No_3_October_1962 — Page 71

MACAO from page

Three distinct types of housing are visualised, corresponding to the three different social levels which are expected to seek accommodation in this new area, so that in all the be built will housing units to vary from houses in their own large gardens through small bungalows to flats in two to six storey apartment blocks and twelve storey tower blocks.

new

development of

One of the main attractions of Macao to the visitor has been the Hand in hand with the gaming.

domestic Macao therefore the Government has decided to go ahead with im- proving the facilities offered to the tourist and part of the Outer Port reclamation area will be given up to developing tourist and sports centres. In addition the income from the syndicate responsible for operating the gaming will go to priming and helping along the de- velopment plan.

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The first tourist centre will be at Praia Grande with first-class tourist hotel close to the future civic centre and public gardens. This first hotel of 108 rooms must be completed for use by December this

year.

A second de luxe hotel of 200 rooms must be ready, together with the new Casino, by the end of 1964. These are in addition to a 32 room hotel to be built at once On the old swimming pool site and the present floating restaurant-casino.

Also on the central site where the Casino and de luxe hotel are to be built there will be a commercial and shopping centre, gardens and a long jetty at which ferries from Hong Kong will be able to berth directly instead of having to go round into the port as at present, so shortening considerably the journey from Hong Kong.

It is expected too that a speedy hydrofoil ferry will shortly come into service again cutting down travelling time and attracting more tourists.

Adjoining this commercial and tourist centre will be a sports cen- tre containing a football field of standard dimensions with tracks for athletics and areas for basket-ball and tennis with accommodation for spectators.

At the Praia Grande

will be a smaller sports centre con- sisting of a swimming pool, roller for skating rink and an area games for the Lyceum School.

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Close-up of the reclaimed area to be developed, showing it

as it is today before work has been started.

THE HONG KONG & FAR EAST BUILDER—VOLUME 17, NUMBER 3

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The recreation centre will also include a small zoological garden with a wide pedestrian walk, a civic centre, an amphitheatre, an exhibi- tion hall. a library, a museum and two gardens one Chinese and one Japanese.

In addition to these particular projects the development plan as a whole provides for the building of pre-primary and primary schools providing places for about 2,200 pu- pils. Each group of schools will cover an area of 60,000 to 65,000 square feet.

Also, as a prerequisite to the building of hotels, a hotel school is to be established.

In the general development plan provision has been made for re- clamation at Doce de Patane where it is hoped in the future to build new resettlement areas and set up some factories to provide employ- ment for the refugees; conversion of the swampy areas of Areia Preta and Mong Ha for housing and Doca de industry; dredging Taipa and completion of the re- clamations between Taipa Pequene and Taipa Grande; dredging of the channel into the Inner Harbour; and dredging of channels into the Outer Port, so giving materials for re- clamation in other places.

at

Provision has been made for con- struction of an airport at Taipa Island close to the Ponte da Cabrita (the eastern tip of the island) on land to be reclaimed from the sea. the The airstrip, jutting out into sea as at Kai Tak, will be 3,600 feet long and 135 feet wide, and will cost HK$12,000,000.

Another project that will be car- ried out in the future is the joining of the islands by a causeway which will carry a road strip for vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

Communication between the islands has become increasingly dif ficult because of the rapid silting of the area. The projected reclama. tions will do much to accelerate what nature has already down in joining the islands.

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