No_5_1955 — Page 41

CO-OPERATIVE HOUSING SCHEME AT BELCHER'S

BELCHER'S BATTERY-WEST POINT

Architect: W. Szeto, B.Sc., A. M. I. C. E.

Architect's perspective drawing showing a bird's-eye view of the completed project

looking towards the south-west.

non-

means,

This second scheme is located on the Tenancy is intended for of "The flats.

island side of the harbour on the site of expatriate personnel of limited who are at present living in inadequate or the old Belcher's Battery near Kennedy unsuitable accommodation.

In the last issue but one Builder', a description was included of a housing scheme for Government servants at Chatham Road in Kowloon, which is expected to be completed by April, 1956. The project was sponsored by The Hong Kong Chinese Civil Servants' Association, which formed a new company known us The Hong Kong Civil Servants' Co-opera- tive Building Society, Limited, to take full charge of the entire scheme, including the management after its completion.

Government's assistance in this develop-

Those participating in the scheme will pay a monthly rental, which will include amortization of the loan to Government The time plus a small interest charge. it will take to pay off their shares in the development will vary between 10 and 20 years, depending upon the monthly pay ments made to the Society.

Town in West Point. The objects of the Society in this project and the conditions of tenancy remain the same as the Kow- loon one, although a considerable number of much larger lats have been incorporat- ed in the design.

The site comprised some very rugged terrain and contained, here and there, the massive ruins of the old fort and its under- ground passages and structures; these were A project of an almost identical nature mainly located in the central portion of ment took the form of not only granting on the Hong Kong side was planned as the site at high levels and were contained land at half the upset price, but also of long ago as the middle of 1953, by the by a continuous loop of masonry retaining providing a loan, repayable over a period same organisation. Delay, however, was walls. The ground towards the northern caused by the slow completion of the site and western boundaries was very steep, a comparatively flat area formation work. Construction of the build- but there was

The retained proceeding rapidly though, near the north-east corner. ings is now

areas were in two almost flat terraces with and the estate should be ready for oc-

the exception of some isolated ruins of cupation before September, 1956.

of twenty years.

The Society aims at furnishing tenants with decent living conditions, and also provides that within a reasonable length of time they will be able to own their own

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