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1. Lawmakers floored as Tamar HQ soars in size

2. Tamar project cost more than $40,000 a square metre: expert

3. Developers, residents object to height limits

1. Lawmakers floored as Tamar HQ soars in size
Leslie Kwoh , The Standard 26 April 2006

Lawmakers were shocked Tuesday to discover that figures previously released by the administration concerning the proposed new government headquarters at Tamar were "misleading."

Officials revealed that the gross floor area of the proposed HK$5 billion complex at the prime waterfront site is estimated to be 120,400 square meters - nearly double the area cited by the government last week.

An administrative paper released last Wednesday indicated that the new complex would be scaled back 10 percent from previous estimates to 62,340 square meters of net floor operating area, a term that excludes corridors, restrooms, stairwells and lift areas.

"Gross floor area includes everything - like the car park and electrical plant rooms - so the discrepancy can be very great, but it also depends on the type of buildings involved," explained Director of Architectural Services Yue Chi-hang.

This new figure would reduce the efficiency of the complex to well below- average, according to experts.

A building's efficiency is calculated by dividing the net floor operating area by the gross floor area. The resulting ratio - in this case, nearly 50 percent - determines how well a building's space is used. In Hong Kong , 75 percent is deemed "low efficiency," said one local property surveyor.

Moreover, as government buildings are not subject to the Buildings Ordinance, officials are not obliged to reveal full details of the floor area and may use terms such as "gross floor area" loosely, the surveyor said.

The revelation prompted more than a dozen lawmakers to fire questions at the administration at Tuesday's meeting of the panel on planning, lands and works.

Liberal Party chairman James Tien Pei-chun questioned the project's HK$5 billion pricetag - plus the HK$48.5 million recurrent expenditure - which adds up to more than HK$40,000 per square meter, according to the latest floor area figure. He asked for a detailed breakdown of costs.

"The Liberal Party supports your project, but that does not mean you can have free access to public money," he said. "We don't support the budget."

Project Director of the Architectural Services Department Peter Yuen Ka- tat said construction will cost about HK$13,000 per square meter, and that furniture (HK$500 million) as well as other facilities will add to that cost.

Pressed further, he admitted he could not offer the exact breakdown of the HK$5 billion price and will have to respond later.

Pro-Beijing lawmaker Cheung Hok- ming, from the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, demanded to know whether the government had studied the sustainability of the new headquarters to ensure that there will be no need to build another complex later.

Director of Administration Elizabeth Tse Man-yi said: "In terms of sustainable development, we don't have any concrete figures now. But we don't expect to have another new central government complex built 10 years later, so we are talking long-term planning."

She gave a similarly vague response to Democrat Lee Wing-tat, who asked about plans for the existing government headquarters at Lower Albert Road and Murray Building .

"We have to first see whether the new headquarters can be constructed before we do anything about the two sites," Tse said.

Legislators were skeptical about the government's refusal to provide details on space allocation and demanded officials specify which 3,200 civil servants are to be housed in the new headquarters.

"We have to make sure that all persons in the new complex are staff directly related to policy-making," Tse said, adding that only one third of all staff in policy-related bureaus will qualify for the move.

For example, she said, within the Economic Development and Labour Bureau, the port and maritime development office is "directly related to policy-making" and will be stationed in the new headquarters. The travel registration office, on the other hand, will stay behind.

The lawmakers requested an additional meeting before the administration submits its funding proposal to the public works subcommitee May 24.

AB lawmaker Choy So-yuk and Independent lawmaker Albert Chan Wai-yip, both made it clear that more information is needed.

2. Tamar project cost more than $40,000 a square metre: expert
CHLOE LAI , SCMP 26 April 2006

The controversial Tamar development will cost more than $40,000 per square metre of floor space to build and the utility rate will be slightly highly than 60 per cent, legislators heard yesterday.

The figures were calculated by the vice-chairman of the panel on planning, lands and works, Patrick Lau Sau-shing.

Although the government did not reveal the gross floor area of the Tamar development, Mr Lau, a retired professor of architecture, estimated the project would have a gross floor area of about 125,480 square metres, based on the site area and the plot ratio provided by the government.

The government has only revealed that the net operating floor area for the future government offices would be 62,340 square metres, with 16,090 square metres for the Legislative Council. Net operating floor area excludes toilets, bathrooms and showers. The project will cost $5.13 billion.

Speaking at the panel, Director of Architectural Services Yue Chi-hang said the construction cost per square metre of the gross floor area would be between $13,000 and $14,000.

"It is similar to the construction cost of other grade-A offices," he said. He added about 10 per cent of the estimated expenditure would be on furniture and machines.

He did not provide further information on spending.

Liberal Party chairman James Tien Pei-chun said: "Our party supports the Tamar project, but from the data you provide, it seems it is ridiculously expensive. I'm building an office block in Kowloon Bay ; your estimation makes no sense."

Mr Tien also questioned the low utility rate of the development.

Independent legislator Albert Chan Wai-yip said: "We are talking about a $5 billion project. I have never seen the government provide so little information for a project of this scale. If we let it pass the panel without first examining the breakdowns, we are not doing our job properly." The panel managed to push for an extra meeting early next month to continue the discussion.

he government will let the Public Works Subcommittee examine the project at the end of next month and ask the Finance Committee for $5.13 billion on June 23.

3. Developers, residents object to height limits
YVONNE LIU , SCMP 26 April 2006

Developers including Cheung Kong (Holdings) and about 130 residents have submitted objections to the Town Planning Board over building height restrictions in Kowloon Tong.

In February, the board announced amendments to the Kowloon Tong Outline Zoning Board, imposing height limits for residential and commercial sites around Broadcast Drive , Beacon Hill Road , Grampian Road and La Salle Road .

The board will discuss the objections within two months.

A source said Cheung Kong, which owns the ATV headquarters site at 81 Broadcast Drive and Fortune Villa at Alnwick Road, had lodged an objection, as had Hanison Construction and E2-Capital.

Developers argued height restrictions limited the flexibility of their projects, saying they could provide more open space to the public if they were allowed to develop higher buildings with smaller site coverage.

The plan for the ATV headquarters site has been approved by the Buildings Department. Cheung Kong plans to build five 10-storey residential blocks with a gross floor area of 137,720 square feet. Under the new rule, the limit for the site will be 13 floors. Peninsula Height at Broadcast Drive , near the ATV headquarters site, developed by Cheung Kong, is 17 floors.

Most objectors are the individual owners of old buildings to be sold collectively. Sources said the residents of Lung Cheung Court and Moonbeam Terrace had submitted objections.

Property agents said the taller a residential building, the higher the price achievable.