Critics fear greed is behind Alexandra Harney
On a grassy expanse of reclaimed land on Hong Kong's waterfront, government officials are planning a sprawling arts centre to put the city on the world's cultural map. But even as renowned architects, museums and theatre groups line up to participate, the project is drawing fire from politicians and the public.
Under the specifications laid down by the government, the 40ha complex known as the West Kowloon Cultural District will include three theatres, four museums, a 10,000-seat performance venue, an art exhibition centre, a theatre for water performances and an enormous canopy covering more than half the site.
“This is something on a scale that's never been done before,” says Stephen Engblom, director of development for Asia at EDAW, a landscape architecture and urban planning firm working on one bid for the project.
This month, the government shortlisted three local bidders: Dynamic Star International, a consortium composed of Cheung Kong and Sun Hung Kai Properties; a subsidiary of Henderson Land; and Sunny Development, a group led by Sino Land. Construction is due to start in 2007, with the first facilities opening in 2010 or 2011.
“I just think everybody should be interested in this piece of land,” says Stephen Brown of Sino Land.
Indeed, many of the world's biggest names in art and architecture already are. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation has thrown its weight behind the project. The Pompidou Centre wants to build its only museum outside France there in co-operation with Dynamic Star. Japan's Tadao Ando, UK architect Lord Rogers and Herzog de Meuron, designer of the Tate Modern Gallery in London, have signed on with Sino Land's consortium.
The Pompidou's decision was “based on our assumption that in the 20 or 30 years to come, the importance of China in the field of contemporary art . . . will match its political importance,” said Bruno Racine, Pompidou Centre president.
The reaction from Hong Kong has been less enthusiastic. Controversy has centred on the handling of the project by the government of Tung Chee-Hwa, chief executive, in particular over its commercial and residential elements.
Critics charge that the plan is primarily a property development, designed to release valuable government-owned land to the city's powerful tycoons. They draw unflattering parallels with Cyberport, a HK$13bn (￡1.7bn) project unveiled in 1999 to turn the city into an information technology hub.
Cyberport turned into a publicity nightmare for the government after it granted a valuable piece of waterfront land without a public tender to Pacific Century Group, a property developer run by the son of Li Ka-shing, Asia's richest man.
Hong Kong officials insist West Kowloon is no Cyberport. “This is going to be a cultural district, not a property development,” Donald Tsang, chief secretary for administration, said at a briefing this month.
Other observers, including Yeung Sum, chairman of the Democratic party, question whether a plot of land as large as West Kowloon should be developed by one group. He argues the land should be put up for public auction to allow for more competition.
In spite of government efforts to canvass the views of the local arts community, artists are also concerned. “No matter what we say, the government will go ahead and do what they want to do,” says Terence Li, a painter and gallery owner.
A public consultation, originally intended to last for most of next year, was shortened to six weeks starting in mid-December a period that includes Christmas and Chinese New Year, when many residents leave Hong Kong. After public criticism, the consultation was extended to 15 weeks.
Mr Tsang, who expects West Kowloon to generate demand for at least 5,000 construction workers over six years and more than 1,000 jobs in the long term, insists the opinions of legislators and the public “are crucial to our assessment of the proposals”.
Hong Kong has proved critics wrong before. Its airport was criticised in 1997 when it opened with problems ranging from the toilets to the baggage handling system. Today, it is ranked the best in the world.
The controversy might not be such a bad thing, says Keith Griffiths, chairman of Aedas, the architectural group that created the plan for Sunny Development. “This is the start of creating a cultural district. We have to raise public interest. . . in order that you get them interested in the arts.”
香港大文化工程引发争议
在香港临海地区一大片长满草的开垦土地上，港府官员正计划建立一个规模庞大的艺术中心，以此让这座城市跻身世界文化版图。但尽管著名建筑师事务所、博物馆和剧院团体都在排队等候参与，该项目还是遭到了政界和公众的抨击。
根据港府制定的设计规划，这片被称为西九龙文娱艺术区(West Kowloon Cultural District)的建筑区域占地面积40公顷，区内将包括3座剧院、4座博物馆、一个可容纳1万人的表演中心、一个艺术展览中心、一个水上表演馆，还有个覆盖该区域一半以上的巨大天棚。
“这样的规模是前所未有的，”易道公司(EDAW)亚洲开发部负责人乔全生(Stephen Engblom)说。易道是一家景观建筑设计和城市规划公司，正准备竞标参与这项工程。
本月港府宣布了最后入围三家本地竞标者：活力星国际(Dynamic Star International)、恒基兆业地产(Henderson Land)的子公司，以及由信和置地(Sino Land)牵头的生利发展集团(Sunny Development)。活力星国际是由长江实业(Cheung Kong)和新鸿基地产(Sun Hung Kai Properties)组成的财团。工程将于2007年开工，首批场馆将于2010年或2011年开业。
“我想所有人都应该会对这块土地感兴趣，”信和置地的史蒂芬?布朗(Stephen Brown)说。
的确，许多全球大名鼎鼎的艺术和建筑机构已经表示了兴趣。古根海姆基金会(Solomon R.Guggenheim Foundation)已为该项目提供了支持。法国蓬皮杜文化中心(The Pompidou Centre)希望与活力星合作，在这里建立它在法国之外唯一的博物馆。日本的安藤忠雄(Tadao Ando)、英国建筑师事务所罗杰斯(Lord Rogers)，以及伦敦泰特现代艺术馆(Tate Modern Gallery)的设计公司赫尔佐格和德梅隆(Herzog de Meuron)都已与信和置地的财团签约。
蓬皮杜的决定是“基于我们对未来20或30年的设想，即中国在当代艺术领域的重要性……将与其政治重要性相匹配，”蓬皮杜艺术中心总裁布鲁诺?拉辛(Bruno Racine)说。
但香港人的反应却不那么热烈。争论的焦点是香港特首董建华的政府对该项目的操作，尤其是对其中商务和住宅因素的处理。
批评人士指责说，该计划根本就是个房产开发项目，旨在将政府拥有的有价值土地资源释放给这座城市有钱有势的大亨们。他们将此与不令人恭维的数码港计划(Cyberport)相提并论，后者是1999年出台的一个130亿港元（合17亿英镑）的工程，旨在让香港成为一个信息技术中心。
香港政府未经公开招标，便将海边一块黄金地段授予盈科拓展集团(Pacific Century Group)，此后数码港工程就令港府倍受舆论攻击。盈科拓展是亚洲首富李嘉诚之子的一家地产开发公司。
港府官员坚持说，西九龙项目决不是数码港。“这里将成为文化区，不是房产开发，”香港政务司司长曾荫权在本月的一份简报中说。
包括民主党主席杨森在内的其他观察家质疑说，西九龙这样的大块土地只交给一家集团来开发是否合适？杨森认为，这块土地应该进行公开拍卖，允许更多竞争者参与。
尽管港府努力争取本地艺术团体的支持，但艺术家们也表示担心。“不论我们说什么，政府都会继续自行其事，”画家、画廊的拥有者特伦斯?李(Terence Li)说。
有关该项目的公众咨询期原本打算持续到明年下半年，但后来被缩短到6个星期，从今年12月中旬开始，其中包括圣诞和中国新年，届时很多居民都会离港。但在受到公众批评后，这一咨询期又被延长到15个星期。
曾先生预计，在未来6年内，西九龙项目将至少需要5000个建筑工人，长期而言将产生1000多个就业机会。他坚持说，立法者和公众的观点“对我们的拟议评估至关重要”。
过去，香港曾证明其批评者错了。1997年香港机场启用时遭到批评，因为从厕所到行李处理系统等出现种种问题。如今，香港机场已排名世界最佳机场之列。
建筑集团Aedas的董事长基思?格里菲思(Keith Griffiths)说，有争议或许并不是一件坏事。“这是创建一个文化区的开始。我们必须提高公众兴趣……以让他们对艺术感兴趣。”Aedas为生利发展（Sunny Development）提供了设计规划。
