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1. Temples refuse to move for housing

2. HK Island buildings in class of their own, says university study

3. Hopewell coffers ready for bridge project

1. Temples refuse to move for housing
BENJAMIN WONG, SCMP 21 January 2006

A government plan to relocate three temples in Sau Mau Ping to make way for a new public housing development has run into opposition from temple operators.

Under the plan, the Buddhist and Taoist temples, built in 1964 without government approval, would make way for a road to meet expected traffic demands from the housing project, which will have 50,000 residents.

The Tai Sing Temple, Temple of Guan Yin and the Shing Wong Temple are housed together at a single complex on a hillside between Anderson and Sau Mau Ping roads. The government wants it relocated to a nearby site, but the exact location has not been fixed.

"The Buddha designated the site for us and this is the only place we can be. There are also other fung shui matters involved," said Lam Cho-sat, chairman of the group that operates the Tai Sing Temple, the most famous of the three temples. "There are so many free spaces here, why can't the road take a detour?"

Mr Lam urged the government to build a flyover above the temples if it insisted on the present route.

The temples - covering 900 square metres - were built when squatters appeared in the area.

The temple groups have sought help from the Kwun Tong District Council but the council's position is not clear.

Council chairman Chan Chung-bun said there was a need to relocate the temples on the ground of public safety because they were unauthorised structures.

He also believes the housing plan should go ahead because of the demand. Planning for the project was suspended for three years, but has been resumed.

Temple representatives said they support redevelopment, but thought they would play a role.

The temples are famous for annual rituals that include blessed individuals climbing blades, washing their faces with hot oil and walking on fire with bare feet.

2. HK Island buildings in class of their own, says university study
PAUL TSANG, SCMP 21 January 2006

Associate professor Daniel Ho inspects a fire exit yesterday at Victoria Centre in Causeway Bay. Hong Kong Island buildings are a cut above those in Kowloon. Picture by Oliver Tsang

Twenty per cent of buildings in a random survey of Hong Kong Island's eastern district are A-class, compared with just 7 per cent in Kowloon.

Using a building quality index it has devised, the University of Hong Kong's real-estate department surveyed nearly 300 buildings in 2004 and last year.

Of 160 buildings surveyed on Hong Kong Island, 20 per cent were class A, 35 per cent class B and 34 per cent class C. Eleven per cent were unclassified.

The comparative figures for 133 buildings that were surveyed in the Tsim Sha Tsui, Yau Ma Tei and Mongkok areas of Kowloon were: class A 7 per cent; class B 46 per cent; and class C 37 per cent. Ten per cent of these buildings were unclassified.

The index measures fire safety, maintenance of concrete surfaces, outer walls and drains, the age of the buildings, structural safety and hygiene conditions. Class C buildings require repair and renovation.

Daniel Ho Chi-wing, associate professor of real estate and construction, said buildings were unclassified when there was not enough data to evaluate them. Such buildings typically exhibit problems such as overcrowding.

Department chairman Chau Kwong-wing said it aimed to survey all buildings in a city-wide study costing $10 million. Flat owners would be able to access the data free of charge.
The large-scale assessment will start in June.

"Building maintenance is not receiving the attention it deserves. We hope the general public will become more aware of its importance," said Professor Chau.

He hopes the department's work will help both government and flat owners implement the mandatory building-inspection scheme.

The government is conducting a public consultation on the proposed scheme that will end this month.

Under the proposal, management committees of buildings 30 or more years old will be required to engage professionals every seven years to certify they are safe.

The scheme is intended to force owners to rectify faults and physical deterioration that may pose a threat to public safety.

3. Hopewell coffers ready for bridge project
ANDY CHENG, SCMP 21 January 2006

Hopewell Highway Infrastructure has prepared the capital needed to build the long-awaited Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, even though the company has not been awarded the contract, according to chairman Sir Gordon Wu Ying-sheung. "We will submit our bid once the project is tendered," Sir Gordon said on the sidelines of an American Chamber of Commerce luncheon yesterday.

He did not believe the 36km bridge would cost as much as $60 billion, the present price tag, citing the cost of about $12 billion of Shanghai's recently completed Donghai Bridge, which is of a similar length. But he declined to specify Hopewell's bidding price for the project, saying it was a commercial secret.

Sir Gordon also said the government should hold land auctions regularly to boost land supply. "I am not saying the government should carry out massive land sales and push down the property market, but its approach to land supply should be more balanced and efficient," he said, warning the market could overheat given the limited land supply and high property prices.