XN000022-1985-06-27 — Page 9

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THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 1985

PROPOSALS TO RELIEVE OVERCROWDING IN THAS

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THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT WILL RECOMMEND THE OFFER OF LARGER TEMPORARY HOUSING UNITS IN THE NEW TERRITORIES TO SERIOUSLY CONGESTED FAMILIES IN URBAN THAS AS A QUICKER MEANS OF RELIEVING OVERCROWDING.

ANOTHER SUGGESTION IS THE REDUCTION OF THE RESIDENCE CRITERION, FROM 10 YEARS TO SEVEN YEARS, IN TRAWLING EXERCISES FOR THA FAMILIES TO TRANSFER TO PUBLIC HOUSING ESTATES.

THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF HOUSING (OPERATIONS), MR HAIDER BARMA SAID THE DEPARTMENT WAS EXAMINING THE IMPLICATIONS OF THESE OPTIONS AND WOULD SOON MAKE THE PROPOSALS TO THE HOUSING AUTHORITY'S OPERATIONS COMMITTEE FOR CONSIDERATION.

HE SAID THIS TO 15 DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS AT A SCHEDULED, BUT INFORMAL, MEETING AT WHICH VIEWS AND POINTS ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF LIVING CONDITIONS IN THAS WERE EXCHANGED.

ALSO PRESENT AT THE MEETING WITH THE 15 DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS FROM KWUN TONG, SHAM SHUI PO, KWAI CHUNG, SHA TIN AND WONG TAI SIN WERE MEMBERS OF THE AUTHORITY'S OPERATIONS COMMITTEE. THEY WERE MISS LEUNG WAI-TUNG, MR CHAN YING-LUN, MR PAO PING-WING, DR JOSEPH CHENG YU-SHEK, MRS LEE LO YUK-SIM AND REV SEAN P. BURKE.

+ IN THE FACE OF LIMITED URBAN THA RESOURCES, IMPROVED ACCOMMODATION IN THE NEW TERRITORIES WOULD BE A POSITIVE RESOLUTION TO CONGESTION, MR BARMA SAID.

OF THE PRESENT 40 000 HOUSEHOLDS IN THAS, HE SAID ABOUT 10 PER CENT, OR 4 000 FAMILIES, WERE LIVING AT A DENSITY OF LESS THAN 1.86 SQUARE METRES PER PERSON, MAINLY AS A RESULT OF NATURAL BIRTHS OR ADDITION OF RELATIVES.

THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE MEMBERS STRESSED THAT ALTHOUGH THE PROBLEM OF OVERCROWDING IN THE OLDER THAS WAS RECOGNISED, IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE TO ALLOCATE THESE FAMILIES ADDITIONAL LARGER UNITS IN URBAN THAS AS ALL SUCH VACANT UNITS HAD ALREADY BEEN COMMITTED.

THESE LARGER UNITS, THE MEMBERS POINTED OUT, HAD BEEN RESERVED FOR PEOPLE WHO WOULD BE DISPLACED FROM DEVELOPMENT CLEARANCE, AVERAGING 24 000 PERSONS ELIGIBLE FOR TEMPORARY HOUSING EVERY YEAR, AS WELL AS FOR THOSE MADE HOMELESS IN NATURAL DISASTERS.

UNDER THE PRESENT POLICY, MR BARMA SAID, OVERCORWDED FAMILIES IN THAS WERE ALLOCATED ADDITIONALLY A SMALLER UNIT OF LESS THAN 7.43 SQUARE METRES WHENEVER SUCH STOCK WAS AVAILABLE.

ALAST YEAR,