Hong Kong is considering granting historic grade status to a picturesque seaside spot along the Kennedy Town waterfront that has surged in popularity among mainland tourists.

People line up to take a photo outside a coffee shop near the Kennedy Town Praya, on August 15, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

According to a memorandum from the Antiquities and Monuments Office, the seawall in New Praya, Kennedy Town, is being considered for Grade 2 status.

The Antiquities Advisory Board will meet to discuss the matter on Thursday next week.

The seawall, which is not visible from the street, boasts over a century of history.

Hong Kong’s historic buildings are classified into three grades, with Grade 1 denoting “buildings of outstanding merit, which every effort should be made to preserve if possible.”

Buildings “of special merit” are awarded Grade 2 status, meaning “efforts should be made to selectively preserve” them.

People outside a coffee shop near the Kennedy Town Praya, in September 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

According to the document, the Antiquities and Monuments Office will upload its heritage appraisal of the site for a one-month public consultation.

‘Check-in’ culture

A quiet neighbourhood on the western end of Hong Kong Island, Kennedy Town has found fame on mainland Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu in recent years.

Among the “check-in spots” promoted by mainland Chinese tourists on the platform is a street sign fronting the sea that reads “New Praya, Kennedy Town.”

Tourists can often be found lining up to take photos with the sign. A branch of Japanese coffee chain % Arabica, also beloved by Xiaohongshu users, stands just beside the famous sign.

Proposed boardwalk for Kennedy Town’s New Praya waterfront. Photo: Harbourfront Commission.

Authorities are also considering building a detached boardwalk along the New Praya waterfront to “enhance visitors’ experience” while preserving the view for social media users. The proposed development will require “small-scale reclamation,” according to development chief Bernadette Linn.

Last year, Hong Kong’s legislature passed a bill making it easier for the government to reclaim more land in Victoria Harbour, doing away with a rule introduced in the 1990s requiring an “overriding public need” to be established before reclamation projects could go forward.

A month after its passing, Linn warned about “soft resistance” against reclamation projects. Soon thereafter, the Society for the Protection of the Harbour, which for decades advocated to protect the harbour’s surviving waters, unanimously voted to disband.