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1.
‘Give developers a break’
on land prices
2.
Harbour conservationists refuse to
lie down
3.
Approved Tuen Mun Outline Zoning Plan
amended
4.
$390m land premium at Tai Kok Tsui
1. ‘Give developers a break’ on land prices
Raymond
Wang, The Standard 13 March 2004
It
has been two months since the government announced the resumption
of land sales, but developers have had little luck in their attempts
to draw land for auction.
Under
the government's application list system, a developer proposes a
price to the Lands Department and the plot is brought to auction
if the government's minimum price is met.
So
far, four developers have had their applications to draw land for
auction turned down because they did not meet the government's reserve
price. Chinese Estates Holdings, for instance, tried three times
to draw The Peak plot at 12 Mount Kellett Road.
Attempts
by medium-sized developers Nan Fung Development and Wharf Holdings
and blue-chip developer Henderson Land Development to initiate a
land auction were also unsuccessful, market sources say.
The
string of rejections has prompted surveyors to suggest that the
government take a softer approach on pricing because, even if the
reserve is lower than the market value, the plots will eventually
sell at a much higher price when auctioned.
``During
a real estate market recovery, developers are willing to put higher
bids for prime sites even if they are drawn at a lower minimum price
from the government's reserve list,'' Centaline Surveyors general
manager James Cheung said.
``The
response to the Urban Renewal Authority's Johnston Road redevelopment,
which drew applications from 32 developers, indicates strong demand
for good sites.''
Sun
Hung Kai Properties vice-chairman and managing director Thomas Kwok
on Thursday called on the government to soften its stand on land
prices, which has so far prevented the first land auction of the
year.
A
Lands Department spokeswoman said yesterday the government would
not sell land cheap. She also refused to say whether the government
will consider softening its stance on asking prices for plots on
the application list.
Nan
Fung Development is said to have put in offers for 12 Mount Kellett
Road and Welfare Road in Aberdeen - but both failed to meet the
reserve price.
Wharf
Holdings has confirmed it also failed to trigger auctions. ``Actually,
we offered reasonable prices for properties on the list,'' Wharf
assistant director Ricky Wong said.
The
latest offer that was rejected was about HK$1,100 per square foot
for the Aberdeen site - well below the market price of HK$1,500
per square foot. Sources said the last offer for the Peak site was
``very close'' to the estimated HK$470 million sought by the government.
The
two developers have not yet decided whether to make revised offers.
In
the two months since the government announced the resumption of
land sales, prices on the application list have risen about 20 per
cent in response to rising home prices, analysts said.
2. Harbour conservationists refuse to lie down
CHEUNG
CHI-FAI, SCMP 13 March 2004
Conservationists
are planning more campaigns to save the harbour from reclamation,
despite losing a legal battle this week.
The
Save Our Shorelines group yesterday started a two-day campaign at
the Star Ferry pier in Central to collect signatures in the hope
of keeping the momentum going.
"We
want to tell the public that the fight is not over and having a
road bypass will not solve traffic problems," a spokeswoman
for the group said.
She
urged Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa to review his decision on the
reclamation project and said they would hand the petition to him
on Tuesday.
The
group will also take part in another campaign organised by the Action
Group on Protection of Victoria Harbour at 3pm on March 21 at Edinburgh
Square.
The
action group is urging the public to join them to form a human chain
to encircle the reclamation area in Central and Wan Chai.
"The
government might have claimed a legal victory. However, if they
insist on pressing ahead with the reclamation it will further hurt
the trust between the government and the public," the group
said.
On
Tuesday, the Court of First Instance rejected a judicial review
lodged by the Society for Protection of the Harbour over the Central
reclamation.
The
government immediately announced the reclamation works would resume
in one month.
Officials
have reiterated that the project is vital for the provision of a
six-lane bypass to ease traffic congestion in Central and say the
size of the reclamation, which will gobble up 18 hectares of the
harbour, is minimal.
The
head of a large travel agent has lent his support to the reclamation,
which he said was necessary to ensure tourists catching flights
would not be stuck in traffic jams in Central.
The
chairman of Hong Tai Travel Services, Jackie Wong See-sum, paid
for a full-page newspaper advertisement yesterday to support the
scheme.
He
said a mainland tour group nearly missed their flight recently because
their coach was stuck for an hour in Central.
"The
coach departed from North Point three hours before the scheduled
flight. But they arrived at the airport only 25 minutes before the
check-in counter was closed," he said.
Agency
representatives had to make emergency arrangements with the airline
for check-in procedures to be conducted in advance.
8 Arts groups divided over West Kowloon project
CHEUNG CHI-FAI, SCMP 13 March 2004
Arts
groups are split over the government's proposal to allow a single
developer to build and operate the $24 billion West Kowloon cultural
district.
The
Arts Development Council asked 3,000 schools, cultural and arts
groups for their views on the project.
Of
the 403 which responded, a third supported the single-developer
approach, a third were against it and the others had no opinion.
Previously, arts groups and construction and design professionals
had criticised the idea of a single developer.
Some
60 per cent of the respondents agreed that private developers should
play a key role in the project and did not object to commercial
activities featuring in the development alongside cultural and artistic
ventures.
About
two-thirds wanted the arts community to have a say on the proposals
of developers bidding for the project, although some respondents
voiced concern that could create conflicts of interest.
Sixty
per cent agreed the development should be managed either by a statutory
body, non-profit companies or on a commercial basis.
If
a statutory body were to be chosen, its board should comprise representatives
of the government, the arts sector and the successful bidder, they
said.
The
council will submit its findings to the government.
3. Approved Tuen Mun Outline Zoning Plan amended
Hong
Kong Government, 12 March 2004
The
Town Planning Board (the Board) today (March 12) announced amendments
to the approved Tuen Mun Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).
Amendments
have been made to revise the Notes of the OZP to follow a revised
set of Master Schedule of Notes (MSN) to Statutory Plans endorsed
by the Board. Under the revised MSN, various measures including
broad use terms have been introduced to provide greater flexibility
for change of use and reduce the need for planning application.
The
general provisions under the covering Notes and the user schedules
for various land use zones have been revised to expand the scope
of uses that are always permitted. Besides, the planning intentions
for various zones have been incorporated into the Notes to form
part of the statutory plan.
Moreover,
the maximum site coverage restriction for the "Residential
(Group B)1", "Residential (Group B)2" and "Residential
(Group B)3" zones is relaxed from 25% to 50% and that for "Residential
(Group B)5" zone is relaxed from 30% to 50%.
The
draft Tuen Mun OZP No. S/TM/19 incorporating the amendments is now
available for public inspection during normal office hours at the
following locations:
*
Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, 15/F, North Point Government
Offices, 333 Java Road;
*
Tuen Mun and Yuen Long District Planning Office, 14/F, Sha Tin Government
Offices, 1 Sheung Wo Che Road;
*
Tuen Mun District Office, 2/F, Tuen Mun Government Offices, 1 Tuen
Hi Road; and
*
Tuen Mun Rural Committee, Tsing Yin Street, Tuen Mun.
Any
person affected by the amendments may submit a written statement
of objection to the Secretary of the Board on or before May 12,
2004.
Copies
of the draft plan are available for sale at the Map Publications
Centres in North Point and Yau Ma Tei. The plan can be seen on the
Town Planning Board's website at http://www.info.gov.hk/tpb.
4. $390m land premium at Tai Kok Tsui
Raymond
Wang, The Standard 13 March 2004
Hong
Kong Ferry (Holdings), controlled by property tycoon Lee Shau-kee's
Henderson Land Development, has agreed to pay the government HK$390
million in land premium for a residential project in Tai Kok Tsui.
The
payment, averaging about HK$1,200 per square foot, is for one of
the city's biggest projects this year. Investment costs for the
project are estimated at HK$750 million, including land premium,
and will be financed by the firm's internal resources, chairman
Colin Lam said yesterday.
The
36,000-square-foot plot - formerly Hong Kong Ferry's staff quarters
at 222 Tai Kok Tsui Road - will be developed as a residential-commercial
project. It will have a gross floor area of about 320,000 sqft,
comprising 270,000 sqft for residential use and 50,000 sqft for
commercial use.
Lam
said Hong Kong Ferry was also negotiating the premium for a Yau
Tong site. It wants to turn the 160,000 sqft industrial plot at
6 Cho Yuen Street into a residential-commercial project.
Hong
Kong Ferry yesterday blamed a fall in residential sales income for
a 22.4 per cent drop in its full-year net profit for 2003 to HK$264.7
million.
The
company sold 680 flats last year, reaping some HK$1.158 billion,
down 12 per cent on the previous year.
Earnings
per share were 74.3 HK cents, compared to 95.8 HK cents in 2002.
A final dividend of 20 HK cents per share was declared.
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