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perhaps

we

contradiction and we will have less excuses, the harder we work, so can spend a bit more on this and to achieve our targets, our relationship with the district boards will be better. I think the word 'strengthen can still be used, we will discuss it at the next select committee meeting, I hope that members will continue their interest in district relationships.

MR. BERNACCHI (in English):—Mr. Chairman, I have for the last half an hour been listening not to questions and answers, but to speeches that this is a very important question, yes, but not for the questions and answers time. I would propose, Mr. Chairman, that you perhaps yourself set down a motion that we can discuss not in questions and answers but in speeches duly authorized under our Standing Orders.

CHAIRMAN (in English):-Mr. CHUNG, please make your supplementary question short; and Miss YEUNG, if you wish to answer that question, please be as brief as possible.

MR. AUGUSTINE CHUNG (in Cantonese):—Mr. Chairman, in the course of the questions and answers, a lot of information said on our relationship with the District Boards, I hope Miss YEUNG could clarify one point, District Boards represent their voters and they try to fight for the right of those they represent and when they feel that the Urban Council is not doing all it should, they have a right to ask questions and we have the responsibility of giving them a reply. The District Relations Select Committee has a responsibility of solving problems and to foster relations, but if the Urban Council feels that certain projects have to be cancelled, delayed or whatever, an explanation is due to the District Boards. In fact, both the District Boards and the Urban Council wish to serve the public and our setting up the District Relations Select Committee is to serve the purpose of greater co-ordination and less misunderstanding. So Miss Yeung I would like to ask you, have we been doing enough, any particular problem?

Miss CECILIA YEUNG (in Cantonese):-Thank you, Mr. Chairman, I can tell Mr. CHUNG that at every urban District Board, we have an Assistant Director who answers questions relating to the matters of the Urban Council. In view of our financial stringency there are projects we have had to shelf and there is a bit of ill will felt, but the department will do all its best to give them a fair explanation. The District Boards are natural to have their own opinions, otherwise they would not be the District Boards. As for ourselves, we have the responsibility of strengthening our relationship, I think we have achieved quire a lot. Everybody has responsibilities, we have to understand that everybody wants to serve the public, with that in mind, the problem can be solved.

7. MR. LO KING-MAN asked the following question (in English):-From recollection, some four or five years have passed since some of us attended the Council's superbly organized ceremony to mark the start of the construction of the

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Tsim Sha Tsui Cultural Centre. I understand that there is good prospect that building work will at last actually begin. May I know what were the causes of the delay; whether the project will now be built in phases or completed in its entirety; and in view of the time lapse since the project was first conceived, whether adequate consultation with appropriate experts and prospective users has taken place in the meantime; and finally, whether the design and the proposed facilities have been up-dated to meet the developing needs of our City?

MR. LAWRENCE H. L. FUNG, CHAIRMAN OF THE CULTURE Select CommittEE, replied as follows (in English):-This question deals with the development and the design of the Tsim Sha Tsui Cultural Centre project.

I think I must say initially that this project is one funded by the Government with only limited Council financial input as the Council is mainly involved in financing the cost of the construction of the Administration Block. Thus the timing is very much that of the Government, however, the Council through the Culture Select Committee as well as USD, Cultural Services Division have been following the progress of this project and although the foundation stone for the project was laid early in January 1979, my understanding that actual construction of the Cultural Centre was held up by a number of factors, including:

(a) the substantial rise in construction costs in 1979, which necessitated a

drastic change in the design of the Centre to cut down expenditure;

(b) subsequent revisions of the layout and design of the Cultural Centre to

improve the acoustics and versatility of the auditoria;

(c) the currency fluctuations in 1983, resulting in the need for a further review

of the project estimates in early 1984; and

(d) the lengthy period of time required for selecting tenders for the main

building contract owing to the complexity of the project.

Nevertheless, the main building contract was finally signed on 8 November 1984 witnessed by the Chairman and myself. The contract encompasses the entire project, including the three auditoria, the Administration Block, the Arts Library and the restaurants, all of which are scheduled for completion in late 1987. The contractor is on site now and construction has started.

The current design of the Cultural Centre was drawn up with input from both expert consultants and professional performing groups in their capacity as future users. The consultants employed were:

(a) acoustics consultants Professor A. H. MARSHALL of New Zealand and

Campbell & shillinglaw of Hong Kong;

(b) stage equipment and lighting consultant Mr. John WYCKHAM of the United

Kingdom;

(c) sound systems consultant Dr. Jacek FIGWER of the United States; and (d) pipe organ consultant Mr. Geraint JONES of the United Kingdom.

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