Question No. 8
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Speech by the Hon. CHAN Nai-keong, CBE, JP, Secretary for Lands and Works, to question by the Hon. YEUNG Po-kwan, CPM, at Legislative Council on 12 June, 1985
Question:
Could Government inform this Council what plans it has for industrial development at On Lok Tsuen in Fanling?
Sir,
The intention is that On Lok Tsuen should be developed as a light industrial area providing scope for industrial investment and employment as part of the development of Fanling New Town.
A layout plan has been prepared for the area to produce 15 hectares of industrial land which, if developed to its full potential, could provide jobs for up to 30,000
people.
The land within the layout is largely in private hands and has been converted over the years from agricultural
to temporary industrial use under short term waivers. A survey in 1983 indicated that about 130 undertakings were then operating and employing between one and two thousand
people.
Implementation of the layout therefore involves
upgrading by converting the temporary to the permanent
through lease modifications and land exchanges with Government resuming some land to provide the necessary roads and drainage
to serve the area.
Present arrangements provide developers with flexibility to develop to a plot ratio of between 2 and 5 and a building covenant period of 48 months. Progress is,
however, slow because of the current state of the industrial
land market. The few Crown land sites which exist in the area
should begin to come onto the market next year.