Author(s)

J. Karakiewicz

Abstract

Density is a misunderstood metric in the discussion of cities. Using a case study of a widely acknowledged high-density city, Hong Kong, this paper examines aspects of density and concludes with a proposal for sustainable high-density development. 1 Introduction The total area of Hong Kong amounts to only 1,096 square kilometres, with only 17 percent of the land being intensively developed. Most of the urban development is concentrated at the tip of the Kowloon Peninsula and along the northern shore of Hong Kong Island. The strip along Hong Kong Island is only 1.3 kilometres wide and 17 kilometres long, approximately 22.5 square kilometres in total. This small area of land, however, houses over one million inhabitants and provides over 700,000 jobs [1]. It is therefore, not surprising, that Hong Kong has one of the world highest densities in the world, after Macau and Monaco. And although high-densities are

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