LAND AND HOUSING
117
occurred at the beginning of the year when it became necessary to declare as dangerous the Chong Hing Mansion, a terrace of 10- storey post-war domestic buildings on Hong Kong Island, because of irreparable decay of the structural frame.
It transpired that no occupation permit had ever been issued in respect of these buildings and a Committee of Inquiry, presided over by a District Judge, was appointed to investigate the matter. The Committee considered whether the circumstances warranted any further official help being given to those affected by the closure (in addition to the offer of resettlement accommodation), and also whether any change should be made in the administrative procedures or legislative provisions relating to occupation permits. The Com- mittee's report was being considered by the-Government at the end of the year.
The Chong Hing Mansion case was followed by a number of reports of alleged sub-standard workmanship and materials, which required protracted investigation by the staff of the Buildings Ordinance Office. Several of the reports proved to be of substance; for example, in one case the top nine storeys of a 14-storey domestic development had to be demolished and in another a five-storey garage building had to be demolished to the floor level of the first floor.
Because of the time-consuming nature of the investigations and the increasing pressure of work there was delay in the processing of plans submitted by authorised architects to the Buildings Ordin- ance Office for approval. To overcome this back-log, relaxed checking procedures were introduced on a temporary basis in the latter part of the year although there was provision for this measure to be withdrawn immediately if it was found that the comprehensive checking of plans could not be dispensed with. The department recognised there was a risk of irregularity arising but it was con- sidered that, in the general interests of the community, this was acceptable under the circumstances.
At the same time, action in respect of reports of unauthorised building works had to be substantially curtailed. Some 1,033 com- plaints were received, an increase of 51 per cent over 1970 but it was not possible to investigate more than 53 per cent of these. Of the reports which were investigated statutory notices were restricted to only the most serious cases. A total of 565 notices were served compared with 2,184 in 1970.