Central’s Statue Square Gardens is partially closing to make way for a new underpass project

Central’s Statue Square Gardens is set for a four-year partial closure to make way for a new pedestrian underpass. Once complete, the tunnel will seamlessly connect the Central MTR station straight to the upcoming open space at the massive Central Harbourfront Site 3 development.

Slated to wrap up by the second quarter of 2031, the project means that a chunk of the gardens near the northern end of Chater Road will be turned into a construction zone where, for the next few years, the square fountain, park benches, and shelters will be strictly off-limits.

While a large portion of the garden’s leisure space and walkways remain open to the public, the temporary barricades will cut into a crucial space for Hong Kong’s domestic worker community. For decades, Statue Square Gardens has been a vital social hub where domestic workers would spend their weekly rest day connecting with friends and sharing food. Commenting on the plans, the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body expressed concern, noting that losing even a portion of this highly accessible spot reduces the already limited public spaces available to the community in the heart of the city.

The project will roll out in three separate phases, with the first two stages spanning roughly 45 months for all the heavy excavation and tunnel construction, followed by about 12 months to fully restore the gardens. To maintain pedestrian flow, a temporary walkway at least 1.5 metres wide will be set up near the Mandarin Oriental hotel to keep Chater Road and Connaught Road Central linked. As for the festivities that usually take place at the gardens, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau has confirmed that the annual Hong Kong WinterFest will go ahead exactly as planned at the end of this year.

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