Draft Tsim Sha Tsui Outline Zoning Plan approved
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     The Chief Executive in Council has approved the draft Tsim Sha Tsui Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).

     "The approved OZP provides a statutory land use planning framework to guide development and redevelopment within the Tsim Sha Tsui area," a spokesman for the Town Planning Board said today (May 6).

     The planning scheme area, covering about 192 hectares, is located at the southern tip of Kowloon Peninsula.  It is bounded by Victoria Harbour to the south; Jordan Road and Gascoigne Road to the north; and Hung Hom Bay Reclamation to the east.
 
     About 47.1 hectares of land are zoned "Commercial" ("C").  Most of the land in Tsim Sha Tsui East is zoned "C" and almost all of these sites have been developed into hotels and purposely designed commercial buildings.  The sites located along Nathan Road, Canton Road, Salisbury Road and Chatham Road South, which have been developed into offices, hotels, department stores and banks, are major employment nodes.  A maximum plot ratio of 12 is imposed on all sites zoned "C" in view of the concentration of commercial activities in the area and the associated traffic congestion and environmental problems.

     About 1.2 hectares of land are zoned "Comprehensive Development Area" to facilitate appropriate planning control over the development mix, scale, design and layout of development.  The former Marine Police Headquarters site at Salisbury Road and Canton Road falls within this zone and is intended for a tourism-themed commercial development.  

     About 7 hectares of land are zoned "Residential (Group A)" which generally covers established high-density residential areas north of Austin Road between the section of Cox's Road and Canton Road.  About 0.6 hectare of land, which has been developed as Carmen's Garden and Emperor Height at Coxˇ¦s Road, is zoned "Residential (Group B)".

     About 20.6 hectares of land are zoned "Government, Institution or Community" for the provision of various GIC facilities to serve local, district and territorial needs.  Facilities of territorial or regional significance include the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Hong Kong Observatory, the International Mail Centre, the Swimming Pool and Indoor Games Hall Complex at Kowloon Park, a cross-boundary bus terminus, the Boy Scout Association Headquarters with hostels, and the Consumer Education and Information Centre.  Other facilities to serve local needs include a municipal services building with market, indoor sports centre and cooked food centre, a fire station, a police station, schools and churches.

     About 23.7 hectares of land are zoned "Open Space".  Major open space includes the sizeable Kowloon Park and the extensive stretch of public promenade along the south-eastern waterfront extending eastwards to the Hung Hom Bay Reclamation Area.  Several stretches of open space are developed along Chatham Road South to the west of Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

     About 47.2 hectares of land are zoned "Other Specified Uses" ("OU") for specific uses.  The major "OU" sites include Ocean Terminal and the adjacent area south of Salisbury Road covering the ferry concourse, bus terminus, the cultural complex and the underground commercial complex adjoining the New World Hotel site.  The "OU" sites at Tsim Sha Tsui west, including the Ocean Terminal site, are subject to building height restrictions to prevent excessive high-rise developments at these strategic locations from protruding into the harbour.

     Building height restrictions are incorporated into the OZP to provide better planning control on future development/redevelopment.  It is intended to prevent further excessively tall or out-of-context buildings in the area as well as to preserve views to the ridgelines, achieve a stepped height profile for visual and air permeability, and maintain a more intertwined relationship with the Victoria Harbour edge.

     The approved Tsim Sha Tsui OZP No. S/K1/26 is now available for public inspection during office hours at the Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, the Planning Enquiry Counters of Planning Department in North Point and Sha Tin, the Tsuen Wan and West Kowloon District Planning Office and the Yau Tsim Mong District Office.

     Copies of the approved plan are available for sale at the Map Publications Centres in North Point and Yau Ma Tei.  The electronic version of the plan can be viewed at the Board's website (www.info.gov.hk/tpb).

Ends/Friday, May 6, 2011
Issued at HKT 17:05

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