VEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 1978
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+HOWEVER, IT MUST BE REMEMBERED THAT OVER 200 P.W.D. OFFICERS ARE CURRENTLY ENGAGED SOLELY ON MANAGEMENT AND CO-ORDINATION ASPECTS OF THE NEW TERRITOR IES AND MASS TRANSIT RAILWAY PROJECTS AND THESE PROJECTS COVER CLEARLY DEFINED AREAS OF TOTALLY RELATED ELEMENTS,+ MR. MCDONALD SAID.
+ IN THE NEW TOWNS THE AREAS BEING DEALT WITH ARE COMPARATIVELY CLEAR AND DEVELOPMENT CAN BE MOULDED TO A PRE-CONCEIVED PROGRAMME BUT THIS CANNOT BE READILY ACHIEVED IN THE URBAN AREAS WHERE DEVELOPMENT HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED OVER MANY YEARS AND WHERE REDEVELOPMENT IS NECESSARILY FRAGMENTED.+
THE DIRECTOR SAID THAT PRIVATE SECTOR DEVELOPMENT WAS PARTICULARLY DIFFICULT TO CO-ORDINATE.
CITING AN EXAMPLE, HE SAID THAT DURING 1977-78, 810 APPROVALS OF PLANS FOR PROPOSED NEW PRIVATE BUILDINGS WERE GIVEN BUT THIS GAVE NO TRUE INDICATION OF WHEN OR IF THESE APPROVED PROJECTS WOULD PROCEED.
+APPROVALS ARE VALID FOR TWO YEARS AND IT IS FAIRLY COMMON, IN CHANGING MARKET CONDITIONS, FOR DEVELOPERS TO CHANGE THE IR MINDS ON THE FORM AND TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT AND NEW REPLACEMENT APPLICATIONS ARE SUBMITTED, HE ADDED.
+THE NEAREST WE CAN GET TO KNOWING WITH ANY DEGREE OF CERTAINTY WHEN A PRIVATE PROJECT WILL COMMENCE AND IN WHAT FORM IS WHEN THE DEVELOPER APPLIES FOR CONSENT TO COMMENCE WORKS BUT AS THE WORKS MUST THEN START WITHIN THREE MONTHS IT IS ALREADY TOO LATE TO SATISFACTORILY MESH INTO A CO-ORDINATED PROGRAMME,+
MR. MCDONALD CONTINUED THAT THE FLEXIBILITY WHICH MUST THEREFORE BE GIVEN TO PRIVATE DEVELOPERS INEVITABLY AFFECTED SUCH THINGS AS UTILITIES AND OTHER SERVICES AND OF COURSE MEANT ROAD OPENINGS.
HE SAID: +AT ANY GIVEN DATE THERE IS LIKELY TO BE ABOUT 2,500 OPENINGS IN ROADS THROUGHOUT THE TERRITORY.
ALTHOUGH ALL APPLICATIONS FOR THESE OPENINGS ARE PROCESSED THROUGH CO-ORDINATING COMMITTEES THERE ARE UNFORTUNATELY QUITE FREQUENT EMERGENCY OR UNFORESEEN MAINTENANCE WORKS REQUIRED WHICH MAKE IT NECESSARY TO OPEN ROADWAYS EVEN IN AREAS WHERE SURFACE REINSTATEMENT WORKS HAVE ONLY RECENTLY BEEN COMPLETED.+
IN CONCLUSION, MR. MCDONALD EMPHASISED THAT THE OVERALL CO-ORDINATION OF EVERY CONSTRUCTION PROJECT IN HONG KONG +IS A GIGANTIC TASK AND IS FAR BEYOND THE CAPABILITY OF ANY ONE CO-ORDINATOR OR EVEN OF ONE CO-ORDINATING GROUP+,
BUT HE ADDED THAT THIS DID NOT MEAN THAT THE CONCEPT OF GENERAL CO-ORDINATION WAS NOT FAVOURED.
+ IN FACT, CONSIDERATION IS CURRENTLY BEING GIVEN TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PROJECT CO-ORDINATION TEAM FOR THE NORTH EAST KOWLOON AREA ON AN EXPERIMENTAL BASIS, HE SAID.
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