View source for West Kowloon

{{Short description|Geographic area of Hong Kong}}
{{About|the geographical area of Hong Kong|the geographical constituencies|Kowloon West (disambiguation){{!}}Kowloon West (constituency)|the express railway terminus|Hong Kong West Kowloon railway station}}
{{Use Hong Kong English|date=December 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{Chinese|order=ts
|t=西九龍
|s=西九龙
|j=sai1 gau2 lung4
|p=Xī Jiǔlóng
}}
[[File:Union Square Overview 201008.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Union Square (Hong Kong)|Union Square]] development.]]
[[File:West Kowloon Olympic Station Buildings 20110510.jpg|thumb|right|High-rise residential blocks near [[Olympic Station]]]]
[[File:Hong Kong West Kowloon Station view 201810.jpg|thumb|right|[[Hong Kong West Kowloon railway station]], the terminus of [[Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link]]]]
[[File:The Long Beach GF Open Space 2012.jpg|thumb|The Long Beach Public open spaces]]

'''West Kowloon''' ({{zh|t=西九龍}}), named after [[West Kowloon Reclamation]] Project as a part of [[Airport Core Programme]], is the western part of [[Kowloon Peninsula]] in [[Hong Kong]], situated within the [[Yau Tsim Mong District]] and [[Sham Shui Po District]]. The [[Land reclamation|reclamation]] spanned from mid-1990s to mid-2003,<ref>{{Cite web |title=S1 West Kowloon Reclamation |url=https://www.cedd.gov.hk/eng/about-us/achievements/land/regional-development/s1-west-kowloon-reclamation/index.html |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=www.cedd.gov.hk}}</ref> but major part was completed in 1990s. It represents the new coast area facing [[Victoria Harbour]] and [[West Kowloon Cultural District]] is its focal point. Multiple railway stations, namely [[Nam Cheong station|Nam Cheong]], [[Olympic station|Olympic]], [[Austin station (MTR)|Austin]], [[Kowloon station (MTR)|Kowloon]] and [[Hong Kong West Kowloon station|Hong Kong West Kowloon]] stations, are within the area.

Before the 1990s reclamation, the name of West Kowloon were also used to refer western part of Kowloon, such as [[West Kowloon Corridor]] and West Kowloon Area Traffic Control System.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hong Kong. Public Works Department. Annual departmental report,1976-1977 |url=https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/b564bt89z#?c=&m=&s=&cv=111&xywh=1060,715,2165,1006 |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk |language=en}}</ref> The area referred to could change over time and have different usages by departments. In [[Hong Kong legislative elections|legislative elections]], it is Kowloon West and its area is changed frequently.

For the reclamation, many of government projects named after West Kowloon, such as [[West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade]], Hong Kong West Kowloon railway station and West Kowloon Cultural District lays in the area bounded by [[Canton Road]] to the east, [[Victoria Harbour]] to the west and the south, and [[Jordan Road, Hong Kong|Jordan Road]] to the north, overlapping with [[Ferry Point, Hong Kong|Ferry Point]] or Austin. West Kowloon Cultural District, a tourist hotspot, got much attention as the representative of West Kowloon.

But West Kowloon spans much further north and ends in [[Stonecutters Island]], including [[Yau Ma Tei]], [[Mong Kok]], [[Tai Kok Tsui]], [[Sham Shui Po]], [[Cheung Sha Wan]] and [[Lai Chi Kok]] roughly on the shore side of the [[West Kowloon Highway]]. Property agents branded four private housing estate projects, [[Banyan Garden]], Liberte,  AquaMarine and The Pacifica, in Cheung Sha Wan as '''[[West Kowloon Four Little Dragons]]''' (西九四小龍). Another example is from [[Environmental Protection Department]] that West Kowloon Transfer Station is located on the reclamation next to Stonecutters Island.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Problems & Solutions {{!}} Environmental Protection Department |url=https://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/prob_solutions/msw_wkts.html |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=www.epd.gov.hk}}</ref> Also, [[West Kowloon Government Offices]] situates on the reclamation next to Yau Ma Tei,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Film Promotion and Facilitation Section - Location Library |url=https://fpf.ccidahk.gov.hk/en/location/detail.php?id=1948 |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=fpf.ccidahk.gov.hk |language=en}}</ref> and [[West Kowloon Law Courts Building]] next to Cheung Sha Wan.

== West Kowloon reclamation ==
It is principally a stretch of [[Land reclamation in Hong Kong|reclaimed land]], which was subsequently developed in the late 20th century. It has been zoned for mixed commercial, residential and leisure development, and was almost doubled in size with a large reclamation scheme as part of the Airport Core Programme.

== Structures ==
=== Existing ===
[[File:Western Harbour Tunnel.JPG|thumb|The [[Western Harbour Crossing]] connects West Kowloon to [[Hong Kong Island]]]]
* [[West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade]]
* [[West Kowloon Corridor]] - a bypass connecting [[Lai Chi Kok Road]] with the [[Gascoigne Road Flyover]] in Yau Ma Tei
* [[Western Harbour Crossing]] - Hong Kong's third harbour crossing, the Kowloon portal of which is located within West Kowloon
* [[Kowloon station (MTR)|Kowloon station]], [[Austin station (MTR)|Austin station]], [[Olympic station]] and [[Nam Cheong station]] of [[MTR]]
* [[Hong Kong West Kowloon railway station]] - Hong Kong's high speed rail terminal connecting to mainland China.
* [[International Commerce Centre]] - the current tallest building in Hong Kong

=== Under construction ===
* [[West Kowloon Cultural District]] - leisure and cultural district
* [[Central Kowloon Route]] Yau Ma Tei interchange

== Projects ==

=== Existing ===
Commercial projects include [[International Commerce Centre]], a {{convert|484|m|adj=on}} skyscraper which is part of the [[Union Square (Hong Kong)|Union Square project]].

Residential projects which have been realised in the sector include [[Union Square (Hong Kong)#The Waterfront|The Waterfront]] (''2000''), [[Union Square (Hong Kong)#Sorrento|Sorrento]] (''2003''), [[The Harbourside]] (''2003''), and [[Union Square (Hong Kong)#The Arch|The Arch]] (''2005''), and [[The Cullinan]] (''2008'', the tallest residential building in Hong Kong). The above all sit atop [[Kowloon station (MTR)|Kowloon MTR station]], a station on the [[Tung Chung line]] and [[Airport Express (MTR)|Airport Express line]]. The shopping-mall [[Elements, Hong Kong|Elements]] started operating on 1 October 2007.

=== Plots auctioned ===
In August 2005, two neighbouring sites near Central Park and Park Avenue were triggered for auction, and were subsequently acquired by a joint venture of [[Sino Land]], [[Chinese Estates Holdings]] and [[Nan Fung Development]].<ref>Raymond Wang and Danny Chung, [http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=48&art_id=43596&sid=13386356&con_type=1&d_str=20070504&sear_year=2007 West Kowloon braces for battle], ''[[The Standard (Hong Kong)|The Standard]]'', 4 May 2007</ref>

In May 2007, a site bounded by Hoi Wang Road, Yan Cheung Road and Yau Cheung Road was won by a consortium comprising Sino Land, Chinese Estates Holdings, K Wah International and Nan Fung Development, for a bid of HK$4&nbsp;billion.<ref>Raymond Wang and Danny Chung, [http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=2&art_id=44036&sid=13509838&con_type=3&d_str=20070509&sear_year=2007 Low-end $4b win], ''[[The Standard (Hong Kong)|The Standard]]'', 9 May 2007</ref> Following the successful auction of the site, some legislators called for a law to stop developers from constructing tall buildings which maximise good views at the expense of air flow in densely populated areas, but the bid failed.<ref>Olga Wong, "[https://www.scmp.com/article/592261/call-law-against-wall-effect-fails Call for law against 'wall effect' fails]", ''[[South China Morning Post]]'', 10 May 2007</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Commons category|Kowloon West|West Kowloon}}
{{coords|22.3036|114.1600|format=dms|display=t}}
{{Yau Tsim Mong District}}
{{Hong Kong Urban Areas}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:West Kowloon| ]]
[[Category:Restricted areas of Hong Kong red public minibus]]