The former North Kowloon Magistracy was activated by the Savannah College of Art and Design in the United States, which is the first phase of the Hong Kong historic building conservation project. It has been in operation for 10 years from 2010 to 2020. The paper reflects on the experience and lessons of the project by investigation and analysis.The survey method adopted in this paper is mainly investigation. In the early stage, through the first-hand literature such as the government's bidding plan and the bidding documents of the applicant agencies, as well as the field study, we made a field study on Savannah College of Art and Design which has been put into use, and conducted in-depth interviews with the operators.With its rich conservation experience of historic buildings, Savannah College of Art and Design has protected the buildings of the former North Kowloon Magistracy well. However, the history and culture of the area carried by the historic buildings have not been well inherited in the process of activation and use. During the process of historic buildings’ conservation, in addition to the protection and utilization of historic buildings, we should also pay attention to highlighting their historical and cultural values.