| Taikoo Shing | |||||||||||||||||||
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Taikoo Shing in 2008
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| Chinese | 太古城 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Cantonese Yale | Taaigúsìhng | ||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Swire City | ||||||||||||||||||
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Taikoo ShingorTai Koo Shing (Cantonese pronunciation: [tʰāːi.kǔː sȅŋ]), is a private residential development in Quarry Bay, in the eastern part of Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It is a part of Swire's property business, along with Taikoo Place, the adjacent Cityplaza retail and office complex and EAST, a lifestyle business hotel.
Taikoo is the Cantonese pronunciation of Swire's Chinese name, while Shing can be literally translated as City. Thus, Taikoo Shing can be loosely translated as Swire City. According to Swire, its Chinese name Taikoo was chosen by Thomas Taylor Meadow, the British Consul in Shanghai when Swire's Shanghai office opened in 1866.[1]
The entire Taikoo Shing estate covers 21.5 hectares (53acres), and consists of 61 residential towers, with a total of 12,698 apartment flats that ranges anywhere between 585 square feet (54.3 m2) to 1,237 square feet (114.9 m2).
The Taikoo Shing estate was once the site of Taikoo Dockyard, whose foundation stone now lies beside Cityplaza. The dockyard moved to United Dockyards at the west shore of the Tsing Yi Island in the late 1970s, and Taikoo Shing was constructed over the site in stages, with constructions of all main residential buildings complete by the early 1990s.
As part of the business strategy, Swire Properties was established in 1972 immediately after the closing of the dockyard. Taikoo Shing became one of Hong Kong's first major private housing estates. Completing in 1986, Swire immediately became one of the largest property companies doing the construction themselves.[2] The area was designed to maximise middle-class residential capacity.[3]
Development of commercial areas still continues today. After the completion of Cityplaza 3 and 4 as office buildings, the original Cityplaza 1 was demolished in the mid-90s for redevelopment. As of 2007, the food market that was originally constructed was demolished to make room for a hotel.
In the 2011 census, Taikoo Shing recorded 36,796 residents. The median monthly rent among rental households was $18,000.[4]
Apartment flats in Taikoo Shing are popular amongst buyers and speculators, and for a significant time in the 1980s and 1990s, Taikoo Shing's housing price is a general indicator of the Hong Kong's housing market health in general. Although in recent years, newer housing developments have eroded a bit of Taikoo Shing's once prominent status.
The estate is also a very sought-after place to live for the Japanese and Korean expatriate communities in Hong Kong, most of which are staffed in multinational corporations based in Hong Kong. As a result of this significant Korean and Japanese settlement, the area has many Korean and Japanese-themed service establishments.
The housing in Taikoo Shing was developed in stages, with the Tsui Woo Terrace being the first ones constructed. In all, the estate's housing complexes are broken down into 6 terraces and 2 gardens, each with a special naming scheme.
Tsui Woo Terrace (翠湖台, literally: "Terrace of the Jade Lake"); all of the mansions on this terrace are named after famous lakes in China. The terrace consists of three mansions.
Ko Shan Terrace (高山台, literally: "Terrace of the High Mountain"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Mountain" (山) as the second character of the building's name. A couple of the mansion's names also corresponds to famous mountains in China. The terrace consists of 13 mansions.
Kam Din Terrace (金殿台, literally: "Terrace of the Golden Palace"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Palace" (宮) as the second character of the building's name. In addition, all of the mansions names' first character corresponds to various political dynasties in Chinese history. The terrace consists of 8 mansions.
On Shing Terrace (安盛台, literally: "Terrace of Peace and Prosperity"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Peace" (安) as the second character of the building's name. The terrace consists of 6 mansions.
Harbour View Gardens (海景花園); all of the mansions in this area are named after flora. The area consists of 11 mansions.
Kwun Hoi Terrace (觀海台, literally: "Terrace for Ocean Viewing"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "Ocean" (海) as the second character of the building's name, and a cardinal direction as the first character of the building's name. The terrace consists of 3 mansions.
Sing Fai Terrace (星輝台, literally: "Terrace of the Stars"); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "star" (星) as the second character of the building's name. Some of the building names are similar to Chinese names for planets within the Solar System. The terrace consists of 8 mansions.
Horizon Garden (海天花園); all of the mansions on this terrace have the Chinese word for "sky" (天) as the second character of the building's name. The area consists of 9 mansions.
Some terraces - Horizon Gardens, Kam Din Terrace, Sing Fai Terrace, and Kao Shan Terrace - have podiums that provide a public space for their residents, often including a children's playground. Elderly residents may practice tai chi in the mornings. There are also shops and learning centres on these podiums such as Kumon.
AChuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre was located at the estate when Hong Kong was a British colony, opening between 1984 and 1985 and closing in 1987.
In addition, Harbour View Gardens, Horizon Gardens and Kwun Hoi Terrace all have access to swimming pools. In Kao Shan Terrace, there are badminton courts and tennis courts for residents to use.
There are a few kindergartens in the vicinity of Tai Koo Shing, as well as the international school Delia School of Canada.
Taikoo Shing is in Primary One Admission (POA) School Net 14.[5] Within the school net are multiple aided schools (operated independently but funded with government money) and North Point Government Primary School.[6]
All terraces have indoor car parks, providing parking spaces on monthly lease.
There are parking spaces available for visitors on hourly rate in the car parks at Cityplaza and Sing Fai Terrace.
The estate is served by MTR Tai Koo station of the Island line, as well as various bus lines, served by New World First Bus and the Kowloon Motor BustoShau Kei Wan, Admiralty, Sheung Wan, Tsim Sha Tsui and Jordan.
As it is a private estate, all roads were owned by Swire Properties. However, most roads were returned to the Government except for those near Cityplaza.[7] In practice, public traffic is generally allowed to pass freely, but admission may be denied.
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| Private housing estates in Sha Tin District |
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22°17′11″N 114°13′04″E / 22.286335°N 114.217644°E / 22.286335; 114.217644
