XN000022-1976-04-04 — Page 3

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Sunday, April 4, 1976

An important feature on the reclamation; said Mr. Chan, would be

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a large Town Centre which would provide a focus for the new town'a economic,

social and civic activities.

"This will consist of a series of buildings housing a public lending

library, a study centre, a theatre, an art gallery and studio, exhibition

hall and meeting rooms.

"It will also provide the main commercial area with shops, banks,

restaurants and offices fronting a central pedestrian precinct. Above the

shops will be residential buildings," he said.

Next to the Town Centre would be a 10.7-hectare (26.4 acres) town

park, similar to Victoria Park on Hong Kong Island, with a swimming pool

complex.

Illustrating the scope of the reclamation, Mr. Chan said that some

four million cubic metres (5.2 million cubic yards) of fill would be required

to form the 60 hectares (148 acres) of new land.

Nearly half of this volume, he said, would be obtained from the seabed

two outlying islands to the west of Tuen

near Lung Kwu Chau and Sha Chau

Mun

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while other fill material would be excavated mostly from the south-western

foothills of the Castle Peak promontory.

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"When fully completed, the reclamation will provide residential, work

about one-fifth of the new town's

and play facilities for some 96,000 people

eventual population of 480,000," he said.

As part of the reclamation project, he added, a temporary breakwater

would be constructed between the central and eastern parts of the reclamation

to form a sheltered area of about 11 hectures (27 acres) for use as a temporary

typhoon shelter for boats plying in the area.

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