It was encouraging to read the commentary by Nicholas Brooke, chairman of the newly established Harbourfront Commission, in the South China Morning Post talking about the importance of a "holistic" approach to planning for Hong Kong's waterfront.

That's the key word that should be drummed into the minds of Hong Kong's senior government officials who are better known for their efficiency, capability and integrity than their political savvy. Nothing can be more un-holistic than the ill-fated proposal by the Transport and Housing Bureau to build an escalator on one of Hong Kong's most treasured landmarks, Ladder Street.

In its original proposal, the bureau said that the escalator, going up the hill from the central business area through the entertainment quarter of Soho to the residential district in the mid-levels, would save travel time and help tourism, not to mention the benefits it could bring to the elderly living in the vicinity. What the bureau obviously didn't take into consideration was that the project, if approved, would have destroyed a landmark that's dear to the heart of the Hong Kong people and a well-known tourist attraction.

Built in the 1840s, Ladder Street was also known as Thread and Needle Street because of the many stores there selling a wide variety of clothing accessories. At one time, Ladder Street was known to have the largest collection of buttons and ribbons in Asia.

Most of those stores are gone now. But the street has remained deeply ingrained in the collective memory of the people of Hong Kong.

Public protests had apparently prompted a review of the original Ladder Street escalator proposal. After consulting with the Antiquities and Monuments Office, the Transport and Housing Bureau said last week it agreed to look for an alternative route for the proposed escalator.

It was never explained why Ladder Street was picked by the bureau. The street is located only a block away from the existing escalator built a decade or so ago. It doesn't seem to make that much sense for having two escalators going the same direction so close to each other.

More baffling was the seeming disregard for public sentiment in the bureau in drawing up the original plan. The embarrassing withdrawal of the plan seems to underscore the need for the government to remind senior officials that they have a political role to play in Hong Kong's unique system of governance.

Although there are political appointees heading some government departments, the main responsibility for formulating policies and garnering public support for these policies has continued to rest on the shoulders of career bureaucrats. These administrators, brought up in the tradition of faceless civil servants, often forget to wear their political hats.

Their dedication to efficiency in providing the most cost effective service to the public can sometimes make them appear uncaring and inflexible. Of course, Hong Kong has no need for crowd pleasing politicians willing to bend rules to win votes. But our administrators should understand that alienating the public unnecessarily even with the best of intentions usually is counterproductive.

Hong Kong may be a commercial town where property tycoons and financial moguls hold sway. But the younger people of Hong Kong have become more protective of what they cherish as their legacy. Ladder Street is part of it.

(HK Edition 07/13/2010 page2)