Name (English): Old Wan Chai Market Building
Name (Chinese): 灣仔舊街市
Category: Markets & Malls
Phone Number: +852 25750192
Address (English): 64 Queen’s Road East, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Address (Chinese): 灣仔皇后大道東64號
Address Google Map Link: https://goo.gl/maps/9wFpLzrHQd7s4Xbz5
Address longitude and latitude: 22.27684760990594, 114.16922473893987
Nearest MTR Station: Wan Chai MTR station Exit A3
Nearest MTR Station Google Map Link: https://goo.gl/maps/urJ9PuxmFMkwvpzt5
Nearest MTR Station longitude and latitude: 22.276831536037726, 114.17333222029795
How far from the nearest MTR Station: 7-minute walk from Wan Chai MTR station Exit A3
Opening Hours:
MON 00:00 – 23:59
TUE 00:00 – 23:59
WED 00:00 – 23:59
THU 00:00 – 23:59
FRI 00:00 – 23:59
SAT 00:00 – 23:59
SUN 00:00 – 23:59
Recommended Time of Visit: Morning hours
Accessibility Note: easy access
Keep one thing in mind whenever you are visiting the luxurious skyscrapers in Hong Kong: you are probably treading on the ruins of historic buildings of high aesthetic values, as development and heritage preservation do not always see eye to eye. At the Wan Chai Road, crossing stands a rare building of the Streamline Moderne genre, which used to be a lively market filled with hordes of vendors and customers but is now a residential complex with a secured entrance.
The Streamline Moderne is a variation of the Art Deco architectural style, featuring symmetrical structure, rounded corners, and curved façade, which are all visible in the old Wan Chai Market Building. Empire State Building and Chrysler Building are the two famous architecture depicting similar characteristics. The spacious interior also allows good ventilation and adequate natural light penetrating through the structure, which makes the design stand out. Despite being the one and only Streamline Moderne heritage, the government and developers still insisted on refunctioning the property, and now – only the façade remains.
Long-time vendors had to move their stall to the air-conditioned market next door with an increased rental rate of 300%. The loss of their closest customers also made their situation more challenging, because human connections and the collective memories of the place were the reasons to keep their business going, apart from the earnings. If development was not only driven by economic incentives, would the “heritage conservation” give a better outcome?
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