Hong Kong News

Nonpartisan, Noncommercial, unconstrained.
Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Setback to park revamp plan

No investor was interested in Ocean Park's project for transforming the lowland area into a retail, dining and entertainment hub, says park chairman Paulo Pong Kin-yee.
In an interview with Scarlet Tso Hung, the dean of the School of Communication at Hang Seng University, and associate dean Ronald Chiu Ying-chun, Pong said the park did not receive any applications for the makeover plan when tendering closed in July.

Pong said the park started approaching investors in August last year and received a good response. However, it received no application during the tendering period from February to July, and he believes many investors backed off due to the fifth wave of Covid-19 outbreak.

"The investors and retail stores had a high expectation to the RDE area in the Ocean Park because Hongkongers love to go shopping. However, they have been frightened by the fifth wave of outbreak and became more cautious," Pong said.

But he said the unsuccessful tendering did not mean the revamp plan failed, as the construction of the lowland area is only part of the park's redevelopment.

He said the park will adjust its development strategy and may relaunch the tender.

The Legislative Council last year approved the HK$6.78 billion Ocean Park revamp plan, and Pong said the park is now operating well.

"Since the park received the Legco Finance Committee's fund in March last year, the park is operating well except for the days when the park had to be closed due to the pandemic," Pong said. "If normality can be restored in the coming few years, the park will no longer need to apply to the government for more funds. Instead, the park could pay for itself in the long-term."

Asked if the park will consider building property in the park's area, Pong said the planned retail, dining and entertainment area in the downhill area will include new stores and restaurants, which is not much different from building property. Pong added that he hopes the tender for the park's headland redevelopment could go smoothly.

"The new Fullerton Ocean Park Hotel Hong Kong opened in August and is already fully booked until the end of the year, which shows that Ocean Park still has a lot of potential," he said.

Pong also said the park will become a conservation and education center to raise public awareness of the protection of nature and marine ecology.

Meanwhile, Ocean Park's Water World said it will hold Halloween activities from October 1 to 31.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Hong Kong News
0:00
0:00
Close
It's always the people with the dirty hands pointing their fingers
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Steve Jobs' Son Launches Venture Capital Firm With $200 Million For Cancer Treatments
Google reshuffles Assistant unit, lays off some staffers, to 'supercharge' products with A.I.
End of Viagra? FDA approved a gel against erectile dysfunction
UK sanctions Russians judges over dual British national Kara-Murza's trial
US restricts visa-free travel for Hungarian passport holders because of security concerns
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Political leader from South Africa, Julius Malema, led violent racist chants at a massive rally on Saturday
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
'I am not your servant': IndiGo crew member, passenger get into row over airline meal
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Spanish Citizenship Granted to Iranian chess player who removed hijab
US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell freezes up, leaves press conference
Speaker McCarthy says the United States House of Representatives is getting ready to impeach Joe Biden.
San Francisco car crash
This camera man is a genius
3D ad in front of Burj Khalifa
Next level gaming
BMW driver…
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
×