Tai Po Lookout was built in the early twentieth century by Lawrence Gibbs,a British engineer,as his residence. The Lookout had many different owners throughout the years,and was circulated around very frequently. During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong,the Lookout was used as a torture chamber by the Japanese.[1] After World War II,the land became government property. It was used by government officials such as the Tai Po District Officers and the Head of Police Secret Service as their private residences.[1] In 1996,the government leased the Lookout to the Society for AIDS Care (SAC). The SAC launched the Lookout Project to provide hospice care for AIDS patients. The service was first operated in June 1997 and officially closed on the first of June 2000[2] due to drying up of funds.[3] Since then,the Lookout has been leased by the Government Property Agency to private owners and reverted to its original residential purpose.[4]
The Lookout is a colonial-style building with a watch tower. Standing on top of a small hill,it overlooks Tai Po District and Tolo Harbour. In 1985,the building was accorded as a Grade II Historic Building by the Antiquities Advisory Board (古物諮詢委員). Recently,it is proposed that the status of the Lookout to be regarded as Grade I.[4]
History
Tai Po Lookout is situated on former Tai Po Inland Lot No. 5 (now at No. 11 Lookout Link,Tai Po Kau,Tai Po,New Territories,Hong Kong). In 1904,Lawrence Gibbs bought the piece of land and built the Lookout as his residence. He was a British civil engineer who worked at the Public Works Department then also 'Denison,Ram &Gibbs' in 1900.
The Lookout was designed and built by Gibbs in the early 1900s and he used it as his own residence. The Lookout's location was a remote area in Tai Po on top of a small hill and it is believed that the beautiful views there is the reason for choosing that particular place to build the Lookout. It remains to be a difficult place to get to even in present time. As an engineer,Gibbs was able to get water supply from the hillside,the tower found in the Lookout was also used as a water tower.
Throughout the years,the Lookout was sold to different owners. In 1929,the Lookout was sold to Herbert Austin Rogers. After 4 years,August 1933,it was sold to Michael Howard Turner as the leaseholder of the house. Immediately after,the November of the same year,the Lookout was sold to John Alexander Fraser,a judge in Hong Kong as his living quarter. During the time of World War II,Fraser was kept in the Stanley Internment Camp during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong where he died. The Lookout was then occupied by the Japanese and was used as a torture chamber.[1]
After the war,in December 1947,the land became government property. Since then it served as the living quarters of government officials. Many officers of the Tai Po District and the head of the Police Secret Service lived in the Lookout. In 1996,it was leased to the Society of AIDs Care[5] as a residential centre for AIDS patients. Until the year 2000,the Lookout returned to being a private residence.[1]
The Lookout Project
Dedicated to promote the wellbeing of people living with HIV/AIDS and their care givers,Sister Maureen McGinley MBE established the Society for AIDS Care (愛滋寧養服務協會) in 1994 with the support from the government. The SAC is community-based non-profit charity organization aiming at running sustainable HIV/AIDS programmes on care and prevention. The SAC is a professional team of nurses,counselors,social workers and physiotherapists who provide both centered-based and external services for AIDS patients and their families.[5]
In 1996,the Tai Po Lookout was leased to the SAC. The organization planned to implement the Lookout Project as a measure to tackle with the lack of hospice facilities when AIDS treatment was not mature.[6] The Project officially started in May 1997. It admitted and served 73 patients until it stopped operating on 1 June 2000.[3] The project received funding from the Council for the AIDS Trust Fund (愛滋病信託基金委員會) in Hong Kong,which provided $30 million to cover the running cost of the hospice. The implementation of the Lookout Project faced strong objection from the Department of Health (Hong Kong) from 1995 to 1996,shortly before the Lookout's opening though. Health officials argued that the Lookout was deemed to be short-living as "cocktail therapy",treatment by taking a combination of several antiretroviral drugs,was already available in Hong Kong and was expected to be used extensively. They also claimed that isolation of AIDS patients from the urban area would hinder the integration of patients into the community.[2][6]
The Lookout,situated at a remote area in Tai Po,functioned as a 24-hour residential medical center that offered day-care as well as in-patient service,particularly for terminal patients. It was recognized as Asia's first and only 24-hour residential medical care centre at that time. The Lookout originally had five beds for in-patients and two more beds were added in 1999. Facilities were also set up for patients' families to stay overnight when they needed to. On top of these,the Lookout was a center for physiotherapy and counselling to help patient maintain good physical and psychological health. An integration of services was provided by a team of specifically trained doctors,nurses and social workers in palliative care. It was closely associated with other Hong Kong SAR medical bodies such as the Department of Health AIDS Unit and Queen Elizabeth Hospital Special Medical Unit to provide more comprehensive care to patients. [7] In addition,the Lookout provided educational and experimental training for medical personnel in AIDS care.[2]
Most of the patients admitted when the Lookout first operated were kicked out by their families,who could not tolerate the notion of living under the same roof with relatives contracted with HIV. They had low chance of survival unless they had a high insurance premium or were able to afford treatment overseas. Two of the seventy-three patients died during their stay at the Lookout. The bungalow served as a quiet sanctuary for these patients. It was planned that 22 beds were to be made available within two years of operation. However,with the advancement of AIDS treatment,demand for hospice service for AIDS care declined drastically with the emergence of antiretroviral drugs,which profoundly lengthen the life span of AIDS patients. Taking a combination of several drugs,patients are expected to live as long as they remain on medication. The plan for expansion was eventually abandoned as dedicated hospice facilities were no longer widely needed as before. Access to medical care in public hospitals was much easier. Thereon,the Lookout put its focus on nursing care and counselling instead of medical services. It served as a "mid-way home" for patients to rebuild self-esteem and helped them integrate into the community by providing space and time for them to organize themselves.[6]
Funding for the Lookout ceased in the third year of the Project on the grounds that the Project performed overlapping functions as other hospice services provided by public hospitals. The SAC could not find sufficient financial support for keeping the running of the Lookout. Moreover,resorting to life in a remote part of the New Territories was unnecessary as AIDS patients under cocktail therapy were able to lead a more or less normal life at home. Falling short of demand,together with the drying up of funds,prompted the SAC's decision to put an end to the Project in February,2000. The last two patients at the Lookout was transferred to other medical centers and marked the official closure of the Lookout at the end of May,2000. Although the Lookout Project did not last long,it was a pioneering experiment to introduce hospice service into the existing medical system. It brought insights to other health projects as in the importance of considering medical development and patients needs.[6]
Architectural and geographic features
The Lookout adapts the colonial style and is a one-storey flat-roofed building with an arched colonnaded verandah,a projecting portico (built at a later date) and a cylindrical watch tower at the top which gives the building its name. The watch tower is also a water tower. The walls stands on a low rubble plinth and are painted white,this remains to be unchanged till present time. There are several quarters for servants in a detached block set at a particular angle next to the main building of the Lookout located on another small hill. The Lookout also has a lawn that has views over Tolo Harbour to the Pat Sin Leng.[8]
The design of the house internally is quite symmetrical and had some walls and partitions removed over the years by comparing the current building with the original floor plan. The Lookout still contains its original design and appearance from a few infill windows to the rear verandah It also as a swimming pool,in the past,the water supplies from a nearby stream not only supplied water for the residence all year round,but also enough water for the swimming pool.[8][9]
When the Lookout was first built it had no water mains and relied on a stream nearby which went strongly all year round. The stream supplied water to the house and the overflow went into the swimming pool of the garden. Water mains was later developed and supply fresh water to Lookout Link.[8]
The Lookout is situated in a remote area on top of a small hill and close to the Lookout are mansions such as Villa Costa and 'Tsung Tsai Yuen' (松仔園),a part of Tai Po Kau Natural Reserve.[11] This particular area is famous for being the home of fireflies all year round. The area is also well known for the 'Ghostly Bridge' (猛鬼橋),which is located at part of Tai Po Road –Tai Po Kau section. The name came from an incident during the 1950s where many students were washed away in a storm under a bridge.
Conservation
Under the management of Government Property Agency (政府產業署),Tai Po Lookout is a structure not open to public. It is being leased since 2000. Thus,the question of adaptive reuse is not a current concern as the Lookout serves as private residence once again. Because the Lookout is located in a remote part of Tai Po,it is not a popular landmark and is just of a local interest. As a colonial architectural building located in such a remote area in Tai Po,it is a rare and unique piece of heritage that still remains.
In 1985,the Antiquities Advisory Board accorded the Lookout as Grade II Historic Building,meaning that the Lookout had "special merit and efforts should be made to selectively preserve".[12] Recently,it is proposed in the assessment on the 1,444 historic building[13] completed in March,2009[14] that the status to be raised to Grade I Historic Building to ascertain its outstanding merit.[15]
In vicinity to Tai Po Lookout in the same district,there is a range of Grade II Historic Buildings managed by different institutions at present time,including,the Old Tai Po Police Station,Old District Office North,Old Police Bungalow,and the Island House. These buildings share the same colonial style as the Lookout since they were built at roughly the same period of time.[16]
Transportation
Tai Po Lookout stands on the top of a small hill in Tai Po Kau and has always been a difficult place to reach amongst the area as it is still remotely far away from the central concentrated area of Tai Po. The only means of transportation would be bus 72,72A of Kowloon Motor Bus and taxi. Minibus 28K would also lead to the area of Tai Po Kau. Five to ten minutes of walking is necessary after taking the bus or minibus as there are no direct transport leading to the Lookout.
Related Research Articles
The Islands District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. It is part of the New Territories. It had a population of 170,900 in 2018.
Tai Po District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. The suburban district covers the areas of Tai Po New Town,Lam Tsuen Valley and other surrounding area,and its exclave in the northern part of the Sai Kung Peninsula. The Tai Po proper and North Sai Kung,was divided by the Tolo Channel and Tolo Harbour. The District is located in the Eastern New Territories. The de facto administrative centre of the district is Tai Po New Town.
Sai Kung District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong,a special administrative region of China. The district comprises the southern half of the Sai Kung Peninsula,the Clear Water Bay Peninsula in the New Territories and a strip of land to the east of Kowloon. Areas in the district include Sai Kung Town,Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark,Tseung Kwan O and over 70 islands of different sizes. The administrative centre had been located in Sai Kung Town until the Sai Kung District Office was relocated to Tseung Kwan O recently. The district's population is concentrated in Tseung Kwan O,as of 2011. In 2011,the district was the third youngest district,with a median age of 39.3. Known as the "back garden of Hong Kong",Sai Kung has been able to retain its natural scenery. Many traditional customs and cultures are still retained in the rural villages.
Most of the walled villages of Hong Kong are located in the New Territories.
Declared monuments of Hong Kong are places,structures or buildings legally declared to receive the highest level of protection. In Hong Kong,declaring a monument requires consulting the Antiquities Advisory Board,the approval of the Chief Executive of Hong Kong as well as the publication of the notice on the Hong Kong Government Gazette.
Plover Cove Reservoir,located within Plover Cove Country Park,in the northeastern New Territories,is the largest reservoir in Hong Kong in terms of area,and the second-largest in terms of volume. It is the world's first freshwater coastal lake constructed from an arm of the ocean. Its main dam,which disconnected Plover Cove from the sea,was one of the largest in the world at the time of its construction.
Tuen Mun or Castle Peak is an area near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories,Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in what is now Hong Kong and can be dated to the Neolithic period. In the more recent past,it was home to many Tanka fishermen who gathered at Castle Peak Bay. Tuen Mun is now a modern,mainly residential area in the north-west New Territories. As of 2011,487,546 live in Tuen Mun and over 95% of them are Chinese.
Tai Po is an area in the New Territories of Hong Kong. It refers to the vicinity of the traditional market towns in the area presently known as Tai Po Old Market or Tai Po Kau Hui (大埔舊墟) on the north of Lam Tsuen River and the Tai Po Hui on Fu Shin Street on the south of the Lam Tsuen River,near the old Tai Po Market railway station of the Kowloon-Canton Railway. Both market towns became part of the Tai Po New Town in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In present-day usage,"Tai Po" may refer to the area around the original market towns,the Tai Po New Town,or the entire Tai Po District.
Tai Po New Town,or Tai Po Town,is a new town and non-administrative area in Tai Po District,in the New Territories,Hong Kong. The area is a planned town that surrounding the existing indigenous market towns Tai Po Hui and Tai Po Kau Hui,as well as east of the existing indigenous villages that located on the Lam Tsuen Valley as well as west of those villages in Ting Kok and Tai Mei Tuk and south of those villages in Nam Hang,Fung Yuen and Sha Lo Tung. Most of the lands of the new town were obtained by land reclamation. In present day,Tai Po New Town was simply known as Tai Po. The new town are largely covered by the government Tai Po Outline Zoning Plan,which legally regulated the land use of the area,on top of the terms in the land lease contract with the government. Some of the land lease within the area,were known as Tai Po Town Lot №foo. In election,the town had a different zoning scheme for the election constituencies.
Yuen Chau Tsai,was an island in Tolo Harbour,Hong Kong. It is now connected to land by a causeway after land reclamation. It is part of Tai Po New Town in the Tai Po District.
Tai Po Kau is an area south of the town of Tai Po in Hong Kong,which was the site of the former Tai Po Kau station on the Kowloon–Canton Railway. It is located at a river estuary that empties into Tolo Harbour.
Tai Po Waterfront Park is a park in Tai Po in the New Territories of Hong Kong. It is located along the Tolo Harbour,and its western end is at the northern part of the mouth of the Lam Tsuen River. It occupies an area of 22 hectares,and is the largest park managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The Park opened in 1994 at a cost of $210-million,but was not completed until 1997 with the creation of the Tai Po Lookout Tower.
The Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB) is a statutory body of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region with the responsibility of advising the Antiquities Authority on any matters relating to antiquities and monuments. The AAB was established in 1976 along with the Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) when the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance was enacted,and comprises members appointed by the Chief Executive. The corresponding governmental ministry is the Development Bureau,and executive support for the AAB is provided by the AMO which is under the Development Bureau.
Yim Tin Tsai is an island of Hong Kong located in Tolo Harbour.
Tai Po Lookout Tower is a large-scale landmark established to mark the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong to the PRC in 1997. It is located near the mouth of the Lam Tsuen River and next to the shore of Tolo Harbour,within Tai Po Waterfront Park,in Tai Po,Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong government started developing new towns in the 1950s to accommodate Hong Kong's booming population. During the first phase of development,the newly developed towns were called "satellite towns",a concept borrowed from the United Kingdom,of which Hong Kong was a colony. Kwun Tong,located in eastern Kowloon,and Tsuen Wan,located in the south-west of the New Territories,were designated as the first satellite towns,when the urban area in Hong Kong was still relatively small,restricted to the central and western parts of Kowloon Peninsula and the northern side of Hong Kong Island. Wah Fu Estate was also built in a remote corner on the southern side of Hong Kong Island,with similar concepts but at a smaller scale.
New Territories East Cluster is one of the seven hospital clusters managed by Hospital Authority in Hong Kong. It consists of seven public hospitals and ten general outpatient clinics to provide public healthcare services for the population of Sha Tin,Tai Po,North District,and part of the Sai Kung District. In mid-2019,the population was 1,320,300. The current Cluster Chief Executive is Dr Beatrice Cheng.
CUHK Medical Centre is a non-profit private hospital on Chak Cheung Street,Ma Liu Shui,New Territories,Hong Kong,next to University station. Opened on 6 January 2021,it is a self-financed teaching hospital of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). The hospital provides more than 500 inpatient and day beds,as well as outpatient clinics and a series of specialist diagnosis and treatment procedures. The hospital is managed and its clinical services provided by the CUHK Faculty of Medicine.
Fung Yuen is an area and a village located northwest of Tolo Harbour,in Tai Po,Tai Po District,Hong Kong.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
