Seaside tong lau in Kennedy Town gets new lease of life

Ten years ago, Hong Kong real estate entrepreneur Victoria Allan saw residential potential in Kennedy Town.

At the time, some might have questioned her judgment, but one thing led to another and the thought of renovating one flat turned into an idea for a project.

Over the next five years, Allan, the founder of Habitat Property, gradually bought up the subdivided components of a 1960s waterfront on New Praya, including the ground-floor mechanical workshop, to attain total ownership of the whole. But even that expensive and protracted process was not the biggest challenge, she says.

That dubious honour goes to the Buildings Department, which, Allan found, struggled to understand the concept of an old building conversion (or why anyone would even want to), followed by all the rigmarole involved in bringing it to compliance with the current planning codes. So, why did she want to?

It started from a desire to retain a pretty building. "Originally, I saw a gap in the market for something that was a cool, well-designed, large space - more like a really well-finished loft apartment," she said. "These are charming old buildings, part of the cultural identity of Hong Kong. It's a shame that more of them aren't retained."

Nine years later, the project is finally finished. In October, Australian interior design and architectural practice Kerry Phelan Design Office (KPDO) introduced the revitalised Tung Fat Building - the first in its pipeline of projects in Hong Kong - as eight roughly 1,300 sqft seaview apartments, set behind a restored facade.

The Australian firm was brought in to infuse a fresh approach to the "standard" Hong Kong design formula of shiny finishes and small spaces, Allan said. "This [project] has gone very much against that trend. It is more spacious, well-laid-out, with high-end finishes - more along the level of finish and style that you would get in Australia. I think a lot of expatriates are looking for that."