Manulife Financial Centre

Kwun Tong 223

Kwun Tong 223 was renamed as Manulife Financial Centre

Kwun Tong 223 （January 2008）

Kwun Tong 223 being built （November 2007）

Bridgelink from Kwun Tong Pier to Kwun Tong 223.

Manulife Financial Centre (traditional Chinese: 宏利金融中心) is an office building on Wai Yip Street, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Originally named Kwun Tong 223, it was completed during the second quarter of 2008. The building is renamed as Manulife Financial Centre with effective from December 1, 2009.

The property is jointly developed by Henderson Land Development and Sun Hung Kai Properties, on land formerly occupied by Dairy Farm's ice factory and a cement factory.

Introduction

Kwun Tong 223 comprises two 28-storey office towers connected with a multi-storey structured thoroughfare on the top floors. The building form adopts full curtain wall facade design. The superstructure works has been completed in just 18 months. ^[1]

Kwun Tong 223 was hailed as a landmark office development in Kowloon East soon after its completion in late 2007 because it embodies not just state-of-the-art facilities but also an environmentally sustainable design. The urban waterfront location of Kwun Tong 223 allows tenants to enjoy Victoria Harbour views, whilst its open portal design enables a free passage of sea breeze to the whole neighbourhood.^[2]

Property information

• Floor height is about 2.7 to 3.1m^[3]
• 180 degree sea view
• 862,000 ft² club house
• 50,000 ft² exhibition and conference space

Transport

• MTR Kwun Tong Station along Hai Yuan Road 10 minutes walk
• Kwun Tong Ferry Pier to North Point
• Kwun Tong Public Ferry Pier to Sai Wan Ho
• KMB 15A, 23 to Hip Wo Street, Hai Yuan Road etc
• Minibus no.103, to Tseung Kwan O and Clear Water Bay
• Shuttle bus

There is currently a footbridge being constructed with elevator facilities to link Kwun Tong 223 with Kwun Tong Ferry Pier.

Tenants

Manulife Financial, one of the world's largest insurance firms, has signed a lease for 8 floors of Kwun Tong 223, making it the largest tenant in the building and giving it rights to rename the building and to mount signage on the building itself. The rename is effective from December 1, 2009.^[4]

One of the big four accounting firms, PricewaterhouseCoopers, announced that it will rent out Kwun Tong 223's 18th and 19th floor at block A as the firm's training centre and the Asian headquarters for its global information management department. It was expected to move in in May 2008.^[5]

In addition, the world's third largest container freight company CMA CGM's Hong Kong office, including subsidiaries Delmas and ANL have also moved in to the 17th and 19th floor of Block B, on 27 December 2008.

References

1. ^ Kwun Tong 223 E Man Construction Co Ltd
2. ^ The Standard Finance
3. ^ 物業推介
4. ^ http://www.manulife.com/corporate/corporate2.nsf/Public/hongkong070609.html
5. ^ 羅兵咸承租觀塘223 蘋果日報，1st April 2008

• Henderson Land Development Manulife Financial Centre