Proposed solutions to Hong Kong’s housing crisis ‘conceptual’ and controversial
Document set for public consultation seen by the Post details a list of options that raise doubts over a decision being reached quickly
Doubts are already being cast on whether a public consultation launching on Thursday to find a solution to Hong Kong’s land crisis will reach a consensus, with almost half the 18 options described as “conceptual” and others seen as too controversial, according to a document seen by the Post.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has high hopes for the five-month exercise she calls the “big debate”, as the city struggles to build more flats and prices keep hitting record levels.
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During the consultation, the public will be asked to gauge what the best ways are to make up for the city’s projected shortfall of 1,200 hectares (3,000 acres) of land for housing and economic development for the next 30 years.
Of the 1,200 hectares, 800 have to be accounted for by 2026, the document said.
The 76-page consultation paper, titled Land for Hong Kong: Our Home, Our Say!, categorised eight options, including developing on top of Kwai Tsing Container Terminal and reclaiming part of Plover Cove Reservoir, as conceptual ones because it remained unclear how feasible they were, while the remaining options would be able to produce land within 10 to 30 years.
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The four that could yield the quickest results were: using the Fanling golf course, agricultural land reserves held by private developers, brownfield sites, and relocating or consolidating land-extensive recreational facilities.
