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limitation is not merely one of finance, but of the availability of vacant land in the urban areas where cheap housing is mostly needed. To find new sites Government has to go into the New Territories, to Castle Peak, Yuen Long, Tsing Yi, Kwai Chung, Junk Bay and Tai Wo Ping. The Housing Authority's two latest estates are at Kwun Tong and Tsuen Wan, and future building may be even further afield. Now all these estates will undoubtedly be of considerable benefit for the new towns which are being created. But they will do very little for the workers in the central urban areas, where I submit our greatest problem lies, for it is here that the great majority work and it is here, close to their work, they want to live.
If we had a modern, fast, cheap transportation system, such as Dr. LEE and others have suggested, many of them would be encouraged to move to the outskirts of the towns and away from the slum areas. Various suggestions have been made, all of which Government appears to have ignored. We have at present a limited number of roads which can barely cope with the present amount of tram and bus services, and which cannot possibly deal with future demands. Until there is substantial improvement, we cannot anticipate any significant move of slum-dwellers out of the towns.
My second suggestion is to develop, by reclamation, new sites near the central urban districts. Government's major reclamation schemes are all far away in the New Territories, which will have little effect on our urban overcrowding, however useful they may be for industry. May I again urge Government to consider the possibilities of reclaiming the 21 million square feet of shallow water on the Kellett Bank, north of Green Island, on which could be built a new residential town only ten minutes away from some of the most congested areas in Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon.
My third suggestion is that in allocating public funds, we should aim at quantity rather than quality, in order to accommodate the maximum number of families. Faced with limited funds and the choice between building a large number of very cheap flats, or a lesser number of more luxurious ones, the benefits of housing the largest possible number of people seem to me to far outweigh the extra comfort a smaller number will receive. It is for this reason that I am lukewarm in my support for the Housing Authority, but very strongly in favour of Government's new low-cost, low-income, housing programme.
My fourth suggestion is, I believe, a rather novel one, that we should encourage the building of very much higher blocks of cheap flats in the urban areas, going up perhaps to 30 or 40 storeys. Our fundamental difficulty is the lack of land in the central districts, and if we cannot create enough new land to meet the demand, we must make more use of our existing land. The suggestion to build higher means that building codes will have to be amended, and perhaps town planning principles violated, for this would give ground densities of 4,000 or more to the acre. But every family could have a separate flat with at least 35 sq. ft. of living space per head, and with access to light and air. The alternative appears to be a continuation of bedspace and cubicle life, with scarcely any living space ventilation, cooking or sanitary facilities, and the reduction of new flats to the same conditions in the shortest possible time, with conditions gradually getting worse and worse. The Hon. Financial Secretary jokingly talked about living in buildings a mile high. I wonder if that remark does not contain the key to our problem.
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My fifth and last suggestion is that no real progress will be made in the urban areas, unless Government starts a slum clearance programme in which it has the co-operation of private landlords. They own most of the land, and nothing worthwhile can be done without their support. At present the most advantageous way for them to develop their property is to build comparatively large flats, many of which will almost immediately be cubicled off, reverting very quickly to the insanitary, ill-ventilated slums that they have replaced.
In order to get this co-operation, Government would have to offer considerable incentives. But with its new low-cost housing programme and a relaxation of height restrictions, I believe it could do so. By offering accommodation in its own neighbouring estate at low rentals, a whole area could be cleared of tenants, giving vacant possession to the landlords, on condition that they were prepared to build the type of small one-roomed flat similar to those built by the Housing Authority. Other incentives would be reasonable terms for renewals, and the relaxation of height restrictions. The experience of the Housing Authority has shown that not only is there an enormous demand for this type of flat, but that large profits can be made out of them. In the case of North Point Estate, this amounts to 27.5% after allowing for amortization, interest and management charges.
I believe that only with the participation of the private landowners, who own and control practically all the urban land, is any appreciable improvement going to be effected.
Let me summarize these five suggestions:-
(1) to provide a fast, cheap, modern transportation system
(2) to reclaim new land close to the urban areas
(3) to build for quantity in preference to quality
(4) to allow higher buildings and so accommodate more people on the same amount of land
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50
46
...
50
Page 31 of 150
46
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
limitation is not merely one of finance, but of the availability of vacant land in the urban areas where cheap housing is mostly needed. To find new sites Government has to go into the New Territories, to Castle Peak, Yuen Long, Tsing Yi, Kwai Chung, Junk Bay and Tai Wo Ping. The Housing Authority's two latest estates are at Kwun Tong and Tsuen Wan, and future building may be even further afield. Now all these estates will undoubtedly be of considerable benefit for the new towns which are being created. But they will do very little for the workers in the central urban areas, where I submit our greatest problem lies, for it is here that the great majority work and it is here, close to their work, they want to live.
If we had a modern, fast, cheap transportation system, such as Dr. LEE and others have suggested, many of them would be encouraged to move to the outskirts of the towns and away from the slum areas. Various suggestions have been made, all of which Government appears to have ignored. We have at present a limited number of roads which can barely cope with the present amount of tram and bus services, and which cannot possibly deal with future demands. Until there is sub- stantial improvement, we cannot anticipate any significant move of slum-dwellers out of the towns.
My second suggestion is to develop, by reclamation, new sites near the central urban districts. Government's major reclamation schemes are all far away in the New Territories, which will have little effect on our urban overcrowding, however useful they may be for industry. May I again urge Government to consider the possibilities of reclaiming the 21 million square feet of shallow water on the Kellett Bank, north of Green Island, on which could be built a new residential town only ten minutes away from some of the most con- gested areas in Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon.
My third suggestion is that in allocating public funds, we should aim at quantity rather than quality, in order to accommodate the maximum number of families. Faced with limited funds and the choice between building a large number of very cheap flats, or a lesser number of more luxurious ones, the benefits of housing the largest possible number of people seem to me to far outweigh the extra comfort a smaller number will receive. It is for this reason that I am lukewarm in my support for the Housing Authority, but very strongly in favour of Government's new low-cost, low-income, housing programme.
My fourth suggestion is, I believe, a rather novel one, that we should encourage the building of very much higher blocks of cheap flats in the urban areas, going up perhaps to 30 or 40 storeys. Our fundamental difficulty is the lack of land in the central districts, and if we cannot create enough new land to meet the demand, we must
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
47
make more use of our existing land. The suggestion to build higher means that building codes will have to be amended, and perhaps town planning principles violated, for this would give ground densities of But every family could have a separate flat
4,000 or more to the acre. with at least 35 sq. ft. of living space per head, and with access to light and air. The alternative appears to be a continuation of bedspace and cubicle life, with scarcely any living space ventilation, cooking or sanitary facilities, and the reduction of new flats to the same conditions in the shortest possible time, with conditions gradually getting worse and worse. The Hon. Financial Secretary jokingly talked about living in buildings a mile high. I wonder if that remark does not contain the key to our problem.
My fifth and last suggestion is that no real progress will be made in the urban areas, unless Government starts a slum clearance pro- gramme in which it has the co-operation of private landlords. They own most of the land, and nothing worthwhile can be done without their support. At present the most advantageous way for them to develop their property is to build comparatively large flats, many of which will almost immediately be cubicled off, reverting very quickly to the insanitary, ill-ventilated slums that they have replaced.
In order to get this co-operation, Government would have to offer considerable incentives. But with its new low-cost housing programme and a relaxation of height restrictions, I believe it could do so. By offering accommodation in its own neighbouring estate at low rentals, a whole area could be cleared of tenants, giving vacant possession to the landlords, on condition that they were prepared to build the type of small one roomed flat similar to those built by the Housing Authority. Other incentives would be reasonable terms for renewals, and the relaxation of height restrictions. The experience of the Housing Authority has shown that not only is there an enormous demand for this type of flat, but that large profits can be made out of them. In the case of North Point Estate this amounts to 27.5% after allowing for amortization, interest and management charges.
I believe that only with the participation of the private landowners, who own and control practically all the urban land, is any appreciable improvement going to be effected.
Let me summarize these five suggestions:-
(1) to provide a fast cheap modern transportation system
(2) to reclaim new land close to the urban areas
(3) to build for quantity in preference to quality
(4) to allow higher buildings and so accommodate more
people on the same amount of land
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