Choi Sai Woo Park () is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to resi ...

located near the top of

Braemar Hill Braemar Hill () is a hill with a height of south of Tsat Tsz Mui, Braemar Point on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. The hill was likely named after the Scottish village of Braemar by British officials. Contrary to popular belief, the peak of Braema ...

at Braemar Hill Road, Hong Kong. The park serves as a social hub for the neighbourhood.

History

The park was named after the Choi Sai Woo Reservoir, which was formerly located in the park. According to the commemorative plaque in the park, the reservoir was built by Taikoo Sugar Company Limited in 1894; it was the largest and the last of the five private reservoirs built by the company. During the

drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...

and

bubonic plague Bubonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the plague bacterium (''Yersinia pestis''). One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and vomiting, as well a ...

outbreak that started in 1894, the reservoir once supplied water to Tai Ping Shan District. It was filled in to create the current park site. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

it was the scene of bitter fighting as the Japanese advanced towards

Wong Nai Chung Gap Wong Nai Chung Gap () is a geographic gap in the middle of Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. The gap is between Mount Nicholson and Jardine's Lookout behind Wong Nai Chung (Happy Valley). Five roads meet at the gap: Wong Nai Chung Gap Road, Tai T ...

to split the defence of Hong Kong into two. The park was built at a cost of $9.5 million and opened by the

Urban Council The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...

in August 1986. It was designed to retain most of the existing mature trees and shrubs on site. An opening ceremony, officiated by Urban Councillor

Kim Cham Kim Cham Yau-sum JP (born 16 April 1946, Hong Kong) is a Hong Kong businessman, accountant and politician. He studied at the St. Paul's Co-Educational College and graduated from the University of Hong Kong with bachelor's degree in Economics ...

and the Director of Urban Services, was held on 16 January 1987.

Facilities

Choi Sai Woo Park is a

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

with a total area of 2,400 m² providing some country freshness among a number of housing estates and schools.Film Services Office: Choi Sai Woo Park
/ref> Located next to prestigious new housing developments and with several schools in the area, it serves the community as a place of rest. There are two small

basketball court In basketball, the basketball court is the playing surface, consisting of a rectangular floor, with baskets at each end. Indoor basketball courts are almost always made of polished wood, usually maple, with -high rims on each basket. Outdoor sur ...

s in the Park. The garden area is located at the very bottom level of Choi Sai Woo Park abutting the car parking lot of TutorTime. It is mainly planted with

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...

. There is a children's playground located at the top of the park. A

pagoda A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...

adjoins the playground. A number of amenities including restaurant or tea shop "

cha chaan teng ''Cha chaan teng'' (; "tea restaurant"), often called a Hong Kong-style cafe or diner in English, is a type of restaurant that originated in Hong Kong. Cha chaan teng are commonly found in Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Guangdong. Due to the w ...

", Wan King, TutorTime and

7-Eleven 7-Eleven, Inc., stylized as 7-ELEVE, is a multinational chain of retail convenience stores, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The chain was founded in 1927 as an ice house storefront in Dallas. It was named Tote'm Stores between 1928 and 1946. A ...

outlets, are in the vicinity.

References

{{coord, 22.286734, 114.201905, type:landmark_region:HK, display=title Braemar Hill Urban public parks and gardens in Hong Kong Reservoirs in Hong Kong

History

Facilities

See also

References