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The following is issued on behalf of the Housing Authority:
Flat entrance metal gate sets or their replacement will be offered by the Housing Authority without cost to tenants of 27 public rental housing (PRH) estates completed between 2003 and 2008.
The authority's Subsidised Housing Committee (SHC) today (July 31) endorsed, after thorough discussion, the arrangements for these PRH flats, in addition to free repair service for all metal gate sets.
Metal gate sets had not been provided in PRH flats since 2003 in accordance with the functional and cost-effective design approach for PRH estates. However, the Housing Authority is aware of the tenantsˇ¦ aspirations for an enhanced sense of home security despite the comprehensive security system of the estates.
To address concern of the tenants, the authority's Building Committee decided earlier this year that new PRH developments completed in 2009 and afterwards would be provided with metal gate sets.
ˇ§Although Housing Authority policies carry no retrospective effect, given metal gate sets is now a standard provision for new PRH flats, we would offer the same to PRH flats completed between 2003 and 2008 which were without metal gate sets at the intake stage,ˇ¨ Chairman of SHC Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung said.
Professor Cheung said the SHC also agreed that it was equitable to offer those tenants who had installed the gates at their own expense free repair services as well as replacement of a new metal gate sets free of charge should tenants consider the condition of their metal gate sets unsatisfactory.
However, for those tenants who are required to move to another PRH flat not provided with metal gate sets under the estate clearance programme, since an ex-gratia allowance of $2,500 had already been paid to them, they would not be covered by the new initiative of offering metal gate sets.
Invitation for applications for the provision or replacement of metal gate sets will start from August 6. While there would be no closing date for submission of application, installation works are expected to complete in about one year upon the application. For those vacant flats, metal gate sets will also be installed.
There are 78,800 flats in 139 blocks of the 27 estates concerned (See table). Among them, 65,900 flats have already been fitted with metal gate sets.
Ends/Friday, July 31, 2009
Issued at HKT 15:18
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