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SCMP Reporter

A new headquarters is being proposed in Yau Ma Tei for the Girl Guides. Up to 25 storeys high, it would provide the group with steady revenue from hostel services.

The Guides yesterday applied to the Government to build on the new site, saying it would make the organisation more self-sufficient.

The site, on the corner of Ferry Street and Jordan Road, would allow for construction of 300 hostel rooms.

The quest for a new headquarters has dragged on since 1993. The existing five-storey Guides headquarters in Gascoigne Road has been unable to cope with a rapid expansion in membership.

Between 1981 and last year, membership grew from 18,000 to more than 43,000. The existing headquarters provide only six rooms for a maximum of 30 guests.

The Government turned down plans to rebuild the headquarters in Gascoigne Road because of likely traffic problems.

Sir David Akers-Jones, chairman of the Guides Development Committee, yesterday warned that the lack of a guaranteed source of revenue would limit the Guides' growth.

He said both the Boy Scouts and YMCA have large hostels in Yau Ma Tei and Tsim Sha Tsui respectively, providing them with sufficient revenue to reduce their reliance on government subsidies. 'At the moment, the Guides are just breaking even,' he said.

The new proposal would improve the Guides' financial position, requiring less government help, he added.

The group presently relies on government subsidies to operate.



New site proposed for Girl Guides HQ