18/10/2018-5

Huang Weilun: Must continue to expand to meet future needs

The Secretary for Development, Huang Weilun, wrote an article yesterday on the blog and talked about a number of measures proposed in the Policy Address. He said that the government is committed to developing new land resources and is determined to deal with the issue of “where the land comes from.” It is expected to expand projects in medium and long-term large-scale new development zones and new towns, including Kwu Tung North, Fanling North, Tung Chung and Hung Shui Kiu. Wait. After these projects have been in place since 2023 and 2024, the shortage of land supply will be slightly relieved. To meet future demand, the Government must continue to develop land.

“Tomorrow’s Island” will build 1,000 hectares of artificial islands

Wong Wai-lun said that the first phase of the “Lantau Tomorrow” project will build about 1,000 hectares of artificial islands in the vicinity of Jiao Chi Chau, and strive to carry out projects in 2025 to establish a livable city with near zero carbon emissions. As for the second phase of the construction of an artificial island of about 700 hectares near Hei Ling Chau, depending on the findings and needs, the construction schedule has not yet been drawn up.

Huang Weilun believes that artificial islands can establish land reserves to support the development of Hong Kong. He said that the new land bank would allow the current dense urban population to be dispersed and to implement old district redevelopment. If appropriate planning measures were taken, such as reducing the development density after the demolition of old buildings, or converting part of the land into public space or Social welfare facilities, etc., can solve problems such as aging buildings in the old district, high population density, lack of public space and inadequate community facilities, and improve the living environment.

“Land Sharing Pilot Scheme” is expected to be launched next year

The “Policy Report” proposes a “Land Sharing Pilot Scheme” to promote public-private partnership. According to Huang Weilun, the pilot scheme can meet the needs of public and private housing in the short to medium term. The Government will process applications through transparent guidelines and procedures. It is stipulated that no less than 60% to 70% of the new floor area will be used for public housing mainly for subsidized sale of flats. He stressed that after referring to the final report of the Land Supply Task Force, I hope to launch it within the next year.

Huang Weilun also quoted the preliminary observations of the Land Supply Task Force that the community has expectations for the development of brownfields in the New Territories. The Development Bureau will conduct research on about 200 hectares of brownfields in the New Territories North in advance and conduct research on the remaining 760 hectares of brownfields. Which are more promising, it is expected that the two studies will be completed this year.