First mix-use land plot at former Kai Tak airport runway draws positive response from developers
- Nine bids were received when the call for tender closed on Friday, within the range that Knight Frank was expecting
- The harbourfront parcel can be developed into a hotel with between 450 and 600 rooms, as well as an office complex
Hong Kong’s government received a positive response in its sale of the first commercial land plot on the former Kai Tak Airport’s runway.
Nine bids were received when the call for tender closed on Friday, from Sun Hung Kai Properties, CK Asset Holdings, Great Eagle Holdings, K&K Property, Sino Land, K Wah International and the Far East Consortium, according to agents and valuers familiar with the submissions. Two other unidentified developers also submitted bids.
The oceanfront plot, located near the city’s cruise terminal, offers full view of Victoria Harbour, which separates Hong Kong Island from the Kowloon peninsula.
Still, “the area is under development, and lacks the complete set of amenities” needed by office tenants and hotel guests, said Alvin Lam, director of Midland Surveyors, who valued the land parcel at HK$9 billion, or HK$15,000 per square foot. “Commercial plots and hotels cannot be resold separately, so there is a risk, which is reflected in the pricing.”
