Quarry Bay

Quarry Bay is an area beneath Mount Parker in the Eastern District of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. The western portion of the area was also formerly known as Lai Chi (). Traditionally an industrial and residential area, the number of commercial buildings in this district has increased since the 1990s.

Quarry Bay is bordered by Sai Wan Ho to the east, Mount Parker to the south, North Point to the west, and Victoria Harbour to the north. Administratively, it is part of Eastern District.

Quarry Bay is considered as an area surrounded by to the east, Hong Shing Street and to the south, junction of King's Road and Healthy Street West to the west, and

History

The 1819 edition of the '' Gazetteer of Sun On County'' () did not mention today's Quarry Bay. Historians such as Anthony Kwok Kin Siu suggested Quarry Bay was a remote area before British colonial time.

During Colonial Hong Kong times, the Hakka stonemasons settled in the area after the British arrival.

This area was a bay where rock from the hillsides were quarried and transported by ship for building construction or road building. The Chinese name ''Tsak Yue Chung'' () reveals that it was a small stream where crucian carp () could be found in the 19th century. The English name was ''Arrow Fish Creek''. The original bay has disappeared since land reclamation has taken place, and was about from the current coastline.

Taikoo

The eastern part of Quarry Bay, namely ', was largely owned by Swire and therefore many places and facilities are named after the company's Chinese name, Taikoo. The river originally flowed into the bay, however it was shut off from the sea with the construction of the to supply fresh water to the Taikoo Dockyard, the Taikoo Sugar factory at Tong Chong Street (), and later the Swire Coca-Cola factory at Greig Road () and Yau Man Street (). The upper course of the river was converted into a cement-paved catchwater, and the lower course is the present-day Quarry Bay Street (), with the original estuary near the Quarry Bay Street - King's Road junction.

In the mid-1980s, the hillside was converted into Kornhill apartment buildings, the reservoir into () apartment buildings, and the Dockyard into Taikoo Shing. The Coca-Cola factory is now apartment Kornville (), and Taikoo Sugar is now the Taikoo Place, a commercial hub.

Lai Chi

The western end of Quarry Bay was historically part of North Point; during the 1930s its beaches became one of the most popular places for holding swimming galas in Hong Kong. From this basis an upmarket entertainment complex, the Ritz Nightclub (), was built in the area in 1947. The nightclub was demolished a few years later to make way for the construction of apartment buildings during the latter half of the 1950s. Nonetheless, for years afterwards, the western part of Quarry Bay continued to be known informally as ''Lai Chi'' (), made more so by the name being homophone to Cantonese for "late as usual" () - a reference to King's Road, until 1984 the only thoroughfare in the area and thus infamous for traffic congestion.

To this day, some buildings in the western part of Quarry Bay are named as "North Point something building", although they are across the modern-day limit of North Point at Man Hong Street / Healthy Street West.

Residential buildings

* Bedford Gardens
* CASA 880
*Dragon View House
* Granview Court
* The Floridian
* Healthy Village Estate
* Kings View Court
*Kornhill, and Kornhill Gardens
* Model Housing Estate
* Mount Parker Residences
* Nan Fung Sun Chuen
* Novum East
* Oceanic Building
* The Orchards
*
* Ritz Garden Apartments
*Riviera Mansion
*Royal Terrace
* Snowboat Mansion
* Splendid Place
* Sunway Gardens
* Taikoo Shing
* Wah Shun Garden
*
*

*“ Monster Building” - Fook Cheong Building, Montane Mansion, Oceanic Mansion, Yick Cheong Building and Yick Fat Building

Nan Fung Sun Chuen

Nan Fung Sun Chuen (), built in 1978, is a private apartment estate. Consisting of 12 buildings distributed along Greig Road and Greig Crescent with a car park at the centre of the development, it was developed by Nan Fung Development. Because of the relatively large size of the development, it serves as the benchmark for premises developed in the late 1970s in the property market. The tower blocks range in height from 28 to 33 floors. Blocks 1 to 5 are at 32 to 40 (even numbers) Greig Road while blocks 6 to 12 are at 27 to 15 Greig Crescent.

Taikoo Shing

Taikoo Shing is a private residential development in Quarry Bay. Consisting of 61 mansions distributed along Taikoo Wan Road & Taikoo Shing Road, it was developed by Swire.

Tourism

Fireboat ''Alexander Grantham'' Exhibition Gallery

The ''Alexander Grantham'' was a fireboat of Hong Kong's Fire Services Department. The fireboat was named after former Governor Sir Alexander Grantham. The boat has since retired from service and been replaced by other vessels.

On 10 March 2006, the fireboat was successfully hoisted into its new permanent home in the Central Concourse of Quarry Bay Park, Hong Kong, where it has been converted into the Fireboat ''Alexander Grantham'' Exhibition Gallery and was opened to the public as a museum in 2007. In addition to the fireboat itself, the Gallery houses a number of multimedia exhibits on the vessel's history and on firefighting in Hong Kong.

"Monster Building" complex

"Monster Building" is a condominium complex of five interconnected buildings. The complex consists of Fook Cheong Building, Montane Mansion, Oceanic Mansion, Yick Cheong Building, and Yick Fat Building.

Woodside Biodiversity Education Centre

situated at Mount Parker Road, Quarry Bay. The centre comprises three themed exhibition galleries introducing Hong Kong's precious natural resources and biodiversity. The centre aims to foster public awareness, knowledge and understanding the inherent value of Hong Kong's biodiversity assets and to marshal public support and action for nature conservation.

Commercial buildings

*Taikoo Place - including
**Devon House
**Dorset House
**PCCW Tower
**Warwick House
**Cornwall House
**Lincoln House
**Oxford House
**Cambridge House
**Berkshire House
**Taikoo Place Apartment (hotel)
** One Island East
**One Taikoo Place (Completed in 2018)
**Two Taikoo Place (Completed in 2021)
*Cityplaza
**Cityplaza Phase 1
** EAST, Hong Kong (hotel)
** Cityplaza Phase 2
**Cityplaza Phase 3
**Cityplaza Phase 4
*1025 King's Road
*1063 King's Road
*Kerry Centre ()
*Prosperity Millennia Plaza

A few industrial buildings exist in the areas of Shipyard Lane.

''Former''
*Fresh Produce Market
* Gala I, Gala II cinemas
*Mount Parker House 栢嘉商業大廈

Economy

The Kerry Properties head office is in Quarry Bay.

Government

The head office of the Securities and Futures Commission is in One Island East in Quarry Bay.

Parks and recreational facilities

*Quarry Bay Park
* Quarry Bay Municipal Services Building - with indoor playground and a public library managed by LSCD
*Greig Road Sitting-out Area
*Tai Tam Country Park (Quarry Bay Extension)

Education

Quarry Bay is in Primary One Admission (POA) School Net 14. Within the school net are multiple aided schools (operated independently but funded with government money) and North Point Government Primary School.

Kindergartens & Nurseries
* ABC Pathways International Kindergarten (Tai Koo Campus)
* Creativity (Park Vale) Kindergarten
*Epoch Anglo-Chinese Kindergarten
* Hamilton Hill International Kindergarten
* MAGART International Kindergarten
* Saint Anna Anglo-Chinese Kindergarten
* Victoria (Kornhill) Kindergarten
* Victoria (Kornhill) Nursery

Primary schools
* Buddhist Chung Wah Kornhill Primary School
* Canossa School (Hong Kong)
* Chinese Methodist School North Point
* Delia School of Canada
* North Point Government Primary School
* Shanghai Alumni Primary School
*

Secondary schools
*Canossa College
* Delia School of Canada

Transport

Public transport

* MTR
** MTR Quarry Bay station: Tseung Kwan O line and Island line
** MTR Tai Koo station: Island line
* Trams
* First Bus
* Citybus
* KMB (serves only cross- harbour routes)
* Minibuses
** to Kornhill, Cyberport, North Point, Shau Kei Wan, Kennedy Town, etc.
** includes 32, 32A, 33 etc.

Major thoroughfares, roads and streets

*Island Eastern Corridor
* Eastern Harbour Crossing
* Finnie Street
* Greig Road
*Java Road
*King's Road
* Kornhill Road
* Mansion Lane
* Model Lane
* Mount Parker Road
* Quarry Bay Street
* Sai Wan Terrace
* Shipyard Lane
* Taikoo Shing Road
* Taikoo Wan Road
* Tsat Tsz Mui Road
* Tong Chong Street
* Westlands Road

See also

* Conservation in Hong Kong
* Taikoo Shing
* :Rivers of Hong Kong

References

{{Coord, 22.28313, 114.21279, display=title

Eastern District, Hong Kong