1967 — Page 173

Page 173 of 259

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

At that time after the disastrous Shek Kip Mei fire, there were thousands of people who were left homeless. It was therefore necessary to put up housing with the utmost speed. The result was that the buildings that were erected were simple in the extreme. The accommodation provided was little more than a bare concrete room, without electricity, water or a place to cook, let alone a proper kitchen. Lavatory and washing facilities were communal and were inadequate to say the least.

Since then, the quality of the accommodation provided has steadily improved, and I believe we must continue such improvement. For this reason, the Housing Board's recommendation that on first allocation, the space standard in new resettlement blocks should be increased from a minimum of 24 sq. ft. to 35 sq. ft. per adult, is very welcome. This represents an increase in accommodation of about 30%, but I believe that the cost of providing the additional accommodation is nowhere near 30%. The extra accommodation will be added in the new mark 6 blocks by making the rooms deeper, and I understand that this would not increase the cost of construction by more than a few per cent.

There are also other ways, which we can improve our resettlement estates. All the estates have large areas of open ground. Some of these are required for use as hawker bazaars, but the rest are available for use as recreation grounds or playgrounds. I believe that those areas, which are intended to be used as recreation grounds should be finished and fitted for use as such at the same time as the resettlement buildings are erected. They will then be available for use as soon as the buildings are completed. At present, it is the task of the Urban Council to put in these recreation facilities, and in some cases, it is years after the estate is finished before funds are available to do this. I believe this is wrong. The recreational facilities form part of the estate and their cost should be included as part of the cost of erecting the estate.

The play equipment installed need not be very elaborate. A few simple items such as those metal contraptions for children to climb on, which I believe are known as Jungle Jims, and a few swings and slides, will turn a bleak and unattractive area of concrete into a playground, where a large number of children may enjoy themselves. There is no need to instal expensive equipment or equipment which is easily broken.

Providing such recreation facilities will also have another beneficial effect, they will tend to keep away hawkers who might otherwise congregate on the open ground. Instead, hawkers should be confined to certain designated hawker bazaars within the estate. These hawker bazaars could be made more attractive for the hawkers themselves and their customers by providing a simple cement concrete structure. This need only consist of a roof and a couple of shelves for the hawkers to display their wares and somewhere for goods to be locked up overnight. The cost of such a structure need not be high. A small rent should be charged to the hawker. I am quite sure he will be glad to pay this, as it will immediately raise his status from that of a hawker to something very close to a shop-keeper. I believe this type of hawker bazaar has been tried in Housing Authority estate with success.

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

321

To go further, I would suggest that cafes serving Chinese light refreshments should be allowed in all areas of Hong Kong and not only in resettlement estates. The need for such cafes is more acute in resettlement estates but I believe there is also a need in other urban areas.

Page 174 of 259

320

Page 173 of 259

320

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

At that time after the disastrous Shek Kip Mei fire, there were thousands of people who were left homeless. It was therefore necessary to put up housing with the utmost speed. The result was that the buildings that were erected were simple in the extreme. The accommodation provided was little more than a bare concrete room, without electricity, water or a place to cook, let alone a proper kitchen. Lavatory and washing facilities were communal and were inadequate to say the least.

Since then, the quality of the accommodation provided has steadily improved, and I believe we must continue such improvement. For this reason, the Housing Board's recommendation that on first allocation, the space standard in new resettlement blocks should be increased from a minimum of 24 sq. ft. to 35 sq. ft. per adult, is very welcome. This represents an increase in accommodation of about 30%, but I believe that the cost of providing the additional accommodation is nowhere near 30%. The extra accommodation will be added in the new mark 6 blocks by making the rooms deeper, and I understand that this would not increase the cost of construction by more than a few per cent.

There are also other ways, which we can improve our resettlement estates. All the estates have large areas of open ground. Some of these are required for use as hawker bazaars, but the rest are available for use as recreation grounds or playgrounds. I believe that those areas, which are intended to be used as recreation grounds should be finished and fitted for use as such at the same time as the resettlement buildings are erected. They will then be available for use as soon as the buildings are completed. At present, it is the task of the Urban Council to put in these recreation facilities, and in some cases, it is years after the estate is finished before funds are available to do this. I believe this is wrong. The recreational facilities form part of the estate and their cost should be included as part of the cost of erecting the estate.

The play equipment installed need not be very elaborate. A few simple items such as those metal contraptions for children to climb on, which I believe are known as Jungle Jims, and a few swings and slides, will turn a bleak and unattractive area of concrete into a playground, where a large number of children may enjoy themselves. There is no need to instal expensive equipment or equipment which is easily broken.

Providing such recreation facilities will also have another beneficial effect, they will tend to keep away hawkers who might otherwise congregate on the open ground. Instead, hawkers should be confined to certain designated hawker bazaars within the estate. These hawker bazaars could be made more attractive for the hawkers themselves and their customers by providing a simple cement concrete structure. This need only consist of a roof and a couple of shelves for the hawkers to display their wares and somewhere for goods to be locked up overnight. The cost of such a structure need not be high. A small rent should be charged to the hawker. I am quite sure he will be glad to pay this, as it will immediately raise his status from that of a hawker to something very close to a shop-keeper. I believe this type of hawker bazaar has been tried in Housing Authority estate with success.

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

321

In addition to hawkers carrying on business lawfully in resettlement estates, we also have to deal with the problem of illegal hawkers and in particular, hawkers selling cooked food. Of course, this is illegal, but enforcement of the law is difficult. In addition to enforcing the law by prosecuting these illegal cooked food hawkers, we should also tackle this problem by providing alternative means of serving meals. I believe that a substantial percentage of people in resettlement estates have to take meals outside their homes. If they are factory workers and work on shifts, it may not be possible for meals to be provided for them at home. This is where the cooked food hawker comes in. In order to provide cheap and satisfying meals for these people, we should encourage cafes serving a Chinese type of light refreshment, such as congee, noodles and wan tun and other similar Chinese dishes, which are easy to prepare and cook. Of course, there are already general restaurants in the estates, which are licensed to provide all types of meals, but the requirements for obtaining a General Restaurant Licence are stiff and relatively expensive to comply with. Accordingly, the meals they serve must of necessity be more expensive than those provided by the cooked food hawkers. The service provided by the general restaurants is very necessary, but I believe the establishment of light refreshment cafes will do much to bridge the gap. It may be feared that the light refreshment cafes will not in practice restrict themselves to serve dishes which they are licensed to serve, but will tend to increase their range of dishes, in an effort to see that the customer will get what he has asked for. Of course, there is a danger of this, and these light refreshment cafes may require a good deal of supervision, but even if they do serve dishes which they are not licensed to do, at least they will have proper cooking and washing facilities, though they may be somewhat inadequate as compared with those in general restaurants. In any event, they will be far superior to the cooked food hawker which they are intended to replace. I do not see this as a lowering of standards of hygiene. I see it as an attempt to raise the standard of cleanliness and hygiene above that of a cooked food hawker.

To go further, I would suggest that cafes serving Chinese light refreshments should be allowed in all areas of Hong Kong and not only in resettlement estates. The need for such cafes is more acute in resettlement estates but I believe there is also a need in other urban areas.

Page 174 of 259

321

Page 173 of 259

320

Page 173 of 259

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

At that time after the disastrous Shek Kip Mei fire, there were thousands of people who were left homeless. It was therefore necessary to put up housing with the utmost speed. The result was that the buildings that were erected were simple in the extreme. The accommodation provided was little more than a bare concrete room, without electricity, water or a place to cook, let alone a proper kitchen. Lavatory and washing facilities were communal and were inadequate to say the least.

Since then, the quality of the accommodation provided has steadily improved, and I believe we must continue such improvement. For this reason, the Housing Board's recommendation that on first allocation, the space standard in new resettlement blocks should be increased from a minimum of 24 sq. ft. to 35 sq. ft. per adult, is very welcome. This represents an increase in accommodation of about 30%, but I believe that the cost of providing the additional accommodation is nowhere near 30%. The extra accommodation will be added in the new mark 6 blocks by making the rooms deeper, and I understand that this would not increase the cost of construction by more than a few per cent.

There are also other ways, which we can improve our resettlement estates. All the estates have large areas of open ground. Some of these are required for use as hawker bazaars, but the rest are available for use as recreation grounds or playgrounds. I believe that those areas, which are intended to be used as recreation grounds should be finished and fitted for use as such at the same time as the resettlement buildings are erected. They will then be available for use as soon as the buildings are completed. At present, it is the task of the Urban Council to put in these recreation facilities, and in some cases, it is years after the estate is finished before funds are available to do this. I believe this is wrong. The recreational facilities form part of the estate and their cost should be included as part of the cost of erecting the estate.

The play equipment installed need not be very elaborate. A few simple items such as those metal contraptions for children to climb on, which I believe are known as Jungle Jims, and a few swings and slides, will turn a bleak and unattractive area of concrete into a playground, where a large number of children may enjoy themselves. There is no need to instal expensive equipment or equipment which is easily broken.

Providing such recreation facilities will also have another beneficial effect, they will tend to keep away hawkers who might otherwise congregate on the open ground. Instead, hawkers should be confined to certain designated hawker bazaars within the estate. These hawker bazaars could be made more attractive for the hawkers themselves and their customers by providing a simple cement concrete structure. This need only consist of a roof and a couple of shelves for the hawkers to display their wares and somewhere for goods to be locked up overnight. The cost of such a structure need not be high. A small rent should be charged to the hawker. I am quite sure he will be glad to pay this, as it will immediately raise his status from that of a hawker to something very close to a shop-keeper. I believe this type of hawker bazaar has been tried in Housing Authority estate with success.

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

321

In addition to hawkers carrying on business lawfully in resettlement estates, we also have to deal with the problem of illegal hawkers and in particular, hawkers selling cooked food. Of course, this is illegal, but enforcement of the law is difficult. In addition to enforcing the law by prosecuting these illegal cooked food hawkers, we should also tackle this problem by providing alternative means of serving meals. I believe that a substantial percentage of people in resettlement estates have to take meals outside their homes. If they are factory workers and work on shifts, it may not be possible for meals to be provided for them at home. This is where the cooked food hawker comes in. In order to provide cheap and satisfying meals for these people, we should encourage cafes serving a Chinese type of light refreshment, such as congee, noodles and wan tun and other similar Chinese dishes, which are easy to prepare and cook. Of course, there are already general restaurants in the estates, which are licensed to provide all types of meals, but the requirements for obtaining a General Restaurant Licence are stiff and relatively expensive to comply with. Accordingly, the meals they serve must of necessity be more expensive than those provided by the cooked food hawkers. The service provided by the general restaurants is very necessary, but I believe the establishment of light refreshment cafes will do much to bridge the gap. It may be feared that the light refreshment cafes will not in practice restrict themselves to serve dishes which they are licensed to serve, but will tend to increase their range of dishes, in an effort to see that the customer will get what he has asked for. Of course, there is a danger of this, and these light refreshment cafes may require a good deal of supervision, but even if they do serve dishes which they are not licensed to do, at least they will have proper cooking and washing facilities, though they may be somewhat inadequate as compared with those in general restaurants. In any event, they will be far superior to the cooked food hawker which they are intended to replace. I do not see this as a lowering of standards of hygiene. I see it as an attempt to raise the standard of cleanliness and hygiene above that of a cooked food hawker.

To go further, I would suggest that cafes serving Chinese light refreshments should be allowed in all areas of Hong Kong and not only in resettlement estates. The need for such cafes is more acute in resettlement estates but I believe there is also a need in other urban areas.

Page 174 of 259