New Lai Chin Vun cultural area ready to open phase 1, IC says

The new Lai Chi Vun Shipyards cultural and tourist area, developed by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) and aiming to revive the once abandoned space is ready to open to the public in its first phase, the president of IC, Delang Leong said.

The new space located in the former shipyards space in Coloane could effectively open late this month or in early July, Leong said, explaining that only final arrangements remain to be done before the opening.

After around one year of work to demolish a significant part of the old shipyard as well as secure the remaining parts and rebuild one of the areas to resemble one of the former workshops while it was fully operational, the IC says that the new space will be ready for locals and tourists this summer.

The space will feature the history of the shipyards as well as old shipbuilding techniques and their evolution.

The space also has an outdoor plaza-like area in which IC plans to set up a market that will sell cultural and creative products as well as souvenirs. Leong also added that the IC has been receiving a good number of applicants for the operation of these booths. The arrangements for this area are still in progress, being one of the areas that the bureau is still working on before the opening.

Besides the market, the plaza will have recreational activities and exhibitions, Leong said. Further, this is just the first of the pavilions to be rebuilt and reopened to the public, with the IC expecting to expand the area into the other pavilions of the old shipyard to feature “larger exhibition areas and more commercial elements” such as food and beverage facilities and stores.

Leong hinted that such work might take some years to be completed but could not definitively state the timeframe.