Taikoo Shing

Taikoo Shing, or Tai Koo Shing (zh-t|t=太古城), is a private housing estate in Quarry Bay, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It forms a part of the Swire Group's Island East residential and retail branding, along with TaiKoo Place and the adjacent Cityplaza retail and office complex.

Area

The entire Taikoo Shing estate covers 3.5 hectares (8.5 acres), and consist of 61 residential towers, with a total of 12,698 apartment flats that ranges anywhere between convert|585|sqft|m2 to convert|1237|sqft|m2.

History

The Taikoo Shing estate was once the site of Taikoo Dockyard, whose foundation stone now lays beside Cityplaza. The dockyard moved to United Dockyards at the west shore of the Tsing Yi Island in late 1970s, and Taikoo Shing was constructed over the site in stages, with constructions of all main residential buildings complete by the early 1990s.

As part of the business strategy, Swire Properties was established in 1972 immediately after the closing of the dockyard. Taikoo Shing became one of Hong Kong's first major private housing estates. Completing in 1986, Swire immediately became one of the largest property companies doing the construction themselves [Jones, Geoffrey. [2000] (2000). Merchants to Multinationals: British Trading Companies in the 19th and 20th Centuries. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0198294506] . The area was designed to maximize middle-class residential capacityWordie, Jason. [2002] (2002) Streets: Exploring Hong Kong Island. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. ISBN 962-2095631] .

Development of commercial areas still continues today. After the completion of Cityplaza 3 and 4 as office buildings, the original Cityplaza 1 was demolished in the mid-90's for redevelopment. As of 2007, the food market that was originally constructed was demolished to make room for a 4-star hotel.

Population and demographics

More than 40,000 people live in Taikoo Shing, a moderately concentrated area by Hong Kong standards.

The income distribution of Taikoo Shing's population makes it a typical middle class community in Hong Kong. Apartment flats in Taikoo Shing are popular amongst buyers and speculators, and for a significant time in the 80's and 90's, Taikoo Shing's housing price is a general indicator of the of Hong Kong's housing market health in general. Although in recent years, newer housing developments have eroded a bit of Taikoo Shing's once prominent status.

The estate is also a very sought-after place to live for the Japanese and Korean expatriate communities in Hong Kong, most of which are staffed in multinational corporations based in Hong Kong. As a result of this significant Korean and Japanese settlement, the area has many Korean and Japanese-themed service establishments.

Housing

The housing in Taikoo Shing was developed in stages, with the Tsui Woo Terrace being the first ones constructed. In all, the estate's housing complexes are broken down into 6 terraces and 2 gardens, each with a special naming scheme.

It is important to note that those mansions under the "garden" group are considered to be premium housing, and much more expensive than those that fall under the "terrace" category.

Tsui Woo Terrace (翠湖台)

Meaning "Terrace of the Jade Lake" in Chinese, all of the mansions on this terrace are named after famous lakes in China. The terrace consists of three mansions.
*Dong Ting Mansion (洞庭閣)
*Po Yang Mansion (鄱陽閣)
*Tai Woo Mansion (太湖閣)

Kao Shan Terrace (高山台)

Meaning "Terrace of the High Mountain" in Chinese, all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Mountain" (山) as the second character of the building's name. A couple of the mansion's names also corresponds to famous mountains in China. The terrace consists of 13 mansions.
*Tung Shan Mansion (東山閣)
*Tien Shan Mansion (天山閣)
*Thai Shan Mansion (泰山閣) Note: the word "Thai" does not correspond with the similarly named race in Southeast Asia.
*Lo Shan Mansion (廬山閣)
*Nam Shan Mansion (南山閣)
*Bo Shan Mansion (寶山閣)
*Hang Shan Mansion (恒山閣)
*Wah Shan Mansion (華山閣)
*Long Shan Mansion (龍山閣)
*Fung Shan Mansion (鳳山閣)
*Yi Shan Mansion (怡山閣)
*Kam Shan Mansion (金山閣)
*Fu Shan Mansion (富山閣)

Kam Dien Terrace (金殿台)

Meaning "Terrace of the Golden Palace" in Chinese, all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Palace" (宮) as the second character of the building's name. In addition, all of the mansions names' first character corresponds to various political dynasties in Chinese history. The terrace consists of 8 mansions.
*Tong Gong Mansion (唐宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Tang Dynasty.
*Yin Gong Mansion (燕宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to a rebel dynasty in ancient China.
*Yuan Gong Mansion (元宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Yuan Dynasty.
*Ming Gong Mansion (明宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Ming Dynasty.
*Ha Gong Mansion (夏宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Xia Dynasty.
*Han Gong Mansion (漢宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Han Dynasty.
*Tsai Gong Mansion (齊宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Qi Dynasty.
*Sui Gong Mansion (隋宮閣) Note: first character of this mansion's name is a reference to Sui Dynasty.

On Shing Terrace (安盛台)

Meaning "Terrace of Peace and Prosperity" in Chinese, all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Peace" (安) as the second character of the building's name. The terrace consists of 6 mansions.
*Ning On Mansion (寧安閣)
*Bo On Mansion (寶安閣)
*Shun On Mansion (順安閣)
*Hing On Mansion (興安閣)
*Kin On Mansion (建安閣)
*Kao On Mansion (高安閣)

This terrace has a somewhat tarnished reputation among some for being too close to industrial complexes nearby, therefore exposed to unsanitary environmental conditions.

Harbour View Gardens (海景花園)

All of the mansions in this area are named after flora. The area consists of 11 mansions.
*Pine Mansion (青松閣)
*Banyan Mansion (翠榕閣)
*Willow Mansion (綠楊閣)
*Oak Mansion (紫樺閣)
*Maple Mansion (金楓閣)
*Juniper Mansion (銀栢閣)
*Marigold Mansion (美菊閣)
*Begonia Mansion (海棠閣)
*Lotus Mansion (雅蓮閣)
*Wisteria Mansion (碧藤閣)
*Primrose Mansion (春櫻閣)

Kwun Hoi Terrace (觀海台)

Meaning "Terrace for Ocean Viewing" in Chinese, all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Ocean" (海) as the second character of the building's name, and a cardinal direction as the first character of the building's name. The terrace consists of 3 mansions.
*Buk Hoi Mansion (北海閣)
*Tung Hoi Mansion (東海閣)
*Nam Hoi Mansion (南海閣)

ing Fai Terrace (星輝台)

Meaning "Terrace of the Stars" in Chinese, all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "star" (星) as the second character of the building's name. Some of the building names are similar to Chinese names for planets within the Solar System. The terrace consists of 8 mansions.
*Hang Sing Mansion (恒星閣)
*Tien Sing Mansion (天星閣)
*Hoi Sing Mansion (海星閣)
*Wai Sing Mansion (衛星閣)
*Yiu Sing Mansion (耀星閣)
*Ji Sing Mansion (智星閣)
*Kam Sing Mansion (金星閣)
*Ngan Sing Mansion (銀星閣)

Horizon Gardens (海天花園)

All of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "sky" (天) as the second character of the building's name. The area consists of 9 mansions.
*Kai Tien Mansion (啓天閣)
*Hoi Tien Mansion (海天閣)
*Fu Tien Mansion (富天閣)
*Choi Tien Mansion (彩天閣)
*Heng Tien Mansion (恒天閣)
*Kwun Tien Mansion (冠天閣)
*Yat Tien Mansion (逸天閣)
*Nam Tien Mansion (南天閣)
*Ging Tien Mansion (景天閣)

Amenities

Some terraces - such as Horizon Gardens, Shing Fai Terrace, and Kao Shan Terrace - have podiums that provide a public space for their residents, often including a children's playground. Elderly residents may practice tai-chi in the mornings.

In addition, the premium mansions all have access to swimming pools, and there are badminton courts and golf swing practice areas for residents to use.

Transportation

The estate is served by MTR Tai Koo station of the Island Line, as well as various bus lines, served by New World First Bus and the Kowloon Motor Bus to Shau Kei Wan, Admiralty, Central, Tsim Sha Tsui and Jordan.

As it is a private estate, all roads are owned by Swire Properties. In practice, public traffic is generally allowed to pass freely, but admission may be denied.

References

ee also

*Cityplaza
*Island East
*Kornhill and Kornhill Gardens
*Nam Fung Sun Chuen

External links

* [http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=22.286335,114.217644&spn=0.004206,0.006942&t=k&hl=en Satellite image of Taikoo Shing and its vicinity from Google Maps]
* [http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/cx/?id=100367 Emporis - details of individual buildings]