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This study evaluates the underlying logic of urban planning behind the inequitable geographical distribution of public open space in Hong Kong. Existing open spaces and areas zoned as open spaces are found to have distinct patterns of distribution. Fewer than half of Hong Kong’s 1737 public parks and recreation grounds were zoned as ‘Open Space’ in town plans. Three typical land-use zoning configurations adjoining the 1177 ‘Open Space’ zones are identified. A large proportion of Hong Kong’s ‘Open Space’ zones, particularly those with waterfront access, were located close to upmarket, low-density housing areas and mixed commercial-business zones, rather than to high-density mass housing zones. An historical review elucidates the influence of colonial politics, racial harmony, public hygiene and democratisation on open space planning and development in Hong Kong. Recreation is not the only social function of open space. The government’s latest planning and development strategies − expanding a network of new open spaces at strategic waterfront locations and near commercial/business zones, and encouraging private-sector participation in place promotion and urban marketing − may exacerbate the inequitable distribution of open space, encourage its commodification and deprive underprivileged communities of the right to conveniently access public space.