Having worked globally as architect and developer for more than 30 years, Chinachem Group CEO Donald Choi believes in the power of design and architecture to empower society.
Choi joined Chinachem in January 2018, after 18 years at Nan Fung Development, where he last held the position of managing director. Prior to that, he was a director at Foster and Partners. He has vast experience in both public and private projects and was the authorised person–architect for the Hong Kong International Airport Passenger Terminal and many other infrastructure projects at Chek Lap Kok.
Choi is active in community services and serves as global trustee of the Urban Land Institute, trustee of Design Trust–Hong Kong, council member of the Hong Kong Institute of Urban Design, and board member of Construction Innovation and Technology Application Centre. He has taught at the University of Hong Kong and was the former chairman of the Architects Registration Board, HKSAR.
What are your aspirations as the new CEO of Chinachem Group?
Chinachem Group is a very established property developer and conglomerate in Hong Kong. Our group has developed environmentally-friendly projects, and sustainability is a key pillar of our values and operations. We take a long-term view of how our practices will impact the communities we serve—we want not only to reduce our carbon footprint, but also to provide a healthy working and living environment for the users. Recently, in addition to BEAM plus and its certification, we are also embracing Well Building Standards, focusing on health and wellness for our projects.
Parc City, Tseun Wan
The residential land at Anderson Road was awarded to your company recently—your first winning bid in Chinachem. What are your development plans for this project?
I think we are quite lucky as we won the bid against 25 competitors. It was not easy, but again, it also proves the uniqueness and value of this site. Obviously, we are happy that we got the site. It is located at Kowloon Peak area, off Clear Water Bay Road—overlooking Kowloon East, Kwun Tong and the sea—which holds immense potential. Also, it is the first development in a new Green community in an urban area being planned by the government, so we believe that, with the government’s smart city planning and infrastructure support, this will be a very forward-looking community that will actually serve as a model for sustainable and healthy living in Hong Kong.
This is what we will do at the site: It will be a low to medium-density development with 10- to 20-storey buildings. With medium density, we will be able to provide substantial and user-friendly open communal and green spaces, which will create a healthy and liveable environment, as well as a strong sense of place.
The Papillons, Tseung Kwan O
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