Malvage DEPARTMENT LIBRARY
ORGANIZATION
THE Hong Kong Housing Authority was created in April 1954, with the enactment of the Housing Ordinance, No. 18 of 1954. It is com- posed of all members of the Urban Council, ex-officio, together with not more than three persons to be nominated by the Governor: only two such appointments have, in fact, so far been made. The Chairman of the Urban Council is, also ex-officio, Chairman of the Authority. A list of members is given in Appendix I.
Under the terms of the Ordinance, the Authority was given powers to deal with certain aspects of the housing problem, subject to general Government control. It functions as a commercial enterprise, and although rents are to be kept as low as possible, they must be sufficient to cover all outgoings. No subsidies, as such, are granted, but Crown land is allocated at half the normal upset price (that is at one-third of the estimated market value), and loans are provided by Government at a low rate of interest. All the Authority's schemes must receive the approval of Government before they can be implemented.
POLICY
So far the Authority's energy has been directed to the planning and construction of housing estates of a conventional municipal character, albeit on a very substantial scale, developing vacant sites with the type of accommodation thought to be most needed, of a good basic standard which will be a permanent capital asset to the Colony. The rents will vary, and be suited to the requirements and rent-paying capacity of the various types of applicant likely to be encountered—and in a cosmo- politan city like Hong Kong this covers a very wide range indeed.
Its directive was originally interpreted as applying largely to the 'white collar' class of worker, hitherto almost unconsidered by official and private enterprise alike, except by voluntary bodies such as the Hong Kong Housing Society. Its policy, broadly speaking, was not only to relieve housing need but also to bring down the general level of rents throughout the Colony by reason of the vast scale of its schemes. Those started, or being planned, represent a capital investment of nearly $100m, but it has already become apparent that even a
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