| News
Stories: |  |
Click-on these
handy "jump links" to quickly access the news item
you're looking
for. 1.
Building plans approved in March 2.
Architecture professor to advise on design of new Legco
building 3.
Plans expand for North Point lot 4.
Site flexibility high 5.
Hysan overhauls Bamboo Grove flats
1. Building plans approved in March The
Buildings Department approved 20 building plans in March -- three on Hong Kong
Island, seven in Kowloon and 10 in the New Territories. The approved plans covered
five for apartment and apartment/commercial developments, one for commercial development,
five for factory and industrial developments, and nine for community services
developments. In the same month, consent was given for works to start on 23 building
projects, which will provide on completion 61,406 square metres of usable domestic
floor area and 49,310 square metres of usable non-domestic floor area. The department
also issued 21 occupation permits -- seven on Hong Kong Island, seven in Kowloon
and seven in the New Territories. Of the buildings certified for occupation, the
usable floor areas for domestic and non-domestic uses were 100,307 square metres
and 52,886 square metres respectively. The declared cost of the new buildings
completed in March totalled about $4.495 billion. In addition, six demolition
consents involving six building structures were issued. The department received
1,092 complaints against unauthorised building works in March, and issued 1,960
removal orders on unauthorised works. [Source:
Hong Kong Government, 21 May 2002] 2.
Architecture professor to advise on design of new Legco building
A Chinese University architecture academic will be invited to advise legislators
on the design of the new Legislative Council building. The Legco Commission, which
deals with affairs relating to the operations of the council, agreed to extend
the invitation to Professor Bernard Lim yesterday. If he accepts, he will today
attend a meeting off the workforce set up under the commission to give his views
on the design. Professor Lim has received awards for his design of the Science
Museum in Tsim Sha Tsui and Lingnan University in Tuen Mun. The new Legco building
will be built on the Tamar site together with new government headquarters. The
project will be completed in 2007. Legco President Rita Fan Hsu Lai-tai said Professor
Lim would be asked to advise on conceptual design and the architectural brief
for the new Legco building. He will also advise on specifications, ranging from
facilities and security measures, to cost and opportunities for expansion. She
said the architectural sector had been consulted on the appointment. "We
have not invited any private practising architects as there may be a conflict
of interest if they want to tender for the design and build contract in the future,"
she said after a meeting of the commission. Mrs Fan said Professor Lim would be
paid as an academic. "This is a public service. The consultant fee is less
than the market rate," she said. He will be appointed on a renewable two-year
contract until the project is completed. Professor Lim, who specialises in energy
efficient designs, has won a number of awards recently, including the outstanding
green project prize in 2000 for the design of a residential project in the Hung
Shui Kiu area for the Housing Society. [Source:
SCMP, 22 May 2002] 3.
Plans expand for North Point lot
Hotel and commercial premises have been included in plans for the North Point
Estate development in addition to the controversial mix of public and private
housing. The Housing Bureau said the inclusion of hotel and commercial units was
intended to upgrade the site on the valuable North Point waterfront. The Housing
Authority approved a proposal to redevelop the North Point Estate and adjoining
government land in a mixed development with 800 to 900 units, or 25 per cent of
all units, allocated for subsidised housing. The remaining residential units will
be private-sector flats. The proposed development area spans 3.79 hectares including
the 2.77-hectare North Point Estate. The mixed development proposal was criticised
by developers as a waste of public resources as it could decrease the value of
the land. A Housing Bureau spokeswoman said it supported in principle the Housing
Authority's agreement with the Government concerning the North Point Estate redevelopment,
subject to satisfactory resolution of finance, planning and land issues. She said
the mixed development approach would result in better urban planning in North
Point and optimised the development potential of the existing site and adjoining
government land. The site could incorporate a hotel, commercial premises, residential
units, as well as facilities such as a school, public transport interchange, links
to the North Point MTR Station and a waterfront promenade. The spokeswoman said
the new development could upgrade the overall district. "The site located
near the MTR station has great potential for commercial developments. Residential
supply will be sufficient in that area," she said. The Housing Authority
had consulted the relevant government departments including the Planning Department
before approving the proposal for a mixture of commercial and residential units.
Ling Kar-kan, district planning officer of the Planning Department, said the North
Point Estate development scheme was formulated by the Housing Department. A Housing
Authority spokesman said detailed planning had yet to be finalised. New World
Development senior property development manager Andrew Choi Fook-ming applauded
the Government's approach in studying all options for developing the land. "More
flexibility [in land use] will be good for developers," he said. Tourist
attractions and shopping facilities would increase the business potential of the
development, he said. Mr Choi said detailed studies had yet to be finalised but
the location made residential units potentially more lucrative than commercial
use. Great Eagle assistant director Adrian Lee said residential developments were
more suitable for the North Point waterfront than hotels and offices. "North
Point is not a traditional district to cater for grade-A offices. Hotels [there]
are mostly three- to four-star," he said. Tony Tse Wai-chuen, chairman of
the general practice division of the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors, said developers
might consider building a three- to four-star hotel there to tap the growing demand
from mainland visitors over the next five to seven years. "If the Government
intends to develop a certain portion of the site into commercial use, a large-scale
shopping mall will be more suitable," he said. Mr Tse said that as North
Point was not in a key business area, land use for offices would lower the overall
value of the site. He estimated the site could fetch more than HK$12 billion,
representing an accommodation value of more than HK$2,000 per square foot. Hong
Kong Hotels Association first vice-chairman Dan Lee said that as hotel supply
would exceed demand in the short to medium term, there was no need to plan new
hotel developments. Mr Lee said the hotel occupancy rate in the low season was
30 per cent, while the yearly average stood at about 80 per cent. "It seems
too optimistic [of the Government] to plan for further [hotel] developments,"
he said. [Source:
SCMP, 22 May 2002] 4.
Site flexibility high
The development perimeter of North Point Estate may be similar to that set for
another valuable site nearby in Oil Street, which is on the land sale programme
application list, according to analysts. The Government has allowed for flexibility
in development for the 1.46-hectare residential-commercial Oil Street lot, which
was a government supplies depot. The site, with a possible plot ratio of 10.55
times, can produce a developable floor area of about 1.33 million square feet
for hotel, retail, residential and office use or a mix, depending on developer
choice. According to the lease restriction set by the Lands Department, the developer
of the lot should build no less than 530,000 sqft residential area and no more
than 195,000 sqft office space. Surpass Property Strategy Consultant managing
director Charles Lai Chin-pang said the provision of greater flexibility for land
use could yield a higher land value because developers could justify the future
supply according to market demand during economic changes. He said developers
would calculate the most valuable mixture of property projects. Land on the application
list will be released for sale when a developer offers to pay a minimum acceptable
price. In 1999, Cheung Kong (Holdings) floated a cruise-terminal project in North
Point, which could have attracted more tourists to the area. But the project was
scrapped later following public opposition. In the meantime, Cheung Kong received
approval for a 40-storey hotel project on the Fook Lee Godown site, adjacent to
the Oil Street site. The owner of neighbouring Asia Cold Storage said his site
had been rezoned for commercial use and was looking at the future development
of the Oil Street site before finalising his project. He said the company had
no agreement with Cheung Kong for redevelopment at the moment. ''The office market
is so weak due to oversupply,'' he said. However, he said the company had not
decided on the redevelopment. ''[We thought] hotels had no prospects until the
past one to two months,'' he said. [Source:
SCMP, 22 May 2002] 5.
Hysan overhauls Bamboo Grove flats
Bamboo Grove, a luxury residential development in Mid-Levels, is emerging fresh
from a massive facelift which, its owner Hysan Development envisages, will enhance
facilities and services and boost rental returns. The prestigious commercial and
residential landlord has spent about HK$360 million renovating the 16-year-old
Bamboo Grove, the biggest residential property in its investment portfolio. Senior
manager of residential leasing Maidi Lam said the two-phase renovation programme
began in the middle of last year. The first phase for the five high-rise towers
was almost completed while the second phase for the only low-rise block and the
clubhouse was scheduled to finish by the end of the year. Bamboo Grove, at 74-86
Kennedy Road, was built on the old home site of the Lee family, the controlling
shareholder of Hysan. The 697,940-square-foot project comprises 345 flats in six
blocks. Standard units measure 786 to 2,600 sq ft while penthouse units range
from 2,473 to 5,964 sq ft. Ms Lam said Hysan considered Bamboo Grove a long-term
investment and had been keeping it for rent since it was built and completed in
1985. The extensive refurbishment would enhance building facilities and management
services. External facade and apartment interiors were given a facelift, clubhouse
and common facilities upgraded and personalised management services introduced.
Ms Lam said the company had conducted consultancy research and studies for the
renovation to come up with improvements best suited to tenants' needs and requirements.
To cope with demand from large families it decided to convert the 2,600 sq ft
units into four bedrooms from three bedrooms, she said. While it improved design
for some units, most apartments maintained layouts with spacious storage and wardrobe
areas. Separate laundry areas were kept because tenants, especially expatriates,
liked to have them separated from kitchen where food was prepared, she said. The
first batch of 25 renovated apartments will be released for rent with Jones Lang
LaSalle appointed as a joint marketing agent. Ms Lam said the units would command
a rent of about HK$30 per square foot a month, compared with the average of HK$24
to HK$25 per square foot before the renovation. She said the figure was a "market
rent" and the units were leased with one parking space each. Most of the
apartments in Bamboo Grove would be in the rental range of HK$40,000 to HK$80,000
per month, which was the most popular and actively traded segment on the leasing
market, she said. To attract tenants, Hysan offered an "early bird"
discount and those applying first would be charged a rent of HK$28 per square
foot, she said. Another incentive was home-moving allowance for those already
residing in Hong Kong. For newcomers, incentives would be subject to negotiations,
she said. Tenants could also choose to lease units with furniture supplied by
Hysan and a fully furnished unit would cost several thousand dollars more each
month, depending on the lease period. The standard lease period is for two years,
with a break clause, with three months notice in advance, to be exercisable after
the first year. Ms Lam said Bamboo Grove had been sought after by tenants and
was a popular residence of expatriates and many consuls-general in Hong Kong.
The occupancy rate was usually more than 95 per cent. There were many loyal tenants
and even during the renovation, about 100 tenants still preferred to stay. Ms
Lam said sitting tenants could now choose to swap their units with renovated ones.
They might also vacate their units any time for renovation by Hysan. Tenants in
the unrenovated units would be charged slightly lower rents. Many tenants who
had moved out because of the renovation said they would return to rent newly renovated
units, she said. The longest staying tenants in Bamboo Grove had been there since
it was built. Ms Lam said one tenant, who had stayed there the past 16 years,
had moved out during the renovation. But she was confident the tenant would come
back. The renovated units will be released in phases over the next few months.
Ms Lam expected Bamboo Grove to continue to be sought after by expatriates as
well as local residents and predicted an encouraging leasing response. New services
accompanying the renovation included the hiring of nine extra staff to provide
personalised service. These staff were stationed at the lobby of each tower, 11
hours a day. Electrical appliances and water filters have been added in kitchens.
Other additions include maintenance, housekeeping and other support services.
The clubhouse is to be improved, with a renovated swimming pool, a bigger-sized
gym, barbecue area, spa service and children's play area. [Source:
SCMP, 22 May 2002] |  |
|
