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The Royal Theater in North Point will rebuild for half a century

2020-08-24T11:28:56.470Z


The landmark Royal Theater Building, which stood on King’s Road in North Point in 68 years, is famous for its circular arch structure on the roof and the relief architectural features above the entrance. A company under New World Development applied for a mandatory auction of Huangdu Theater Building two years ago, and the application was approved today (24th). The theater closed in 1997, and there are still several shops in the Huangdu Shopping Center. Among them, a suit shop that has been in business for more than 50 years. The owner Mr. Zeng said that the lease ended at the end of the year and he planned to retire. Regarding the possibility of Huangdu shopping mall being cleared, he reluctantly said: "I have nothing to say in time."


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Written by: Chen Jiayi

2020-08-24 19:17

Last update date: 2020-08-24 19:17

The landmark Royal Theater Building, which stood on King’s Road in North Point in 68 years, is famous for its circular arch structure on the roof and the relief architectural features above the entrance. A company under New World Development applied for a mandatory auction of Huangdu Theater Building two years ago, and the application was approved today (24th).

The theater closed in 1997, and there are still several shops in the Huangdu Shopping Center. Among them, a suit shop that has been in business for more than 50 years. The owner Mr. Zeng said that the lease ended at the end of the year and he planned to retire. Regarding the possibility of Huangdu shopping mall being cleared, he reluctantly said: "I have nothing to say in time."

The landmark Royal Theater Building on King’s Road in North Point is famous for the architectural features of the circular arch structure on the roof and the relief above the entrance. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

Only one resident remains in the theater's 1997 closing building 

The Royal Theater on King’s Road in North Point was completed in 1952. It was formerly known as the Xuan Palace Theater. It was renamed the Royal Theater in 1959. It is the only remaining single-block theater and was rated as a first-class historical building by the Ancient Admiralty. A fire broke out in the theater in 1995, and the flow of people decreased thereafter. It closed in 1997.

The Royal Theater Building is composed of residential buildings, shopping malls and Royal Theater. A company under New World Development applied to the Lands Tribunal for forced auction of the Royal Theater Building two years ago. That is to say, the developer has acquired at least 80% of the ownership of the building. Approved today, the reserve price is 4.77 billion yuan.

Almost all the shops in the Huangdu Shopping Centre have been acquired. Today (24th) all shops have been closed and only a few shops are open for business. According to the administrator, there is still one family living in the Royal Theater Building.

Almost all shops in the Huangdu Shopping Mall have closed their doors and have been acquired. Only a few shops are left open for business. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

Ouyang Chang, who has been a signboard in shopping malls for more than 30 years, said that he is not sure where he is going and that he requires the developer to pay compensation, which is expected to be decided by legal procedures. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

"Brilliant Tailor" boss: the most prosperous when there is a nightclub

The suit shop "Brilliant Tailor" has been in business in Huangdu Mall for more than half a century. The owner, Mr. Zeng, said that he intends to retire when the lease ends at the end of the lease. Now most of them are elderly regular customers patronizing the suit shop. The developer’s application for forced auction was approved, and the Huangdu Mall might face redevelopment, and the business could not continue. He reluctantly said: "When the time comes, I have no choice but to give up." He recalled that the shopping mall was brightly lit in the 1970s and 1980s. At its peak, there are nightclubs and restaurants, and there are many stalls in the corridors, but he believes that it is more economical to repossess the building. "The times must always move forward."

Ouyang Chang, who has been a signboard in shopping malls for more than 30 years, said that he is not sure where he is going and that he requires the developer to pay compensation, which is expected to be decided by legal procedures. He still keeps opening files at the mall every day, and in recent years has taught people how to write calligraphy. He said that there were a lot of people before the theater fire, and after a few years of business, you could buy a building, but later on, the business fell sharply. He described the forced relocation of real estate developers in recent years, "the silver bullet blasted the beautiful capital."

The suit shop "Brilliant Tailor" has been in business for more than half a century. The owner Mr. Zeng said that he plans to retire when the lease ends at the end of the year. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

Mr. Zeng said that now most of them are elderly regular customers patronizing suit shops. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

The hardware store employees who have moved to the mall and have been operating for three to four years said that they are not clear about the arrangements after the forced auction, and they are expected to retire. He also pointed out that conservation matters are led by the government and real estate developers, and that the public is "useless".

Mr. Guan, a nearby resident, used to come to the Huangdu Theater to watch movies, describing the theater as comfortable. However, he pointed out that the entire building is difficult to rebuild, and he is worried that retaining some of the buildings will be "non-disruptive." He said that the Huangdu Theater was well designed in the past, but "people are not willing to be close." Citizen Mr. Wang said that the acquisition of almost the entire building was completed. He believed that the Royal Theater was classified as a historical building and should be preserved by the developer.

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The hardware store employees who have moved to the mall and have been operating for three to four years said that they are not clear about the arrangements after the forced auction, and they are expected to retire. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

Some people concerned about heritage conservation have suggested to retain the arched concrete trusses with the roof and the relief of "Cicada Fan Dong Zhuo" on the external wall. When applying for a forced auction, New World said that it would actively consider how to preserve the essence of the former Royal Theater during the reconstruction project, but it has not yet announced the plan.

New World’s application for North Point Royal Theater’s forced auction was approved, with a reserve price of 4.77 billion yuan, breaking a record

[Huangdu Shopping Mall] The tailor shop cousin sticks to the white light license plate for half a century until the last moment

[Royal Theater] Conservation direction is unknown. Argentine theater, bookstore, Paris theater, has become a ballroom

[Community Video] The only handwritten sign shop in the depths of the imperative auction corridor of Huangdu Theater Building

New World’s acquisition of North Point Huangdu Theater for nearly 740 million yuan has been sold by Shen Qiang and now holds more than 90% of the ownership

[Conservation of the Imperial Capital Theater] Wang Guoxing witnessed the rise and fall of the imperial capital, Chen Shuzhuang had an unforgettable admission to watch half a catty

Royal Theater New World

Source: hk1

All news articles on 2020-08-24

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