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Lands Department sets up a new LDC Section
The Lands Department has established a new team to deal with land resumption involving projects of the Land Development Corporation (LDC).
The new team, known as the LDC Section, is formally established today (Thursday).
Speaking at an opening ceremony of the section's new office in Causeway Bay today, the Director of Lands, Mr Robert Pope, said LDC had already completed many major urban renewal projects but its progress to achieve the aims of urban renewal had been hindered as the Lands Department had been unable to respond to its requests for the compulsory acquisition of land which it had been unable to acquire for one reason or another.
"With the setting up of this new LDC Section, we will now be able to respond promptly and efficiently to such requests," he said.
Although the section was being funded by LDC, Mr Pope stressed that it would operate independently and deal with all requests for compulsory acquisition in the same way as the Lands Department dealt with the many other acquisition projects it undertook.
"In the case of the LDC, the section must has to satisfy itself that the corporation has used its best endeavours to acquire all the affected private interests before it can recommend to the Executive Council that the land be compulsorily acquired.
"To assist the section in doing this, we intend to seek independent valuers' assistance to assess the reasonableness of the corporation's offers," he said.
Work by the LDC Section already started in August last year.
"Indeed requests have been submitted by the LDC for processing of resumption for their projects at Queen Street in Sheung Wan, Argyle Street/Shanghai Street in Mong Kok, and Kwong Yung Street," he said.