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The Quest for Better Public Space: A Critical Review of Urban Hong Kong

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Public Places in Asia Pacific Cities

Part of the book series: The GeoJournal Library ((GEJL,volume 60))

Abstract

Hong Kong’s urban areas concentrate mainly in two places: the triangular tip of Kowloon Peninsula, and a thin coastal strip on the northern side of Hong Kong Island (Figure 1).1 According to the 1997 and 1998 annual reports of the World Bank, Hong Kong has entered the rank of the top 15 countries or areas in GNP per capita. However, each Hong Kong resident has only 1.5 square meters of public space for recreation. Singapore has a similar population density and economic performance, but its recreational space is three times larger than that of Hong Kong. Dense Asian cities like Tokyo and Taipei all exceed Hong Kong in this regard. Mainland China’s GNP per capita is only 1/35th of Hong Kong’s, but Guangzhou, the largest city in southern China and only a two-hour train ride from Hong Kong, has 3 square meters of recreational space for each of its residents.2

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Notes

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Building Science and Technology, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Charlie Q. L. Xue & Kevin K. K. Manuel

Authors
  1. Charlie Q. L. Xue
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  2. Kevin K. K. Manuel
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Architecture, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, USA

    Pu Miao (Assistant Professor) (Assistant Professor)

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© 2001 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Xue, C.Q.L., Manuel, K.K.K. (2001). The Quest for Better Public Space: A Critical Review of Urban Hong Kong. In: Miao, P. (eds) Public Places in Asia Pacific Cities. The GeoJournal Library, vol 60. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-2815-7_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-2815-7_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-5739-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-017-2815-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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