or have we time to ride?" Newer and bigger roads do not always ease the traffic flow even if it were
Have we forgotten the fourth dimension time? Though to our eyes cities may appear eternal, they are, in fact, ephe- meral. They follow the pattern of life. They are born, they grow, and eventually they die. But in their being they outlast countless numbers of families and human lives. So what we do today will profound- ly affect the life process of the individuals of the future and the existence of the environment in which they live. At present in Hong Kong we are in a tremen- dously exciting period of change and development, the influence of which will have a vital impact on generations yet to come. Shek Pik, the City Hall, Plover Cove, the Dockyard area and Army lands,
the flyovers around
some Cricket Club, the Grand Canyons of Nathan Road, Queen's Road and Des Voeux Road, and housing on an unprecedented scale.
The physical centre of Hong Kong will soon move eastwards and we shall be treated to an exercise in urban develop- ment, the like of which and the oppor- tunity to carry span of time, have seldom been given to any city. We must not fritter away such an opportunity. At a cost of $112 million for the dockyard alone, we cannot afford to! But apart from the financial aspect, the worth of a master plan for the Cen- tral area, drawn up in the spirit of Brasillia, L'Enfant's
and Washington Haussmann's Paris, would be of a value beyond calculation to the future of this Colony and a truly worthy monument to the spirit of leadership and enterprise inherent in its present administration.
it out in a reasonable
The opinion of local citizens has been sought and ideas will be welcomed for the planning of the Murray lands, and this is a good thing. Gloucester Road is to be extended through the Dockyard, a car park is to be built on part of Murray Parade Ground and another part is to be sold by auction, probably for a good hotel. But if all this were being done to a fully- considered plan, with the aesthetic as well
as
—
―
the commercial aspect in mind, we would feel a lot happier. Certainly, there has been no publication of such a plan. The chance should be taken to collate all ideas
existent, now
add to them the response from the public
if any
and refer the whole to an expert in urban planning for the preparation of a master plan. For, whilst we have in the Public Works Department an architectural unit capable of producing fine buildings of a merit and quality equal to anywhere in the world, we lack in our civic administra- tion a planning team with the freedom and capacity for preparing a scheme of this nature. It is no longer merely a question of land values. The future of the area concerned is a vital part of our existence and of generations yet to come
possible to use our limited space to con- struct wider thoroughfares. There are 70 ft. wide avenues in New York, but the speed of traffic is no more than 6 m.p.h. The rash of islands, almost reaching epidemic proportions, пон appearing in our roads, is surely contrived to slow down progress even further. Do we need a park- and-ride system of public transport, where all private cars are excluded from the centre of the city and car parks are provided in fringe areas, from which high- capacity, streamlined tram cars take over to serve the shops, offices and hotels of the city hub? There has been talk in circles of a monorail system with rapid acceleration and high start-to-stop speeds; quiet and smooth-running cars, operating across the bridge and/or the Causeway and around the cities of Victoria and Kowloon. It seems an idea worth studying. Certain it is that a rapid transit system would be much cheaper and of greater value
wider roads, multi- storey garages, or underground tramtracks.
than
MAKING THE GRADE.
a
Congratulations to the local Society of Architects. At the time of writing it is rumoured that R.I.B.A. recognition is to come early in 1960, and after only three years of life. Such early recognition of a Colonial group is a good sign of a more liberal approach to things than was the case a few years ago. One of the main advantages of having an Allied Society in our midst is that examinations of the Institute can be held locally, and this will be greeted with enthusiasm by the local assistants. It also opens the door to registration in the United Kingdom, fact jealously guarded by A.R.C.U.K. until quite recently. Its availability to overseas architects means more people likely to practise in the U.K., and although the architects in Britain have always been very ready to do jobs in other parts of the world, they have not been so enthusiastic about overseas archi- There tects poaching on their preserves. has been some suggestion in the past to have a regional tag, as A.R.I.B.A. (Hong Kong), or (West Africa), and to limit recognition to the area concerned. But it seems to have been appreciated that such designation would work two ways and the idea has been dropped. But we will soon be faced with three organisations each holding examinations in architecture, covering what is really a very small section of the community. Can they be streamlin- ed into one channel and, if so, which? The University seems the obvious answer.
TRAJAN.
THE HONG KONG & FAR EAST BUILDER - VOLUME 14. NUMBER 4