Why This Hong Kong Billionaire & Real Estate Tycoon Wants To Revive London's 'Ghost Town'

Invan Ko, a Hong Kong billionaire and real estate tycoon, is poised to plan the revival of a vast East London 35-acre site opposite London City Airport that was originally planned to be the capital's answer to Venice.

Earlier in 2013, Beijing-based Advanced Business Park (ABP) was awarded a ?1.7billion contract in 2013 by then-London mayor Boris Johnson to develop the Royal Albert Dock site. The ?1.7bn deal was to feature offices, shops and homes, and create thousands of jobs, as per The Telegraph.

Announced as Chinese investors flocked to London in the wake of the Olympics, it was hoped that the scheme would create thousands of jobs in the area.

However, construction was halted at the site two years ago which is now being called a ¡°ghost town.¡± But no, the name is not because of the presence of any 'ghosts', but rather the 'ghosted' look of the site.

In February this year, City Hall agreed to a final termination with ABP after no construction for over 2 years.

Then the website caught billionaire Ko¡¯s interest at a time of intense scrutiny of Chinese investments in the UK.

End Of UK-China's Golden Era

UK PM Rishi Sunak had reportedly said recently that a ¡°golden era¡± in economic ties with China had come to an end ¨C the phrase has long been linked to Mr Cameron and his quest for closer ties with Beijing a decade ago.

The UK prime minister said: ¡°We recognize that China poses a systemic challenge to our values ??and interests, a challenge that is becoming more acute as it moves towards even greater authoritarianism.¡±

More About The Billionaire

linkedin/Invan Ko

Mr Ko is also chairman of Recas Group, a real estate company that re-modelled part of Hong Kong Airport in 2017. The company also has a partnership with the Grand China Fund, according to the Recas website. Mr. Ko is a member of the Advisory Board of the Grand China Fund, which invests in real estate in mainland China, as per the report.

Ivan Ko is also behind the redevelopment of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour.

The billionaire and real estate tycoon Ko had also made a prominent pitch to Irish officials two and a half years ago when he bid to build a new town in the country that would allow 50,000 Hong Kong residents to escape Chinese security laws, as per the report.

It was reported at the time that he was considering six locations between Dublin and Belfast to build the new city, which he dubbed ¡®Nextpolis¡¯.

And now, he is reportedly interested in reviving London's ghost town as well.

The 'Ghost' Town

theguardian

A decade later since the contract was given, Royal Albert Dock has been described as a ¡°ghost town¡±. Construction stopped more than two years ago at the abandoned site.

¡°The Royal Albert Docks was supposed to be the jewel in the crown of London¡¯s only Enterprise Zone,¡± said Unmesh Desai, a Labour Assembly Member for the area, as per The Guardian report. ¡°But the promises of the previous mayor that the developer, ABP, would deliver thousands of jobs and billions of pounds of inward investment into the UK economy have clearly not materialised.¡±

Earlier in March, six of the development¡¯s buildings were put up for sale by Savills.

Visiting the 'ghost town' today feels like walking through a computer-generated correctional facility, the report mentions. It has the air of a bleak open-air prison for white-collar criminals sentenced to purgatory in a haunted business park.

It pictures an endless grid of identical windows extending down either side of Mandarin Street, the district¡¯s central thoroughfare, punctuating the relentless 200-metre-long facades of grey brickwork. A row of spindly trees punctuates the desolate scene while a lone security guard glides to and fro in an electric golf buggy, occasionally stopping to sweep up an errant leaf, keeping the pavement spotless for his community of 'imaginary occupants'.

¡°There¡¯s not a single office tenant here. Not one" the guard says. " They were trying to rent them out, then the pandemic happened and ¨C poof! ¨C we got ourselves a ghost town. A Job Centre finally opened here a few months ago, so at least I¡¯ve got some company now.¡±

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