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Following is a question by the Hon Frederick Fung Kin-kee and a reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Ms Eva Cheng, in the Legislative Council today (March 9):
Question:
It has been learnt that Tai Hang Sai Estate, which is located in the urban area of Kowloon, is a private low-cost housing estate owned and managed by the Hong Kong Settlers Housing Corporation Limited (HKSHCL). The buildings in the estate are almost 50 years of age, and in terms of living environment and building quality, etc., they have fallen into a very dilapidated and severely aged condition, with building specifications and level of ancillary facilities lagging far behind. Over the years, some residents have called for redevelopment and rehousing. HKSHCL has also proposed a relevant redevelopment plan under which Tai Hang Sai Estate will be redeveloped into a low-cost housing estate in tandem with the construction of private housing for sale to offset the overall redevelopment costs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of private low-cost housing estates in Hong Kong at present; the principles based on which and the means through which the Government approved and subsidised the development of private low-cost housing estates at that time; the latest policy direction in this regard; the support and financial assistance rendered by the Government in the past to private low-cost housing estates in need of redevelopment and rehousing;
(b) as it has been learnt that some of the tenants living in Tai Hang Sai Estate were rehoused in the estate by the Hong Kong Housing Authority as a result of redevelopment of public rental housing (PRH) estates, yet they do not possess the status of PRH tenants, nor can they use the green form to apply for flats under the Home Ownership Scheme, and they will not even be rehoused in the future when Tai Hang Sai Estate is redeveloped, of the number of such tenants; the justifications of the authorities for depriving them of the rights of PRH tenants; whether the Government will, based on the principle of fairness and reasonableness, grant these tenants again the rights of PRH residents, such as rehousing; if not, of the reasons for that; and
(c) on the premises of meeting the housing needs of the grassroots, increasing the supply of residential flats in the urban area and effectively using the limited urban land resources, etc., whether the authorities will seriously study and consider various feasible options in order to fully resolve without delay the problem of deplorable living conditions in Tai Hang Sai Estate through redevelopment and rehousing programmes, etc.?
Reply:
President,
Tai Hang Sai Estate is a private housing estate which was built and managed by the Hong Kong Settlers Housing Corporation Limited (HKSHCL) according to the conditions of the land lease concerned. The Government and the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) do not exercise any control over the said Estate. The HKSHCL is seeking the Government's views on the future redevelopment of Tai Hang Sai Estate and relevant government departments are actively following up on the issue. The Government will explore with the HKSHCL on how best to assist it in this respect.
My reply to the three-part question raised by the Hon Frederick Fung is as follows.
(a) At present, Tai Hang Sai Estate is the only private rental housing estate in Hong Kong which provides rental flats for low-income families at rents lower than the market level. The estate is not owned or managed by the HA or the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS).
The HKSHCL is a non-profit-making organisation formed and financed by a group of prominent social figures. To rehouse the tenants affected by the clearance of the then Tai Hang Sai Resettlement Area, the Government granted a parcel of land at a concessionary rate to the HKSHCL in 1961 for the development of Tai Hang Sai Estate and stipulated under the land lease that the HKSHCL should build on the land granted at least 1 600 flats for letting to the low-income group. In addition, the Government granted a loan amounting to $10 million to the HKSHCL at an interest of 5% per annum for the construction of the estate. The HKSHCL has repaid all the money concerned to the Government.
The current subsidised housing policy of the Government mainly focuses on assisting low-income families or persons who cannot afford private rental accommodation through the provision of public rental housing (PRH) by the HA. We will continue to provide PRH flats through the HA to low-income families or persons with housing needs.
The Government has not handled any redevelopment cases of similar nature to that of Tai Hang Sai Estate in the past.
(b) I would like to briefly explain the background concerning some former PRH tenants of the HA who were rehoused in the Tai Hang Sai Estate. In 1980, the Board of the HKSHCL made a request to the HA to seek the HA's assistance to provide tenants for the then newly-built Man Tai House in the Tai Hang Sai Estate. As such, the HA put up notices in some old Mark I and Mark II estates in Kowloon to inform the PRH tenants of the invitation from the HKSHCL. Upon their applications for moving to the Tai Hang Sai Estate which were made on a voluntary basis, the HA helped arrange for them to move into the Estate with a view to improving their living environment. According to the records of the Housing Department (HD), a total of 181 households were rehoused from the HA's PRH estates to Tai Hang Sai Estate through the above arrangement on a voluntary basis in around 1981.
Any PRH tenants will cease to have PRH tenant status upon their moving out of PRH flats, irrespective of how they were rehoused or in which HA's PRH estates they once resided. According to the current policy, should any former PRH tenants need to move back to the HA's PRH flats, they will have to apply for PRH flats through the PRH Waiting List.
For those households who moved out from PRH flats to Tai Hang Sai Estate, they ceased to have PRH tenant status upon their moving out of their PRH flats. Their position is no different from that of the other Tai Hang Sai Estate tenants. If in future there are redevelopment and rehousing issues, these households will be treated on a par with all other Tai Hang Sai Estate tenants.
(c) Given that the Government granted to the HKSHCL the land for developing the Tai Hang Sai Estate at a concessionary rate and stipulated in the land lease that the HKSHCL should build on the land at least 1 600 flats for letting to the low-income group, should the HKSHCL decide to clear and redevelop the Tai Hang Sai Estate, it must take into account various factors and apply to the relevant government departments as appropriate. Tai Hang Sai Estate and its vicinity is classified as a Comprehensive Development Area (CDA) in the latest revised Shek Kip Mei Outline Zoning Plan. According to the Town Planning Ordinance, an application and a master layout plan must be submitted to the Town Planning Board for any redevelopment project within the CDA zone.
As mentioned above, the HKSHCL is seeking the Government's views on the future redevelopment of Tai Hang Sai Estate and relevant government departments are actively following up on the issue. The Government will explore with the HKSHCL ways to facilitate its decision on the future of the Estate.
Ends/Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Issued at HKT 14:27
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