LCQ12: Proposal of rezoning a "Green Belt" site in Tai Wo Ping

Following is a question by the Hon Claudia Mo and a written reply by the Secretary for Development, Mr Paul Chan, in the Legislative Council today (March 18):

Question:

In March 2014, the Government proposed to rezone a "Green Belt" (GB) site in Tai Wo Ping, Sham Shui Po (Tai Wo Ping site) for housing development and make corresponding amendments to the relevant approved Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).  It also consulted the Sham Shui Po District Council (SSPDC) on this proposal.  Some residents in Tai Wo Ping have complained to me that the authorities develop the site arbitrarily by rezoning it for building luxurious properties.  In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) given that the two-stage review for the purpose of rezoning GB sites for housing development conducted by the Planning Department merely focused respectively on devegetated, deserted or formed GB sites, as well as the GB sites situated in the fringe of urban areas and new development areas having relatively low buffering effect and conservation value, yet the Tai Wo Ping site is vegetated, close to the Lion Rock Country Park and considered by some environmental groups as having a high conservation value, e.g. the rare limnonectes fujianensis being discovered there, why the authorities have still proposed to rezone the Tai Wo Ping site for housing development;

(2) given that some residents are worried that the construction of residential properties in the Tai Wo Ping site will involve construction works being carried out on steep hillside slopes, streams, valleys and dense forests, and will therefore damage the environment and ecology in the vicinity, as well as endanger the survival of various types of animals and plants, of the authorities' measures to prevent the occurrence of such a situation;

(3) given that some residents consider that the housing development carried out at the Tai Wo Ping site will reduce the green area in the Sham Shui Po district, thereby aggravating the air quality problem in the district, which is already more severe than that of other districts, whether the authorities have taken into account this factor when proposing the rezoning of the Tai Wo Ping site and conducted any environmental impact assessment study; if they have, of the results;

(4) whether it has assessed if the education and medical facilities, etc. in the district will be sufficient to meet the demand for services arising from the new population brought by the housing development carried out at the Tai Wo Ping site and the successive completion of the public housing developments nearby; if it has, of the results; if not, the reasons for that;

(5) given that some residents have pointed out that the reserve capacity at the junction of Nam Cheong Street and Cornwall Street can hardly meet the traffic demand arising from the housing development carried out at the Tai Wo Ping site, of the results and detailed data of the traffic impact assessment(s) conducted by the authorities;

(6) whether it has considered other alternatives to the rezoning of the Tai Wo Ping site, such as redeveloping Tai Hang Sai Estate and rezoning the sites of vacant school premises in the district to residential sites, etc.; and

(7) given that SSPDC has passed, by a clear majority, a motion objecting the submission of the proposed amendments to the relevant OZP by the authorities to the Town Planning Board (TPB) and requesting the authorities to provide relevant details first, yet the authorities still submitted those proposed amendments to TPB in mid-2014, causing some residents to think that public views have been ignored, whether the authorities will consider withdrawing the proposed amendments so as to seek public views on this issue?

Reply:

President,

The Government announced in December 2014 the adoption of a total housing supply target of 480,000 units for the ten-year period from 2015-16 to 2024-25 (with a 60%:40% public-private housing split) to cater for the housing needs of the public.  To achieve this target, the Government must continue to adopt a multi-pronged strategy to increase housing land supply in the short, medium and long term through continued and systematic implementation of a series of measures, including making optimal use of developed land as far as practicable and creating new land for development. 
  
The Government is taking forward a series of projects, including New Development Areas, expansion of new towns, reclamation and rock cavern development.  It takes time to implement these land development projects before land can be supplied for development.  For example, comprehensive planning and technical studies are needed for the development of "brownfield sites"; technical feasibility studies and environmental impact assessment, etc. are also required for reclamation and other large-scale development projects.  As a result, most of the projects can only supply land in the medium and long term.  However, at present, Hong Kong is facing a tight land supply situation.  The Government has to increase and expedite land supply in the most expeditious and effective way within a short period of time.  We therefore have to make optimal use of the developed land in the existing urban areas and new towns, as well as the land in the vicinity of the existing infrastructure.  A practical way to systematically make optimal use of such land is to carry out various land use reviews to identify suitable sites for residential development.  Reviewing Green Belt ("GB") sites is an important part of such work.
  
As pointed out by the Government on various occasions in the past, the Stage 1 "GB" review completed by the Planning Department (PlanD) in 2012 mainly focused on devegetated, deserted or formed "GB" sites and proposed to rezone 13 sites (57 hectares in total) for residential development.  In 2013, PlanD completed the Stage 2 "GB" review, covering "GB" sites in the fringe of built-up areas close to existing urban areas and new towns.  These sites mainly fall on the fringe of "GBs" or are close to developed areas or public roads.  These "GB" sites, though vegetated, have relatively less buffering effect and lower conservation value.  As these sites are close to supporting infrastructure facilities (e.g. those related to transport, water supply and sewerage, etc.), they are considered having good potential to be rezoned for housing purpose and suitable for urban expansion.
  
As of end February 2015, there were about 15,700 hectares of land zoned "GB" in the statutory plans of Hong Kong.  As announced in early 2014, the Government had identified about 70 "GB" sites.  If the statutory plan amendments for all the relevant sites are completed as planned, it is estimated that most of these sites could be available for residential use within the five-year period between 2014-15 and 2018-19.  The some 70 "GB" sites, which are estimated to have a total area of about 150 hectares representing only about 1% of the "GB" sites in Hong Kong, are capable of providing over 80,000 public and private residential flats, over 70% of which will be public housing.
  
I reply to the seven parts of the question as follows:
  
(1) and (2) In the Stage 2 "GB" review completed in 2013 by PlanD, the site located north of Yin Ping Road at Tai Wo Ping was identified as one of the sites suitable for rezoning for private residential use.  This site (about 2 hectares) was formerly part of the Tai Wo Ping squatter area, and was cleared in the late 1980s together with the site on which Dynasty Heights now stands.  This site has since been gradually covered with vegetation as a result of natural succession.  According to the tree survey conducted by the Lands Department (LandsD), there are about 680 trees at the site, all tree species on site are commonly found in Hong Kong, such as Macaranga tanarius, Mallotus paniculatus, Cetlis sinensis, Ficus variegata, Sterculia lanceolata and Microcos nervosa, etc.  There are no precious trees listed in the Register of Old and Valuable Trees.

The subject site is located in the downhill zone 70 metres south of the Lion Rock Country Park.  The vast expanse of "GB" zone outside the site and north of Lung Cheung Road/Tai Po Road, Sham Shui Po (about 82 hectares) and the Lion Rock Country Park (about 557 hectares) (639 hectares in total) both provide suitable habitats for wildlife.  Therefore, the proposed development will not have insurmountable impact on wildlife.

Regarding the big-headed frog that certain organisations reported to have found, it is categorised as being "Least Concern" on the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and it is found every so often in the New Territories.  Before the commencement of site formation works, the Government will arrange for verification of the relevant species and take appropriate measures to translocate the species to nearby woodlands and streams.

(3) LandsD has conducted a tree survey in respect of the subject site to ascertain the number of trees (about 680 trees) and those requiring preservation.  The Government will require the developer to preserve, transplant or replant trees in accordance with the established greening guidelines and tree preservation mechanisms to minimise potential impact on the natural environment.

The maximum building height (BH) of the proposed development is 210mPD; its height profile is compatible with the BH (with a height restriction of 194mPD) of the development of Dynasty Heights (zoned "Residential (Group C)5") nearby.  Besides, the subject site is located in the hillside area of Tai Wo Ping.  To the north are Eagle's Nest and Beacon Hill (about 305mPD and 436mPD respectively).  Therefore, the development concerned will neither have significant urban design and visual impact on the local areas nor be incompatible with the surrounding environment.  The subject site does not lie on the major air ventilation corridors in Shum Shui Po District and is located in the northwest part of Shek Kip Mei.  It is expected that the proposed development will not cause any obstruction to the annual and summer prevailing winds in the local areas, and thus having no negative air ventilation impact on the developments in the vicinity.

In sum, the proposed residential development at the subject site will not cause significant environmental, visual and air ventilation impacts on the local areas. 

(4) According to the 2011 Census, Sham Shui Po District has a population of around 380,900.  With the planned residential development projects (including the planned residential development at the Yin Ping Road site), it is estimated that the population of the District would increase to about 530,000.

At present, the provision of main Government, Institution and Community (GIC) facilities and open space complies with the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines (HKPSG).  After the addition of these housing sites, the various planned facilities will still be generally sufficient.  The Government will make reference to the level of facilities suggested in the HKPSG and take into account the demographic development of Sham Shui Po District to provide the residents with appropriate and sufficient GIC facilities and open space.

(5) At present, the reserve capacities of the junction of Nam Cheong Street and Cornwall Street are 11% (am) and 28% (pm).

The Transport Department (TD) plans to increase the number of northbound lanes of Nam Cheong Street from two to three to increase the design flow of the junction at Nam Cheong Street and Cornwall Street.  According to TD's estimation, after the completion of the improvement works, the reserve capacities of this junction in the year 2029 will be 0.46% (am) and 8.33% (pm).  Therefore, even if the proposed development of the Yin Ping Road site and those nearby are taken into account, the traffic capacity of the junction will still be able to meet the demand up to 2029.

(6) As mentioned above, the Government has to continue to adopt a multi-pronged strategy to increase land supply in the short, medium and long term.  In the face of strong public demand for housing, we must implement a series of land supply measures to increase overall housing land supply.

The rezoning of the Yin Ping Road site for housing development, the redevelopment of Tai Hang Sai Estate and the development of vacant school premises are three independent topics.  They are neither mutually exclusive nor interchangeable.  Tai Hang Sai Estate is a private rental housing estate and its redevelopment proposal is not a redevelopment project under the Hong Kong Housing Authority, while the review of vacant school premises is part of the on-going land use reviews carried out by the Government.  Past examples of rezoning vacant school premises for housing development include Kin Tak Public School in Kwu Tung, Peng Chau Chi Yan Public School and Hong Kong Christian Service Pui Oi School in Tuen Mun, etc.

(7) The Sham Shui Po (SSP) District Council (DC) was consulted on March 4, April 29 and May 19, 2014 on the proposed rezoning of the Yin Ping Road site for housing development.  In response to the request of DC members, further information on technical assessment was provided in the relevant DC papers.  As set out in the relevant papers, after considering the views of the DC and other stakeholders, the area and scale of the proposed development of the Yin Ping Road site were reduced.  The site area and the maximum gross floor area were reduced from about 2.84 hectares and about 81,790 square metres to about 2.04 hectares and about 58,750 square metres respectively.

Having consulted SSPDC in accordance with the established procedures, PlanD submitted on June 27, 2014 the amendment proposal for rezoning the Yin Ping Road site, together with the views and suggestions (including motions) of the DC and other stakeholders collected during consultation, to the Metro Planning Committee (MPC) of the Town Planning Board (TPB) for consideration.  The draft Shek Kip Mei Outline Zoning Plan No. S/K4/28 incorporating the proposed amendment was exhibited for public inspection for two months from July 18, 2014 to September 18, 2014 under section 5 of the Town Planning Ordinance (the Ordinance).  PlanD further consulted SSPDC on the amendment on September 2, 2014.

In accordance with the provisions of the Ordinance, TPB has invited the public to submit representations and comments on the rezoning proposal.  The representers/commenters have also been invited to attend the relevant TPB meeting to make oral representation.

The Government understands that the DC and the local community may hold different views on the rezoning proposal to increase housing supply.  The Government all along discusses with relevant DCs, explains rezoning proposals as far as possible and listens to the views of local community before a statutory plan is amended.

Providing sufficient land to achieve the housing target is a huge challenge for both the Government and the community.  An integral part of the process is the support and understanding of the DCs, local districts and residents.  The community as a whole has to make hard choices and accept trade-offs in order to cater for the imminent housing needs of Hong Kong people.

Ends/Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Issued at HKT 14:30

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