Located in the heart of Hong Kong’s central business district, the 36-storey Murray Road project for Henderson Land replaces a multi-storey car park to create an urban oasis adjacent to Chater Garden within a short walking distance to both Central and Admiralty MTR metro stations.

With its base elevated above the ground to shelter courtyards and gardens cultivated with trees and plants in the centre of one of the world’s busiest cities, the design creates new civic plazas that are enveloped by nature.

Echoing the organic forms of the natural world; the redevelopment connects with the adjacent public gardens and parks. These tranquil outdoor areas flow into the generous communal spaces of the interior; the craftsmanship and precision of the curved glass façade enhancing this seamless connectivity between the building’s interiors and the surrounding gardens and city beyond.

The design reinterprets the structural forms and layering of a Bauhinia bud about to blossom. Known as the Hong Kong orchid tree, the Bauhinia x blakeana was first propagated in the city’s botanic gardens above the Murray Road site and its flowering bud features on Hong Kong’s flag.

At the core of the city’s financial district, the project is situated at the east-west / north-south junction of Hong Kong’s network of elevated pedestrian walkways; connecting directly with surrounding gardens, shops and restaurants as well as the offices of leading financial and civic institutions.

A high-tensile steel structure provides very wide span (up to 26m) of naturally lit, column-free, Grade A office space with a 5 metre floor-to-floor height giving maximum flexibility; its vertical core located on the eastern side of the building to optimise views of Chater Garden and the city’s renowned skyline to the west.

Working with the Henderson Land and Arup’s Building Sustainability Team, the design has achieved LEED Platinum and WELL Platinum pre-certification together with the highest 3-Star rating of China’s Green Building Rating Program. The design, procurement and construction targets full certification at occupancy.

The building’s smart management system creates a contactless pathway for all occupants from the street to their workstation that eliminates direct contact with communal surfaces and includes AI-assisted lift controls. Using a mobile phone, contactless smart card or biometric recognition, occupants can enter the building and pass security, call lifts to their office floor and access other zones such as lounge areas and washrooms.

Arranged for access on multiple levels, the large double-height foyer at ground level welcomes staff and visitors with its interplay of natural light, planting and organic forms leading up to the second floor public lobby on the city’s elevated walkway network. Suspended above the canopy of its surrounding tress, the sculptural glass façade of this expansive lobby defines a variety of nested spaces, each refined for purpose and experience.

With construction works beginning last year and its procurement targeting embodied carbon reductions as well as the use of recycled materials, 2 Murray Road looks to the future with the integration of advanced design, construction and operational technologies.