Public Works Department (Colin Bramwell)
Kwai Shing, New Territories
1975
The Kwai Shing Estate is a low cost, government-subsidized public housing estate managed by the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA). Though finished in 1975 as Kwai Shing Estate, it was renamed as Kwai Shing East Estate in 1977 and Kwai Shing West Estate was added in 1977 in order to supply more housing developments in the area. It was the biggest low-cost estate of the five public housing projects (the four others being Lei Muk Shu, Shek Yum, Kwai Hing, and Kwai Fong estates) in the Kwai Chung area in the 1970s. It was built to provide accommodation for 81,000 low-income families, a considerable portion of which included Mainland immigrants to Hong Kong following World War II. In addition to housing, the development also includes other facilities such as primary schools, small shops, and recreational areas. In other words, the Kwai Shing Estate is a local town and community of itself.
Given its scale, the project was completed in three phases throughout the 1970s. In 1985, the HKHA deemed the quality of the concrete of some of the blocks of the original Kwai Shing East Estate sub-standard. As a result, the towers were demolished and rebuilt in bundles from 1989 to 2010.
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Model (Far East Builder (April 1969))
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Site plan (Far East Builder (April 1969))
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South elevation (Far East Builder (April 1969))
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Southeast corner of the estate (Far East Builder (April 1969))
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External lift (Far East Builder (April 1969))
