$2.7B Swire-HKRI Project Tops Out on Shanghai’s Nanjing Road – Plans Early 2017 Opening

HKRI Taikoo Hui, a 322,000 square metre (3.46 million square foot) commercial complex on a 63,000 square metre site in central Shanghai held its official topping-out ceremony on Shanghai’s West Nanjing Road on Thursday, signalling the structural completion of the landmark project’s two office towers.

The RMB 17 billion ($2.66 billion) project by Hong Kong developers HKR International Limited (HKRI) and Swire Properties is now said to be on track for the office and retail space to be turned over to tenants by the end of 2016, with the retail mall, hotels and serviced apartments scheduled to open in the first half of 2017, according to a statement from the companies.

“The opportunity to develop at such a prime location does not come along very often,” Clarence Lee, General Manager – Leasing and Management of HKRI Taikoo Hui said at the ceremony. “We believe that HKRI Taikoo Hui’s prominent location, connectivity, bespoke design and quality will ensure its place as a new lifestyle destination and a premium business address in this prestigious neighbourhood,” he added.

Seated in the front row for the event were Swire Properties CEO Guy Bradley, HKRI Deputy Chairman and Managing Director Victor Cha Mou Zing, and Jing An District Vice Mayor Zhou Haiying. Also appearing were representatives of chief architects Wong & Ouyang, engineering providers AECOM and Parsons Brinckerhoff, and contractor Shanghai Construction Group.

Among the 200-strong audience were business leaders from several international real estate firms with brokerages JLL, DTZ | Cushman & Wakefield, Knight Frank, CBRE and Savills all top leaders to attend.

The 320,000 square metre complex, which was formerly named Dazhongli, includes two grade-A office towers which stand 250 and 170 metres tall – HKRI Center One and HKRI Center Two, providing more than 170,000 square metres (1,850,000 sq ft) of prime office space in central Jing An district.

The development also features a shopping centre spanning over 100,000 square meters (1,078,000 sq ft), three luxury hotels and serviced apartments with over 400 rooms. The entire complex will connect to Shanghai’s metro line 13, with both line 2 and the projected extension of line 12 close-by. HKRI has also reportedly been pre-certified as LEED Platinum by the US Green Building Council.

“This is a pioneering project in many ways with sustainability and quality at its core. Our stakeholders’ commitment to reducing the project’s environmental impact and creating a sustainable business destination is underlined by the attainment of the LEED® Platinum pre-certification, which will attract leading companies with the most ambitious sustainability requirements,’ said Jackie Tang, CEO of HKRI Taikoo Hui at the event.

The construction of the downtown project required lifting and moving a century-old European-style mansion which now sits at the south end of the complex along Weihai Road. The historic home has now been renamed ‘Cha House’ in commemoration of Dr. Cha Chi Ming, founder of HKR International.

HKRI Taikoo Hui Opening in Pict

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