Ten years in the making, One Penha Hill is finally open for business. For many years the land was owned and occupied by a Catholic Church, derelict and gracefully crumbling away. Rather than continue in its dilapidated state, in 2006 a decision was made to sell. The developer that bought it, MHK Limited, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed company the Tomson Group, and several other smaller shareholders, is best known for building the uber-luxury residential complex the Tomson Riviera Shanghai, opposite the Bund in Pudong, Shanghai.
To understand why the project took so long to complete, Jeff Wong, National Director, Capital Market of Jones Lang LaSalle that worked as sole agents for the church, explains that as the land is in a UNESCO World Heritage area, a number of government departments needed to oversee and give their blessing to the design and construction. Added to that, the complex nature of construction further hindered progress, as the site is on the side of a steep hill, Macau’s third highest, and is closely hemmed in by neighbouring buildings.
But the wait has been worth it, it seems.
“The government appreciates how the building has enhanced the neighbourhood,” enthuses Jeff. “From an obsolete church, it’s now a beautiful modern low-rise building. The developer chose not to maximize their allowable plot ratio – they wanted to include lots of open spaces for landscaping and water features, making it a win-win situation for its residents and neighbours alike. It’s a great model, a good example for developers and society as a whole”.
A formidable team of experts, most of Taiwanese descent, collaborated on this project: Doctor of Design from Harvard University, K.S. Huang from MHK Management Limited; Architectural designer Lee Wei-Min of LWMA, himself a Master of Architecture in Urban Design also from Harvard; and Shin Wei, of Visionary International Consultants, Master of Architecture from M.I. T. who was the planning and construction consultant.
Their US studies and experience, combined with their Asian backgrounds, brought about a philosophy that is perhaps quite different from the mainstream professionals in their field from Hong Kong.
“It’s a fusion between Asian and Western styles,” suggests Jeff, “and is different from the ‘mass luxury’ of the One Central and Windsor Arch developments”.
The result is that it has attracted a certain profile of buyers: CEOs, VPs of listed companies, and Taiwanese, Hong Kong and local Macau families who are looking for a very private, personal, low profile lifestyle in one of Macau’s most desirable areas.
From the road entrance to the complex, “the design, tone, manner, and style are very different from that of bigger developments.” Four towers made up of 63 units are built on three sides of a central courtyard. Towers 1 and 2 are both eleven storeys, and towers 3 and 4 are only seven storeys.
AECOM’s David D. Jung, another Harvard alumni, was responsible for the landscape design, which incorporates stepping paves floating across walkways on water features set amongst lush greenery, shrubs and trees.
From the ground floor level, one looks down two floors to the 20-meter swimming pool, semi-indoor Jacuzzi and gym in the center of the complex. Dotted about are cozy seating areas, and there’s an all-glass meeting-cum-entertainment room that seems to float on a small pond.
The 3-bedroom, 3-bathroom, 3,170 square foot show flat selected to be featured for this article is where the interior design really pushes the envelope. As with the other apartments in the complex, most partition walls are non-structural, so that owners have maximum flexibility to reconfigure their space as they wish. Pocket doors to all the bathrooms are a clever space saving idea.
Brand names abound: YKK double glazing for all the windows; Villeroy & Boch and TOTO fixtures in the bathrooms; Georg Jensen tableware; kitchen appliances by Gaggenau; cabinets from Bulthaup; and the wine cellar and the most magnificent stainless steel built-in refrigerator-freezer from Sub-Zero.
With the overall colour palette being dark and light greys, with stone, caramel and black and white accent pieces, the look is modern, yet invitingly comfortable.
From start to finish, attention to detail is apparent. Nothing is included without purpose, and the designer clearly enjoys making things ‘off kilter’ yet strangely balanced and harmonious; classic set against modern, soft against hard, man-made versus natural. One example is the walls in the open living-dining room: one is black and white honed marble, the opposite is mirror-like polished caramel beige marble.
These two very differing looks are brought together and ‘softened’ by the charcoal grey wood room divider and the stunning entertainment bar between the dining room and the den. The bar’s thick top is honed marble in grey, stone and earth tones with flecks of black and caramel. One side leg is also in marble, and interior shelves and other leg in wood.
A large stark-white marble topped dining table centers the room, and above it hang two chandeliers – white interiors set in black frames.
The built-in TV wall unit has a grey brushed metal finish. Again the design is off kilter, jutting out to form a small separation from the entrance hall and living space, and extending over the window seat.
Feature walls, common in most homes these days, tend to be a simple coat of paint in contrasting colours. In this apartment the feature walls go a step further; some are sectional leather panels, some are textured wallpaper, while others a highly polished marble-paint finish.
Lighting, an all-important factor in creating mood, is handled skillfully. The false ceilings in the master bedroom and main living spaces have large central oval or round cut-outs, which throw out a mixture of soft glow from concealed lights and brighter direct down light from spots. In the main guest room this is switched, with the softer light cast around the outer edges of the ceiling, and the spotlights focused in the centre. Not only useful for lighting, false ceilings help conceal the vents of the Mitsubishi central air-conditioning system.
Jeff Wong explains that the furnishing and accessories were sourced from Europe, the US and Asia, with the designer’s Taiwanese base the point of collection before being shipped to Macau.
“Wherever possible they tried to source locally but there was not much unique selection available”.
The bed heads and frames are very interesting designs in mixtures of textured and soft leatherette. The sofa, in pale grey textured velour is matched with black fur throw cushions, and a very lovely cowhide rug under the coffee table is made up of pale grays, white and stone-coloured pieces stitched together in a longitudinal design. Deep window seats in the living room look down over the pool, as does a generous sized terrace off the master bedroom.
Leaving the apartment to go up to the roof, here is one of the highlights of the complex, the Sky Garden. The landscaping is thoughtfully laid out, mixing sections of astro-turfed lawn edged with shrubs, huge pots holding frangipani trees and other large plants, and here and there private areas of seating, some sheltered by wood gazebos, others open to the elements. Flooring is a mix of sections of grey stone softened by the tan coloured all-weather wood-look planking.
Attractive chocolate brown all-weather rattan sofas, armchairs and coffee tables from Seven Oceans, and seat and back cushions in stone, some in white, with white and yellow accent pillows.
And the piece de resistance – a sensational 360-degree bird’s eye view of Macau, from Our Lady of Penha Chapel above, sweeping past the inner harbor, the low-rise old section of Macau to the Fortaleza do Monte hill, to the modern skyline of central Macau with its office buildings and glitzy casinos, then yet further around to the Nam Van and Sai Van lakes, the ever-looming Macau Tower and back to Penha Hill.
The team behind One Penha Hill is to be congratulated for their efforts in creating something quite unique in downtown Macau. Let’s hope that other developers take note and are inspired by this little oasis of high-end design combined with a sympathetic inclusion of nature.