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Taikoo Shing, or Tai Koo Shing (Chinese: 太古城; Jyutping: taai3 gu2 sing4; pinyin: Tàigǔchéng), is a private residential development in Quarry Bay, in the eastern part of Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It forms a part of the Swire Properties's residential and retail branding, along with Taikoo Place, the adjacent Cityplaza retail and office complex and EAST, a lifestyle business hotel.
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Area
The entire Taikoo Shing estate covers 3.5 hectares (8.5 acres), and consist 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).
History
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. The area was designed to maximise middle-class residential capacity.
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.
Population and demographics
In the 2011 census, Taikoo Shing recorded 36,796 residents. The median monthly rent among rental households was $18,000.
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.
Housing
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.
It is important to note that those mansions under the "garden" group are considered to be premium housing, and more expensive than those that fall under the "terrace" category.
Tsui Woo Terrace (翠湖台)
Meaning "Terrace of the Jade Lake" in Chinese, 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)
Meaning "Terrace of the High Mountain" in Chinese, 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)
Meaning "Terrace of the Golden Palace" in Chinese, 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)
Meaning "Terrace of Peace and Prosperity" in Chinese, 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)
Meaning "Terrace for Ocean Viewing" in Chinese, 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)
Meaning "Terrace of the Stars" in Chinese, 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.
Amenities
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 t'ai chi in the mornings. There are also shops and learning centres on these podiums such as Kumon.
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.
Education
There are a few kindergartens in the vicinity of Tai Koo Shing, as well as the international school Delia School of Canada.
Car parks
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 Terrence.
Transportation
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 Bus to Shau Kei Wan, Admiralty, Sheung Wan, Tsim Sha Tsui and Jordan.
As it is a private estate, all roads are owned by Swire Properties. In practice, public traffic is generally allowed to pass freely, but admission may be denied.
Archives
The archives of the Taikoo Dockyard are held by SOAS Archives