Hong Kong doesn’t need homes on Fanling golf course with big housing projects under way

The city now has the Northern Metropolis and artificial islands developments in the works, alongside a shrinking population and shorter waiting times for public housing
Building on the Fanling site could see us lose business opportunities and prestigious golf tournaments

Ken Chu

Published: 8:15am, 13 Jun 2023

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The controversy over building public housing on the 112-year-old Fanling golf course erupted again last week after the Planning Department proposed a temporary change to the use of the earmarked 32-hectare site from “residential” to “undetermined”.

This set off a barrage of debate on both social and mainstream media. It was only in May that the Environmental Protection Department approved an environmental impact report on partial development of the course for public housing.

Because of the latest change, some might wonder whether the government has had a change of heart about using a fifth of the 172-hectare course to build 12,000 public housing units, plus conservation and recreation areas. However, the Development Bureau said the change in use was only temporary and the authorities remained committed to building public housing.

Either way, this episode can serve as an interlude to re-evaluate the justifications for building housing on this vital golf course, given the risk of losing big business opportunities from the Middle East and continuing to hold prestigious golf tournaments in Hong Kong.

Let’s be realistic. The need to provide affordable homes is less urgent than before. Besides, even if the revised development plan is approved, it would still take quite some time for construction work to begin.

For a better understanding of the issue, we need to go back to 2017. Amid complaints that homes were seriously unaffordable for the grass roots and concern over unbearably long waiting times for a public housing flat, then-chief executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor set about looking at ways to boost land supply.

What next for controversial plan to build housing on Hong Kong golf course?

One of the proposals was to use part of Fanling golf course for public housing. This has drawn both praise and a backlash, with interest groups, conservationists, golf lovers, the business sector and the general public all weighing in.

Now, fast-forward to 2023. Today, there are two major developments in the works – the Kau Yi Chau Artificial Islands project, formerly known as the Lantau Tomorrow Vision, and the Northern Metropolis. Together, they could provide enough private and public housing for more than 1 million people.

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There is also the forecast decline in Hong Kong’s population to take into account. The city has already seen a small drop in numbers following the violent social unrest and Covid-19 pandemic, with the total population falling from about 7.5 million at the end of 2019 to 7.33 million at the end of 2022, according to government figures.

Even so, it is undeniable that some people still struggle to afford decent rental accommodation, and are forced to live in dire conditions in subdivided flats. For others, owning their own home remains a pipe dream, given the high cost of property. Therefore, the government must continue to explore short- and medium-term housing solutions while still pressing on with the Kau Yi Chau and Northern Metropolis projects.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has launched a light public housing scheme and is rolling out more youth hostels, to take some pressure off the housing market. In addition, we should revisit the idea of developing the fringe areas of country parks, as former chief executive Leung Chun-ying has championed.

With positive moves to tackle housing shortages and average public housing waiting times edging down from 5.5 years to 5.3 years last month, we should take this opportunity to evaluate the costs and benefits of using a small amount of land at the Fanling golf course for public housing.

Concerns have been raised, for example, about a lack of access to public transport. More worrying, however, would be the irreversible loss of heritage trees and several critically endangered species if the plan went ahead. It could also affect Hong Kong’s ability to host prominent golf tournaments, including those bankrolled by Saudi Arabia, a country with which Lee has recently worked hard to built rapport.

So, let’s take a step back and examine all the other available options to provide public housing. Perhaps then it will become clear that we can leave the Fanling golf course out of the picture.

Ken Chu is group chairman and CEO of Mission Hills Group and a national committee member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference