The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (the Authority or WKCDA) is inviting open tender from interested parties for the development and operation of the highly anticipated landmark commercial development project, namely the Artist Square Towers Project (the AST Project), situated at the prime location of the West Kowloon Cultural District (the District or WKCD).

The successful tenderer will be granted the development and operational rights of the AST Project for about 47 years under a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) procurement model, and will be responsible for the design, construction, financing, marketing, leasing, management, operation and maintenance of the AST Project.

The AST Project, comprising three commercial buildings with a total gross floor area of approximately 65,000 square metres (sqm) (including 62,435 sqm for Office use and 2,500 sqm for Retail / Dining / Entertainment uses), is located at the Artist Square, the heart of the District. The AST Project is in the immediate vicinity of a number of world-class arts and cultural facilities, including M+, Asia’s first global museum of contemporary visual culture; the newly opened Hong Kong Palace Museum, a collaboration between WKCDA and the Palace Museum displaying precious artefacts from the Palace Museum and beyond; Freespace and the Xiqu Centre, the two performing arts venues which deliver a rich and diverse programme of world-class performances; the popular 11-hectare Art Park fronting the Victoria Harbour; and the Lyric Theatre Complex currently under construction.

The WKCD project is the most important and strategic investment in cultural infrastructure by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The vision of WKCD is to become a unique cultural destination offering the best of eastern and western cultures to visitors from Hong Kong and around the world, which supports the new mission of developing Hong Kong into an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange under the National 14th Five-Year Plan.

The AST Project is one of the flagship commercial projects of the WKCD dedicated to creating a new Cultural Central Business District (Cultural CBD) in Hong Kong. It will provide the private sector with a precious opportunity to take part in such an ambitious arts-and-culture-led development.

The AST Project is adjacent to the Kowloon Station Commercial and Residential Area. Riding on the unrivalled connectivity provided by the neighbouring Airport Express Kowloon Station and the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station, the terminus of the High Speed Rail connecting the Mainland high-speed rail network, the AST Project enables talents and visitors to travel efficiently to and from major metropolises in the Mainland such as Shenzhen and Guangzhou in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.

The AST Project represents the Authority’s ambition in forging a new development model for Hong Kong, where arts and culture will fuel Hong Kong’s new commerce, and stimulate creativity, innovation and ideas for future generations. The Authority will continue to unleash the potential of its commercial land with a view to creating a unique art-themed commercial destination and generating stable income to sustain the development and operations of the arts and culture facilities in the District.

Collection of the Invitation to Tender Document:
Details on tendering for the AST Project are contained in the Invitation to Tender (ITT) Document, which can be collected by making written request to the Authority. Interested parties should download the Request Form through the weblink below:
https://www.westkowloon.hk/en/invitation-to-tender-for-artist-square-towers-project-west-kowloon-cultural-district

Submission of Tenders:
Tender in response to the ITT must be submitted before the Closing Date/Time for Tender Submission specified below in accordance with the requirements set out in the ITT Document.

Closing Date/ Time for Tender Submission:
5:00pm on 14 November 2022 (Hong Kong time)

Remarks

About the West Kowloon Cultural District
The West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest and most ambitious cultural projects in the world. Its vision is to create a vibrant new cultural quarter for Hong Kong on forty hectares of reclaimed land located alongside Victoria Harbour. With a varied mix of theatres, performance spaces, and museums, the West Kowloon Cultural District will produce and host world-class exhibitions, performances and cultural events, providing twenty-three hectares of public open space, including a two-kilometre waterfront promenade.