No_5_February_1961 — Page 41

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Wing of Block H at So Uk.

planning

tween 1962 and 1972, and requiring the use of about 300 acres of land. After much discussion it was decid- ed that a programme should be prepared but not on such a long- term basis.

Following consultations with in- terested

Government departments and the District Commissioner, New Territories, it was decided to ask Government to reserve two sites for future development. These were:

i) One of about 6 acres in a housing zone at the new industrial township of Kwun Tong, on Kow- loon Bay, to be developed at a density of about 1.200 persons per

acre.

The five estates already completed, under con- struction, or being planned, will contain about 17,600 flats, housing some 105,300 people and representing an investment of over $163 millions.

Tentative plans had been prepared for the construction of about 1,200 flats to house some 7,600 people on this site. but further socio-economic information on the future population and development of the area was being obtained before going into the matter in greater detail.

ii) A site of about 10 acres at Tsuen Wan in the New Territories. It was thought that a pilot scheme of about 500 flats could first be built on about 4 acres, leaving room for future expansion if found desir able.

Tsuen Wan was a rapidly growing centre of light industry, and it was considered there would be no diffi- culty in finding sufficient tenants with the requisite rent ability for five and six person fiats. Planning of the scheme was still in the very early stages.

The search for suitable sites was a tedious business as there were so many demands for the few sites available.

Earlier in the report the policy of the Authority is touched upon. It says that a rigid policy had never been laid down by the Housing Authority, and so far its entire had been directed to the energy planning, construction, and manage. ment of housing estates of a conven- tional municipal character, albeit on a substantial scale.

In order to make the best use of the few sites available in the urban area, only multi-storied blocks of flats had so far been built

or

were planned. Nobody pretended this was an ideal form of dwelling, but there was no practical alternative.

THE HONG KONG & FAR EAST BUILDER — VOLUME 15. NUMBER 5

With building sites so scarce, densities of 1.500 or more to the acre were commonplace in Hong Kong. No doubt such standards were regarded with horror by European or American housing or- ganisations, but the Authority was proving that good housing could he provided at such high densities.

The Authority's policy had been to build self-contained flats of good basic standard that would be a per- manent capital asset. The lowest possible rents were charged, suited to the requirements and rent-paying capacity of a variety of applicants, drawn from a wide range of occupa- tions.

There had been pressure from some directions for the Authority to reduce its housing standards, and in particular to abandon building self-contained accommodation, sub- stituting something along the lines with of resettlement-type rooms, communal sanitary facilities. It was felt that this would be a retrograde step so long as there existed a demand for self-contatined accom- modation.

The five estates already completed. under construction, or being plan- ned, would contain about 17,600 flats. housing some 105.300 people and representing a capital invest- ment of over $163 millions.

This might appear, comments the Report to be a programme of im posing dimensions, in which a good deal of pride could be taken, but it fell very far sort of meeting the the needs of the income group for which the Authority tried to cater.

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