Battle to save WW2 building with dramatic history

Conservationists are battling for an 85-year-old building in Tsim Sha Tsui to be declared a grade I historic building and saved from demolition.

The four-story building at 190 Nathan Road is one of three remaining pre-war buildings that have corridor-style balconies and is located at the corner of a block - opposite Kowloon Park.

The other two such buildings are on Prince Edward Road West in Kowloon and Stewart Road in Wan Chai.

However, the owner of what was listed as a grade III historic building in 2018 was given a green light to demolish the structure last year.

But conservationists also argue it would be wrong to tear down the Nathan Road block as it is one of the few remaining civil buildings occupied by the Japanese army during World War Two.

Groups including Walk in Hong Kong and the Urban Studies Institute along with history experts point to the building being a restaurant before WW2 and its Chinese-American family owners being forced to become servants of the Japanese military. And two sons of the family monitored the movements of Japanese military ships and activities at Japanese barracks from the building's balconies and rooftop and passed on information to the British.

The Japanese eventually discovered their activities and killed them.

The preservation camp says such history reflects a historic value in how Hongkongers resisted.

Paul Chan Chi-yuen, co-founder of Walk in Hong Kong, said the building also has rare features.

"The building is the only pre-WW2 building in Tsim Sha Tsui, and such a corner, Western-style building is also very rare in Hong Kong," he said.

"The building is also the only remaining civilian building that was directly involved in Hongkongers' deployment during World War Two."

The conservationists want the Antiquities Advisory Board to upgrade it to a grade I historic building. According to the grading system of the Antiquities Advisory Board, grade I buildings hold outstanding merit and should be preserved if possible. But grade III buildings are not qualified for consideration as monuments and can be demolished.

According to the Urban Studies Institute, the original owners of the building were Chan Yee-chung and his wife Lau Tsung-tai, who arrived from the United States in 1929.

The couple, who had run a US restaurant business, bought the land at 190 Nathan Road and built the four-story building in 1937 to operate Cafe Evergreen.

The building was occupied by the Japanese army in 1941 and used as a canteen for soldiers.

The Chan family was forced into service by the occupiers, but among other things the two sons managed was to photograph the Japanese army's nearby barracks from the rooftop of the building, which was among material sent to the British military. When Japanese discovered these activities the Chan family was tortured and the sons killed.

The building is now owned by entrepreneur Ma Kam-chan and his family.

Some citizens agree it should be saved as its grade III rating means it has historical value and should also be preserved as a memorial.

In 2017, the State Theatre Building in North Point avoided demolition after being upped to a grade I historic building from grade III after concern group pressure.

In that case developers had started to acquire the building after the Antiquities and Monuments Office had limited its action to rating the theater as grade III.

Walk in Hong Kong came in with a heritage value assessment and criticized the office for being unprofessional.

The Antiquities Advisory Board then re-evaluated the historical credentials of the State Theatre Building and upgraded it to grade I, so it was saved from demolition.