Update: Wing Lee Street has been saved from the wrecking ball!

Though Wing Lee Street is little more than an alley, a stop here will have you enchanted. The tong lau tenement buildings offer a rare glimpse of Hong Kong life as it was decades ago, before the claws of development fully took over the city. These are tong laus unlike others in Hong Kong, because they’re built in clusters on the same terrace – a style nearly extinct here. But even this historic street is facing the government’s wrecking ball.

Film star
Wing Lee Street recently came into prominence by appearing in the Simon Yam-starring film Echoes of the Rainbow, which won Hong Kong its first coveted Crystal Bear award at the Berlin International Film Festival. Sadly, along with other streets in the area, it’s also in line for the dreaded urban renewal at the hands of the government. Filmmakers Alex Law Kai-yui and Mabel Cheung Yuen-ting have advocated for the street’s preservation, but the government has remained steadfast in its plans while promising to preserve the ambience of the street by allowing some of the tenement buildings to stay intact.

Echoes of history
The film, which was released on March 11, has helped make the street a popular point for history-minded tourists, who come to see what’s about to be lost. The buildings are reminders of a time when the community in this part of Sheung Wan was more collective, living in such close quarters to each other. Though the street is in parts derelict, heritage preservation groups are bemoaning the imminent loss of yet another slice of Hong Kong’s past.

How to get there
Take the Central-Mid-Levels Escalator to Caine Road. Walk along Caine Road in the direction of Sheung Wan and turn right on to Shing Wong Street. Walk down the stairs until you see the now-famous Wing Lee Street.

Grace Tsoi

Update: Wing Lee Street has been saved from the government's wrecking ball. On Tuesday, March 16, the government announced an alternative preservation plan for the street allowing for all 12 tenement buildings to be preserved.

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