RECONNECTION AND INTERFACE Hong Kong’s Central Waterfront is disconnected from the city. It is isolated from the vibrant life and metabolism that surrounds it. Our proposal is a strategy of reconnection, by which the Central Waterfront will fulfill the pivotal position in the life city that it holds geographically and symbolically. PEAK TO WATER We re-establish the connection of the famous Hong Kong Peak and the water which are so characteristic of the identity of the city. The existing city has a unique topography and urban form where, particularly in the central district, the natural landscape flows through the skyscrapers. We propose continuing this flowing of green landscape as a revitalising energy to the central district, thus reaffirming the identity of not just the waterfront, but the entire city. PATCHWORK QUILT OF RECLAMATION Just as our proposal returns to the fundamental character of the topography of the city, it also remembers the history of the city’s development. The new waterfront is integrated as part of the patchwork quilt of reclaimed land which has passed as a legacy through the generations of Hong Kong’s citizens. However, it is not simply the latest separated patch of development, but rather it stitches all previous reclamations and developments together to make a connected urban structure for the city. VIBRANCY AND DIVERSITY - WEAVE OF PROGRAMME AND LIFE OF SITE Our waterfront proposal presents a strategy for layering and weaving a number of programmes together. It takes care to connect to the existing programmes surrounding the site, whilst also holding its own programmatic identity as the front door and future focus of Hong Kong’s public life. The proposal suggests a number of key public programmes distributed throughout the site, key 'destinations’ and magnets for activity. In addition to these more fixed destinations, we have created a series of public urban squares which provide the possibility for large events, gatherings, parades, festivals, and other temporary uses. Bordering and between urban squares are sub-centres of retail and amenities: shops, bars, cafes, and any smaller programmes you would expect of such a civic area. Gardens, parks, and water elements weave these many diverse urban spaces, events, and destinations into a continuous landscape, and also more specifically themed ‘threads’ of programme – such as a story of public artworks, a sequence of ornamental gardens, or a series of running paths. We are proposing not just a waterfront park, but a connected urban structure that builds upon the city’s rich history, re-affirming the unique geographic and continuing the vibrant nature of Hong Kong.