Following is the transcript of the opening remarks by the Secretary for Development, Mr Michael Wong, at a media session today (December 30) on the land sale programme for January to March 2022: In the f… read more
The Government announced today (December 30) the quarterly land sale programme for the fourth quarter of 2021-22, i.e. January to March 2022.
“In the fourth quarter of 2021-22, the Government will sell by tender a residential site in Tuen Mun, providing a supply of about 2 020 flats. The Government will impose a minimum flat size restriction on this site, prescribing in the tender conditions that the saleable area of each flat has to reach at least 26 square metres (around 280 square feet),” the Secretary for Development, Mr Michael Wong, said.
He added that when considering the imposition of such a restriction, the Government had taken into account the minimum flat size requirement of 23 sq m (around 250 sq ft) in saleable area for the Starter Homes for Hong Kong Residents pilot project on Anderson Road, Kwun Tong. The Tuen Mun site is for private residential housing, which is the next rung up the home ownership ladder, so the minimum requirement should be higher than that of subsidised housing. Furthermore, according to the provisional figures of the Rating and Valuation Department, in the past five years, about 13 per cent of completed private residential unit supply were smaller than 26 sq m, which means that the new measure would impact on about one-eighth of the private housing supply.
In the fourth quarter, the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) also plans to sell by tender a development project at Pak Shing Kok Ventilation Building, capable of producing about 550 units. The MTRCL will follow the arrangements of the Government and adopt the same minimum flat size requirement for the project. In addition, the Urban Renewal Authority plans to sell by tender two development projects at Hung Fook Street/Kai Ming Street and Wing Kwong Street/Kai Ming Street, To Kwa Wan, which are capable of producing about 890 units in total.
On private development and redevelopment projects, five projects are expected to have their lease modifications completed in the fourth quarter, capable of producing about 2 220 units.
“The total private housing land supply in the fourth quarter would be able to provide about 5 680 flats. Together with the supply of around 14 400 flats in the first three quarters, the total private housing land supply of the financial year from various sources amounts to some 20 080 flats, exceeding our private housing supply annual target (12 900 flats) by about 55 per cent and is a new high in recent years,” Mr Wong said.
As regards commercial land, the Government plans to put up for tender again a commercial site in Tung Chung Area 57, capable of providing around 120 000 sq m of gross floor area.
Mr Wong said that the Government would continue to increase land supply through a multi-pronged approach to meet the community’s needs for housing, economic and social development.
The list of the sites to be tendered from January to March 2022 is in the Annex. The actual tender timetable will be drawn up taking into account the progress of necessary preparatory work. The Lands Department will announce the detailed land sale arrangements before individual sites are put up for tender. read more
Police will implement special traffic arrangements at Lan Kwai Fong, Central and West Kowloon Cultural District between December 31, 2021 and January 1, 2022 to ensure smooth traffic flow and public safety. Police reminded members of the public to observe regulations on the prohibition of group gatherings and wearing of masks in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Lan Kwai Fong
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A. Road closure
The following roads will be closed from 2pm on December 31 to 5am the following day:
– D’Aguilar Street between Wyndham Street and Wellington Street;
– Lan Kwai Fong;
– Wing Wah Lane;
– Wo On Lane;
– Wellington Street between Wyndham Street and D’Aguilar Street; and
– On Lan Street.
Depending on the crowd situation, the following roads may be closed:
– D’Aguilar Street between Queen’s Road Central and Wellington Street;
– Wyndham Street between Glenealy and Queen’s Road Central;
– Stanley Street between D’Aguilar Street and Cochrane Street;
– Wellington Street between D’Aguilar Street and Cochrane Street;
– Cochrane Street between Wellington Street and Stanley Street;
– Queen’s Road Central between Pedder Street and Pottinger Street; and
– Lyndhurst Terrace.
Upon completion of traffic diversions, the crowd will be directed to queue up along Queen’s Road Central, D’Aguilar Street, Stanley Street, Cochrane Street and Wellington Street. The whole section of D’Aguilar Street will be closed to vehicular traffic.
B. Suspension of parking spaces
All on-street parking spaces on the following streets will be suspended from 1pm on December 31 to 5am the following day:
– Stanley Street near D’Aguilar Street;
– Wyndham Street between Arbuthnot Road and D’Aguilar Street; and
– On Lan Street.
West Kowloon Cultural District
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A. Road closure
The following roads will be temporarily closed from 6pm on December 31:
– Museum Drive;
– Cultural Drive;
– Northbound Nga Cheung Road at-grade between Austin Road West and Jordan Road;
– Southbound Nga Cheung Road at-grade between the entrance and exit of Kowloon Station Public Transport Interchange; and
– The slip road of westbound Austin Road West at-grade leading to Museum Drive.
B. Traffic diversions
– Traffic along southbound Nga Cheung Road at-grade must turn left onto Kowloon Station Station Perimeter Road;
– Traffic along southbound Nga Cheung Road at-grade near Nga Cheung Road / Austin Road West roundabout will be diverted to eastbound Austin Road West;
– Traffic along westbound Austin Road West at-grade will be prohibited from making right turn onto northbound Nga Cheung Road at-grade; and
– Traffic along westbound Austin Road West heading for Kowloon Station Public Transport Interchange will be diverted to Nga Cheung Road / Austin Road West roundabout, eastbound Austin Road West, eastbound Austin Road West Underpass, northbound Lin Cheung Road Underpass, westbound Jordan Road and southbound Nga Cheung Road.
C. Passengers pick-up and drop-off points
The pick-up / drop-off area outside Exit A, B and E of Kowloon Station will be suspended from about 6pm on December 31, 2021. Vehicles can make use of the pick-up/drop-off area on Wui Man Road located north of Wui Cheung Road.
D. Restriction of carpark access
Vehicles parked in all car parks inside West Kowloon Cultural District will not be permitted to enter or leave the car parks from about 4pm on December 31, 2021 until the road closure is lifted.
Any vehicle found illegally parked within the precincts mentioned above will be towed away without prior notice, and may subject to multiple ticketing.
Actual implementation of the traffic arrangements will be made depending on the prevailing conditions in the area. Members of the public are advised to exercise tolerance and patience and take heed of instructions of the Police on site. read more
A company responsible officer was prosecuted by the Labour Department (LD) for failing to pay wages and the sums awarded by the Labour Tribunal (LT) to two employees as required by the Employment Ordinance (EO). The responsible officer pleaded guilty at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts today (December 30). He was fined $35,000 and sentenced to one month’s imprisonment suspended for one year. He was also ordered by the court to pay one of the employees the outstanding sum of about $40,000.
Eagle Development (Holdings) Company Limited failed to pay two employees wages within seven days after the expiry of the wage period or the termination of employment as required by the EO. The company also defaulted on the sums totalling about $56,000 awarded by the LT within 14 days after the dates set out by the LT awards in accordance with the EO. The responsible officer concerned was involved in the operation, decision, finance and personnel management, etc, of the company. He was prosecuted and convicted for his consent, connivance or neglect in the above offences which the company committed.
“The judgment will disseminate a strong message to all employers and responsible officers of companies that they have to pay wages and termination payments to employees within the statutory time limit and ensure payment of the awarded sums according to the terms of the awards of the LT or the Minor Employment Claims Adjudication Board as stipulated in the EO,” a spokesman for the LD said.
“The LD will not tolerate these offences and will spare no effort in enforcing the law and safeguarding employees’ statutory rights,” the spokesman added. read more
Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at regular intervals: Here is an item of interest to swimmers. The Leisure and Cultur… read more