Harbourfront Promenades To Grow By 14 Kilometres

Hong Kong's harbourfront areas are to get further facelifts, with the promenades either side of Victoria Harbour to be extended significantly, the government said on Wednesday.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced in his budget speech that he intends to set aside HK$6 billion to revitalise harbourfront areas and to improve their facilities.

The government will "vigorously seek to open up continuous and accessible harbourfront promenades," Chan said.

"We will embrace versatile designs, management models and uses to make our harbourfront more vibrant."

The financial secretary said that in about 10 years' time, the length of the city's harbourfront promenades will have grown from the current 20 or so kilometres, to about 34 kilometres.

He added that there would be 35 hectares of open space either side of Victoria Harbour.

Government sources said the money will be used to develop at least nine projects, six on Hong Kong Island, two in Kai Tak and one in Tsuen Wan.

The government will first start by building a boardwalk under the Island Eastern Corridor by 2021, the sources said.

Paul Zimmerman, who's a member of the Harbourfront Commission, said he welcomed the plan, but thinks the government might be underestimating how much of the waterfront could be pedestrianised.

"There is a total of about 73 kilometres of waterfront around Victoria Harbour. We estimate that about 25 kilometres of that is within port areas and military facilities. So that leaves you about 48 or so kilometres for public access in the future," Zimmerman told RTHK's Jimmy Choi.