Union Square
To me as an urban planner, Union Square (as it's formally known) is a spectacle of ultra high density mixed use development. This development is built over the Kowloon MTR Station and sits on 13 hectares of land reclaimed from Victoria Harbour. A high end shopping mall, Elements, occupies well over a million square feet above the train/MTR station. The roof of the mall is used as a quasi public plaza and as access to the multiple towers on site. There are over 8,000 housing units here, as well as the 118 storey Intrenational Commerce Centre and W Hotel.
Housing prices are shocking. At the "Harbourside", the 75 storey blue tower second from left for example, a lower floor 743 square foot two bedroom apartments was listed at $21 million HKD ($3.4 million Canadian/ $2.7 million USD )in December 2017 .
When I first visited this development in 2008, it seemed completely isolated from the city and was not at all a friendly place to get to as a pedestrian. In 2017, it's in the middle of a sea of cranes and new buildings.
In future, there will likely be better connectivity, as more massive development, the West Kowloon Cultural District, is currently taking place on 40 hectares of land adjacent to Elements/Union Square.
Union Square
To me as an urban planner, Union Square (as it's formally known) is a spectacle of ultra high density mixed use development. This development is built over the Kowloon MTR Station and sits on 13 hectares of land reclaimed from Victoria Harbour. A high end shopping mall, Elements, occupies well over a million square feet above the train/MTR station. The roof of the mall is used as a quasi public plaza and as access to the multiple towers on site. There are over 8,000 housing units here, as well as the 118 storey Intrenational Commerce Centre and W Hotel.
Housing prices are shocking. At the "Harbourside", the 75 storey blue tower second from left for example, a lower floor 743 square foot two bedroom apartments was listed at $21 million HKD ($3.4 million Canadian/ $2.7 million USD )in December 2017 .
When I first visited this development in 2008, it seemed completely isolated from the city and was not at all a friendly place to get to as a pedestrian. In 2017, it's in the middle of a sea of cranes and new buildings.
In future, there will likely be better connectivity, as more massive development, the West Kowloon Cultural District, is currently taking place on 40 hectares of land adjacent to Elements/Union Square.