CGO East Wing Entry Plaza Compare 2012 vs 2014

The Central Government Complex has been the headquarters of the

Government of Hong Kong The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the handover of Hong Kong. ...

since 2011. Located at the Tamar site, the complex comprises the Central Government Offices, the Legislative Council Complex and the

Office of the Chief Executive Office of the Chief Executive (CEO) is one of the government agency, government agencies for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It consists of the immediate staff to the Chief Executive of Hong Kong and multiple levels of support s ...

of Hong Kong. The complex has taken over the roles of several buildings, including the

former Central Government Offices The Former Central Government Offices (also the Government Headquarters), now called Justice Place, is an office building complex that formerly housed most of the major offices of the Hong Kong Government. The complex is located in Cen ...

(CGO), Murray Building and the former Legislative Council Building.

History

By 2001, existing government offices at Murray Building and the former Central Government Offices were considered to be too small. Maintenance of the buildings was also increasingly costly, and the age of the buildings limited the technology used in them. The Legislative Council Building on Jackson Road was also too small to house the entire LegCo Secretariat and all members' offices. A new government complex at Tamar was approved by the Executive Council on 30 April 2002 under the

Tung Chee-hwa Tung Chee-hwa (; born May 29, 1937) is a Hong Kong businessman and retired politician who served as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong between 1997 and 2005, upon the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July. He served as a vice chairman of th ...

administration. The new complex was to be the headquarters of the government, the Legislative Council and other community facilities, including a gallery, leisure facilities, open spaces and a waterfront promenade. At the time, the construction was estimated to cost HK$6.4 billion. The building was delivered through a design-build contract won by the Gammon- Hip Hing joint venture. Construction was due to begin in mid-February 2008, for completion in 2011. It engaged more than 3,000 workers.Tamar contract signed

Architecture

The architect was Rocco Yim, who premised the massing on the concept of "door always open". The new government building uses neither Chinese nor

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an government building designs, but instead it is a mix of

postmodern architecture Postmodern architecture is a style or movement which emerged in the 1960s as a reaction against the austerity, formality, and lack of variety of modern architecture, particularly in the International Style (architecture), international style adv ...

and low-frills international design. The building initially had an open design, but has been heavily fortified after various protests.

Public realm

The complex was originally designed by Yim under the concept of "Door Always Open", symbolising the pride that Hong Kong holds in its "openness and transparency of governance". In keeping with this theme, the complex was meant to be accessible to the public and integrated with the surrounding urban context, and incorporates a range of public spaces. Tamar Park passes through the complex, leading to the waterfront promenade on

Victoria Harbour Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbor, harbour in Hong Kong separating Hong Kong Island in the south from the Kowloon Peninsula to the north. It acts as both a major trading hub and tourist attraction of Hong Kong in general. Lying in ...

. The Civic Square in front of the complex's East Wing has been blocked off from public access with a permanent fence.

Components

The complex consists of three blocks:

Office Block

While official use came into effect on 1 August 2011, administrative staff had moved in beginning 15 January 2011.

References

External links

* Virtual Tours
Central Government Complex Construction in Progress, Hong Kong

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