Use Hong Kong’s country park fringes for housing, rural body tells city leader
- Heung Yee Kuk, which represents indigenous villages, reports ‘positive’ response after ‘down-to-earth’ discussion with chief executive
- Group also proposes changing rural zoning policies to allow high-rise blocks in certain areas
Hong Kong’s rural leaders have renewed calls for the fringes of country parks to be used for housing, suggesting Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu include the measure in next month’s policy address.
The Heung Yee Kuk, a government-recognised body that represents the interest of indigenous villagers, on Monday also proposed changing the current zoning policies to allow high-rise blocks to be built on village land areas, in what they described as a “rural redevelopment” approach.
Kuk chairman Kenneth Lau Ip-keung, also a lawmaker and a member of the Executive Council, a key-decision making body, said members had a “down-to-earth” and “honest” discussion with Lee and had received a “positive” response.
Alongside nine rural leaders, Lau said much of the discussion surrounded proposals on how to make better use of rural areas to boost the city’s land and housing supply.
Hong Kong is among the world’s least affordable housing markets and the average waiting time for a public low-rental flat stands at six years.
Lau said some rural villages, especially those near train stations, were suitable for high-rise development but had been barred from doing so due to the “village-type development” zoning regulations, which limited building height.
“Our views are that the land should be rezoned for residential development,” he said. “The government can use one-third of the land for public housing, and private developers can also use another third for private housing, while the rest can be used to build high-rise blocks to rehouse affected villagers. As such, we can create a three-win situation.”
