Hong Kong Science Museum better off relocating for expansion, with current site ‘suitable’ for new showcase of national triumphs, culture chief says

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung says proposal to move Science Museum to site of Heritage Museum in Sha Tin still in preliminary phase

Move would free up Tsim Sha Tsui site to be used by new museum showcasing nation’s achievements, a project unveiled in this year’s policy address

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An exhibit featuring a woolly mammoth installation at the Hong Kong Science Museum in Tsim Sha Tsui. Under the government’s proposal, the institution’s collections would relocate to Sha Tin. Photo: May Tse

Published: 6:53pm, 7 Dec 2023Updated: 4:18pm, 11 Dec 2023

The Hong Kong Science Museum will be better off relocating for its coming expansion, the city’s culture minister has said, calling its current site in Tsim Sha Tsui “suitable” for a new institution showcasing the nation’s achievements.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung Yun-hung on Thursday said the proposal was only a preliminary idea, and the government was still gathering opinions.

“We are not demanding lawmakers make decisions on museum content and location in a short period of time,” Yeung said a day after his bureau submitted a paper to the Legislative Council outlining the suggestion.

The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau is scheduled to meet a Legco panel on Monday next week to discuss the plan.

In the paper, the bureau suggested moving the Science Museum to the site of the Hong Kong Heritage Museum in Sha Tin, which would close and have its collection moved to other venues across the city.

The move would free up the Science Museum’s site in Tsim Sha Tsui for the new showcase on national successes, a project unveiled in this year’s policy address as one of the measures to promote patriotic education.

Culture minister Kevin Yeung (centre) says lawmakers will be asked to make a decision on the proposal immediately. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

The government applied in August last year to expand the Science Museum and the adjacent Hong Kong Museum of History with the construction of three new buildings. The expansion, with a total floor area of about 358,000 sq ft, is expected to be completed by 2030 and has received Town Planning Board approval.