Mariners' Club Get The Nod To Redevelop The Site

The government has approved a plan to allow the Mariners' Club in Tsim Sha Tsui to redevelop their current site.

In an announcement made on Friday, the government said it will allow the Sailors Home and Mission to Seafarers, which runs the 50 year-old-club, to build a complex at the site which will include a hotel.

Under the plan, the mission can – after paying a land premium – partner with a developer and rebuild at the site. The club will be housed on the lower level of the new building and there will be a hotel on the top.

The mission was pushing to redevelop the 12-storey building after suffering from a sharp drop in patronage over the years due to a dwindling number of seafarers.

Some critics have pointed out that the accommodation needs of shipping professionals have changed over the decades, and the club's old mission of providing a roof for seafarers has largely become redundant.

The decades old building is situated in a prime real estate area.

"The redevelopment can maximise the potential of the site and uphold Hong Kong's status as a major international port and tourist destination," the government statement said.