The first commercial site in the West Kowloon Cultural District - the Artist Square Towers Project - was awarded to Sun Hung Kai Properties (0016), the only bidder.
The project comprises three commercial buildings with a total gross floor area of approximately 65,000 square meters, including 62,435 sq m for office use and 2,500 sq m for retail/dining/entertainment uses.
SHKP has the right to develop and operate the project for about 47 years under a build-operate-transfer arrangement and will be responsible for the project's design, construction, financing, marketing, leasing, management, operation, and maintenance, the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority said in a statement yesterday.
The price was not disclosed but the authority believes it is "commensurate with the market level" having considered the average valuation provided by three independent valuers.
Betty Fung Ching Suk-yee, chief executive of WKCDA, said the project is a key component of the development model of the district and the authority looks forward to working with SHKP to make the development a success.
SHKP chairman Raymond Kwok Ping-luen said he was very pleased to have won the site and expects it to create synergy with the developer's two nearby projects - the International Commerce Centre and the High-Speed Rail West Kowloon Terminus Development, further boosting the area's status as a unique commercial, cultural, arts, retail, entertainment, and transportation hub in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area.
The developer bought the site atop the high-speed rail for HK$42.2 billion in 2019 and later sold more than half of the interest in the office part - a 25 percent stake to the Kwok's family for HK$9.4 billion and a 30 percent stake to an arm of Ping An Insurance (Group) (2318) for HK$11.3 billion.
The first tender of the AST project was canceled earlier this year and the retender kicked off in September after the authority extended the construction and operation period for the project by 14 years to 2070 and lengthened the period for parking spaces by 38 years to the same year.
Meanwhile, SHKP plans to invest about HK$10 million - 25 percent more than last year - in promotion for its apm mall in Kwun Tong through Christmas, including setting up three giant TVs for customers to watch the World Cup and promotions for celebrating the Christian festival.
It expects sales in the mall for the rest of the year to rise by 20 percent from last year.
An aerial view of the West Kowloon Cultural District, where the Artist Square Towers project will go up. SING TAO
