WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1983
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TEAM TO LOOK OVER URBAN RENEWAL PLANS
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A PROPOSAL TO ESTABLISH A CO-ORDINATING URBAN RENEWAL TEAM TO IMPROVE PLANNING AND PROGRAMMING OF URBAN RENEWAL IN HONG KONG WAS DISCLOSED BY THE SECRETARY FOR LANDS AND WORKS, THE HON CHAN NAI-KEONG, TODAY (WEDNESDAY).
MR CHAN, WHO WAS REPLYING TO A QUESTION BY THE HON CHAN YING-LUN, IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, SAID THE TEAM, TO BE SET UP WITHIN THE TOWN PLANNING DIVISION OF THE LANDS DEPARTMENT, WOULD PROVIDE A COMPREHENSIVE OVERVIEW OF URBAN RENEWAL PROGRAMMES AND PROJECTS.
IT WOULD IMPROVE CO-ORDINATION OF THE EFFORTS OF VARIOUS AGENCIES INVOLVED AND HELP ADVANCE THE PROGRAMMES AND PROJECTS.
HE SAID THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON LAND SUPPLY HAD ALREADY GIVEN SUPPORT TO THE PROPOSAL AND IT WOULD BE CONSIDERED BY THE LAND DEVELOPMENT POLICY COMMITTEE SHORTLY.
MR CHAN SAID URBAN RENEWAL, BY ITS VERY NATURE, WAS A LONG TERM AND THEREFORE A CONTINUOUS PROCESS.
+IMPLEMENTATION, WHETHER BY THE GOVERNMENT OR THE PRIVATE SECTOR, DEPENDS ON DEMAND, OPPORTUNITY, SIZE AND RELATIVE DIFFICULTY OF THE PROJECT, AND THE AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES, HE SAID.
A FLEXIBLE RATHER THAN A FIXED TIME FRAME HAD THEREFORE TO
BE ADOPTED.
ON THE SUBJECT OF LAND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATIONS, MR CHAN SAID A CONSULTANTS' REPORT ON THE CONCEPT HAD RECENTLY BEEN COMPLETED. HE SAID THE STUDY HAD CONFIRMED THAT THE MAIN OBSTACLE WAS THE DIFFICULTY OF ASSEMBLING SITES OF A SUFFICIENT SIZE TO PROVIDE DEVELOPMENT GAINS, WITH PARTICULAR PROBLEMS BEING CAUSED BY MULTI- OWNERSHIP, ABSENTEE OWNERS, AND THE POTENTIAL BARGAINING POWER OF THE OWNER OF THE LAST TITLE TO BE ACQUIRED.
MR CHAN SAID, IN GENERAL, THE DIFFICULTIES WHICH THE GOVERNMENT HAD ENCOUNTERED IN ATTEMPTING TO IMPLEMENT ITS OWN URBAN RENEWAL PROGRAMMES HAD BEEN THE HUMAN PROBLEMS, SUCH AS RESISTANCE TO CHANGE AND DISRUPTION, PRACTICAL PROBLEMS OF PROVIDING HOUSING AND OTHER FACILITIES, AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS OF RELATING RESOURCES AND PROGRAMMES AND OVERALL CO-ORDINATION.
EARLIER, MR CHAN BRIEFED THE COUNCIL ON THE HISTORY OF THE URBAN RENEWAL PROGRAMMES WHICH STARTED WITH A PILOT SCHEME IN SHEUNG WAN IN 1969.
/IN 1973,