Page 50 - JCAU-7-3

Journal of Chinese

Architecture and Urbanism

ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Dynamics and discrepancies in rural–urban

village regeneration: A case study of a coastal
community in Hong Kong SAR, China

Jimmy T. W. Ho* and Thomas W. L. Chung

School of Architecture, Faculty of Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
SAR, China
(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Regenerating Views, Values, and Visions in Countryside
Conservation in Chinese Societies)

Abstract

Village revitalization has garnered significant attention in urbanized regions such
as Hong Kong, where researchers and practitioners are actively responding to the
rural revitalization movement inspired by China’s policies to enhance agricultural
activities, preserve cultural heritage, and stimulate economic development.
*Corresponding author: This article examines the historical, cultural, and ecological significance of
Jimmy T. W. Ho Shui Hau village, a coastal farming, and rural–urban community, alongside the
(jimmyho@cuhk.edu.hk) implementation of novel village regeneration initiatives proposed by the authors.
Citation: Ho, J.T.W. & Chung, The primary aim is to illustrate the mechanisms behind these initiatives, explore
T.W.L. (2025). Dynamics and the dynamics between stakeholders and researchers, and analyze the dual role of
discrepancies in rural–urban village
regeneration: A case study of a researchers as both trusted outsiders and effective collaborators. These insights are
coastal community in Hong Kong intended to inform future practices and recommend context-specific policy changes.
SAR, China. Journal of Chinese Adopting a case study approach, this article contributes to the growing body of
Architecture and Urbanism, 7(3):
4992. qualitative rural studies in the wider Asian context. Challenges relevant to village
https://doi.org/10.36922/jcau.4992 regeneration, including land boundaries, the Small House Policy, and planning and
Received: September 29, 2024 conservation regulations under the existing legal framework, are documented. As
part of a broader action research initiative, three government-funded projects were
1st revised: December 18, 2024 proposed and implemented to revitalize cultural values: (i) Rediscovering traditions
2nd revised: December 21, 2024 and rituals through tactical interventions, (ii) restoring the grain store as a farming
Accepted: December 31, 2024 cooperative, and (iii) transforming the stone house into a living culture cooperative.
This retrospective review reveals key dynamics and discrepancies, including intricate
Published online: February 17, land ownership issues, unspecific regulations, loose governance, and mismatches
2025
between expectations and actual outcomes. From a practitioner’s perspective,
Copyright: © 2025 Author(s). systemic changes at multiple levels are recommended to better engage stakeholders
This is an open-access article
distributed under the terms of the and facilitate more effective countryside regeneration.
Creative Commons Attribution-
Non-Commercial 4.0 International
(CC BY-NC 4.0), which permits all Keywords: Countryside regeneration; Architectural restoration; Rural–urban village;
non-commercial use, distribution, Community engagement; Bottom-up initiatives; Village dynamics
and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is
properly cited.
Publisher’s Note: AccScience
Publishing remains neutral with 1. Introduction
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional Village revitalization in architecture is not a novel idea for rural areas (Knapp, 1986;
affiliations. Koolhaas, 2020). However, it has substantially gained everyone’s attention in cities such

Volume 7 Issue 3 (2025) 1 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcau.4992