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1. Mid-tariff hotels set to rise

2. $2b set aside for Park Island

3. $4b hospital rebuild plan under fire

4. Private developer may be enlisted for controversial project

5. Tai Po Outline Zoning Plan approved

6. Tsing Yi Outline Zoning Plan approved

7. Draft Wang Tau Hom and Tung Tau OZP amended

8. Ho Man Tin Outline Zoning Plan approved

9. Draft Tsz Wan Shan, Diamond Hill and San Po Kong OZP amended

10. Approved Sai Ying Pun & Sheung Wan Outline Zoning Plan referred back

1. Mid-tariff hotels set to rise
Raymond Wang, The Standard 14 May 2004

Chinachem Group has agreed to pay HK$68 million in land premium to the government for the conversion of an industrial block in Wong Chuk Hang, Hong Kong South, into a hotel.

The payment, equal to about HK$300 per square foot, is about 40 per cent less than the Lands Department's initial figure of about HK$500 psf, sources said.

The reduced premium and a growing demand from mainland tourists for mid-tariff hotels are expected to encourage more developers to speed up hotel redevelopment plans in the district, surveyors said.

``The lower than expected premium settlement of the Wong Chuk Hang project will help lower the developer's investment cost for the hotel, which is estimated at below HK$2,000 psf,'' chartered surveyor Pang Shiu-kee said.

Total investment is estimated at about HK$400 million, including construction costs of about HK$300 million, the land premium cost and existing land costs.

Located at 55-57 Wong Chuk Hang Road, the 300-room, 29-storey hotel project will generate a total gross floor area of about 224,000 square feet.

Chinachem, a mid-sized private developer controlled by Asian's richest woman Nina Wang, is planning to develop another two hotels in Kwun Tong and Mong Kok, which will provide a total of about 700 rooms.

Other developers such as Cheung Kong (Holdings) and Swire Properties are also planning to develop hotels in Wong Chuk Hang.

Cheung Kong will build a 36-storey, 465-room hotel at 41 Heung Yip Road.

Swire Properties linked up with China Motor Bus to convert a former bus workshop at 8-10 Wong Chuk Hang Road into a mid-tariff hotel to take advantage of the growing influx of mainland tourists.

Market watchers said Chinachem's HK$300 psf land premium settlement will provide a reference for Swire's joint-venture hotel project.

Swire was applying to the government to convert land use of the 25,500 sqft site from an industrial site into a 700-room hotel.

Total investment is estimated at more than HK$600 million, surveyors said.

They estimated a total gross floor area of 382,000 sqft, and a plot ratio of 15 for the hotel.

Analysts said given an increasing number of mainland tourists, there would be a shortage of hotel rooms, especially in medium-tariff hotels, prompting more developers to apply to convert industrial buildings into hotels in the coming months.

Construction costs of building a mid-tariff hotel are estimated at about HK$1,200 to HK$1,400 psf.

Tourism is a major driver for hotel construction. This was reflected in the latest data.

Visitor arrivals rose 28 per cent in March from a year ago to 1.73 million after rising 19 per cent in February, according to the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

The recovery in tourist arrivals is benefiting hotels. For instance, the average occupancy rate rose to 94 per cent in March compared to 79 per cent a year ago.

2. $2b set aside for Park Island
Raymond Wang, The Standard 14 May 2004

Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) has set aside more than HK$2 billion to develop Park Island 5, the final phase of the Ma Wan resort project.

Phase 5 will provide about 1,200 units in low-rise townhouses and high-rise residential blocks, which could generate a total gross floor area of about 1 million square feet. There will be fewer than 100 low-rise houses measuring more than 2,000 square feet each.

The phase is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2006, in line with the completion of a theme park being built by the developer on Ma Wan island.

Anita Chan, SHKP deputy manager of the business development department (property investment), estimated total investment at more than HK$2,000 per square foot.

The developer is expected to generate a windfall profit from the pre-sale of phase 5, which will begin in the middle of next year, as current Park Island flats are selling at more than HK$4,000 psf, analysts said.

SHKP is poised to reap nearly HK$5 billion from the sale of Oceanfront at Park Island's phase 3 this year and early next year, Sun Hung Kai Real Estate Agency executive director Victor Lui said.

SHKP, whose financial year ends on June 30, can book income after all units at Park Island 3 are sold.

Oceanfront consists of 1,446 units in seven blocks of 26 or 27 storeys, including 26 penthouses of 1,300 sq ft to 1,500 sq ft each. Standard units will range from 680 sq ft to 1,100 sq ft.

Several overseas investment funds are in talks to buy one of the seven blocks, which is expected to sell for about HK$4,500 to HK$5,000 psf.

However, Lui said the company intends to offer the initial batch of 400 units for public sale later this year, with the remaining 1,046 units to be rolled out early next year.

The developer will soon launch an initial batch of 10 penthouses at Oceanfront at a cost of between HK$8,500 to HK$10,000 psf.

Lui said SHKP has already received a number of inquiries from potential buyers for the penthouses in blocks 19-23 and 25.

Shares of SHKP fell 0.8 per cent to close at HK$61.75 yesterday.

3. $4b hospital rebuild plan under fire
PATSY MOY, SCMP 14 May 2004

Prince of Wales Hospital saw heavy use in the 1980s and 1990s, officials say.

The government was yesterday urged to explain its plan to spend more than $4 billion rebuilding Sha Tin's Prince of Wales Hospital, which is only 20 years old.

Details of the plan were released yesterday by the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau, which said the redevelopment was required because the hospital's heavy workload through the 1980s and 1990s had "accelerated the deterioration of finishes, fixtures and other installations ... and shortened their lifespan". The bureau said the facility had been used to treat Vietnamese refugees and many mainlanders during that period.

Some buildings will be demolished under the plan.

However, legislator Lau Ping-cheung, representing the architectural, surveying and planning sector, yesterday called on the director of audit to investigate the redevelopment project as the lifespan for such a building should be at least 50 years.

Mr Lau said "heavy usage" of the hospital would not undermine its structural safety. "I am not convinced that the lifespan of the building is only 20 years and it needs to be torn down, especially when the government has an excellent repair and maintenance programme for its buildings in place," Mr Lau said. "[If it does need rebuilding] there is a need for the director of audit to carry out an investigation into the design and construction quality of the hospital buildings."

Prince of Wales is the teaching hospital for Chinese University. Sydney Chung Sheung-chee, dean of the university's medical faculty, said the hospital was run-down, with serious leakage problems.

Another doctor said some of his colleagues had seen chunks of cement fall from ceilings. "There are quite frequent works at the hospital as well, such as [work on] the sewage and water pipes. Sometimes these works cause bad smells and I have seen rats running around."

However, the doctor took issue with the bureau's explanation for the hospital's condition. "I find it so funny that the government now blames the Vietnamese and mainlanders for the deterioration. These people just came here for medical consultations. They did not come here and use sticks to scratch holes in the walls."

The bureau defended the plan saying that the rebuilding option would actually take less time to complete than renovation and refurbishment of the 1,400 bed facility. It estimated that it would take 38 months to complete the "phase one rebuild", which it did not define, compared with 72 months to refurbish the hospital.

According to the redevelopment details announced yesterday, part of the staff quarters will be demolished to make way for two new blocks to house clinical facilities and support and ancillary services.

Services would not be interrupted during the reconstruction, the bureau claimed.

Medical sector legislator Lo Wing-lok said the government should fully explain its decision.

"It should explain why there was a failure to project the service demands in the area when the hospital was designed and built. The government owes the public an explanation," Dr Lo said.

James Lau Chi-wang, executive member of the Hong Kong Institute of Engineers, said he was not convinced that buildings had to be torn down after only 20 years unless they were poorly maintained, designed or constructed.

A spokesman for Friends of the Earth said: "The government strongly opposes construction waste caused by unnecessary redevelopment. However, it is now taking a lead in creating another pile of construction waste by trying to tear down a 20-year-old hospital."

4. Private developer may be enlisted for controversial project
PATSY MOY, SCMP 14 May 2004

A private developer might be contracted to rebuild the Prince of Wales Hospital.

A spokesman for the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau said one option being considered was to allow the developer to manage the hospital after it had been rebuilt. Under this model, the money the developer invested in the rebuilding could be recouped from management services.

"This is similar to the way the harbour tunnels are run," he said. Further details were not available. It is understood there are other options, but the spokesman would not comment.

If the proposal goes ahead, Prince of Wales Hospital would become the first public hospital rebuilt under a public-private partnership model. But Patients Rights Association spokesman Ho Hei-wah warned it might be the first step by the government to "privatise" its medical services.

"It may mean that patients have to bear higher medical costs if public hospitals are privatised," Mr Ho said.

He called on the government to make public all its options for the redevelopment before making a decision.

Medical legislator Lo Wing-lok warned it would be "too risky" to start the public-private partnership model with a major hospital that served a large population and involved such a big investment.

"The government has to be very careful in striking a balance between the commercial interest of private investors and the interest of patients," he said.

"Public hospitals have their role of serving the community. I believe no private companies would join the redevelopment project if they are not guaranteed a lucrative return. So, patients may have to end up bearing the extra costs."

5. Tai Po Outline Zoning Plan approved
Hong Kong Government, 14 May 2004

The Chief Executive in Council has approved the draft Tai Po Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).

"The approved OZP provides a statutory land use framework to guide development and redevelopment in the Tai Po area," a spokesman for the Town Planning Board said today (May 14).

The Planning Scheme Area, covering an area of about 2,438 hectares, is located in the central part of the North East New Territories.

About 117.8 hectares of land is zoned "Residential (Group A)", 64.1 hectares of land zoned "Residential (Group B) and 121.1 hectares of land zoned "Residential (Group C)" for public housing and private residential developments with various development densities. Another 24.2 hectares of land at Tai Po Hui is zoned "Commercial/Residential" to allow greater flexibility in combining commercial with residential uses.

About 149.2 hectares of land is zoned "Village Type Development" for the retention and expansion of existing villages as well as the reservation of land for the reprovisioning of village houses affected by government projects.

A site to the north of Ting Kok Road, covering about 18.4 hectares, is zoned "Comprehensive Development Area (1)" to encourage comprehensive development/redevelopment with a view to phasing out the existing undesirable open storage and car-repairing workshop uses.

To meet the needs of the local population and provide active and passive recreational opportunities for them, 175.5 hectares of land is zoned "Government, Institution or Community" and 69.5 hectares of land is zoned "Open Space". In addition, about 37.3 hectares of land is zoned "Recreation Priority Area".

Six buildings for mixed industrial and office uses, covering about 2.4 hectares, are zoned "Other Specified Uses" annotated "Business". A number of sites, covering about 200.8 hectares, allocated for golf course, industrial estate, Kowloon-Canton Railway, sewerage treatment plant, leachate pre-treatment works, petrol filling stations and bus depot, are also zoned "Other Specified Uses".

Fung Yuen Valley and Tai Po Egretry, covering about 43.5 hectares, are zoned "Site of Special Scientific Interest" to conserve the features of special interest. About 5.7 hectares of land forming part of Tai Mo Shan Country Park is zoned "Country Park" where development control is carried out under the Country Park Ordinance.

A total of 1,279.6 hectares of land, which mainly consists of steep hillsides in the peripheral areas, is zoned "Green Belt" to define the limits of urban development, to contain urban sprawl and to provide passive recreational outlet.

The approved Tai Po OZP No. S/TP/17 is now available for public inspection during normal office hours at the Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, the Sha Tin, Tai Po and North District Planning Office, the Tai Po District Office and the Tai Po Rural Committee.

Copies of the approved OZP are available for sale at 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.

6. Tsing Yi Outline Zoning Plan approved
Hong Kong Government, 14 May 2004

The Chief Executive in Council has approved the Tsing Yi Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).

"The approved OZP provides a statutory land use planning framework to guide development and redevelopment within the Tsing Yi area," a spokesman for the Town Planning Board said today (May 14).

About 3.5 hectares of land located in Area 22 to the north-west of the proposed Container Terminal No. 9 (CT-9) is zoned "Commercial" ("C"). This zone is restricted to a maximum domestic plot ratio of 5 or non-domestic plot ratio of 9.5.

About 8.4 hectares of land mainly located at the town centre in Area 1 is zoned "Commercial/Residential" ("C/R"). This zoning is intended to allow greater flexibility in combining commercial with residential uses, while pure commercial or residential developments are also permitted.

About 90.8 hectares of land is zoned "Residential (Group A)" ("R(A)") intended for high-density residential developments. This zoning covers most of the existing private and public residential developments in the area. About 2.9 hectares of land is zoned "Residential (Group B)" ("R(B)") covering the medium-density residential development known as Mount Haven at Liu To.

About 17.1 hectares of land is zoned "Village Type Development" ("V"), including area to resite village houses affected by Government development projects. Except for the St. Paul's and the Fisherman Villages in Area 2 and the Lutheran Village in Area 4, all the existing villages in Tsing Yi are village resites.

About 148.1 hectares of land is zoned "Industrial" ("I"). Industrial land along the southern and western coast has been developed into dockyards, boatyards and oil storage which require direct marine access. In addition, there are chemical industries on the southern part of Tsing Yi.

About 56.9 hectares of land is zoned "Government, Institution or Community" ("G/IC") for provision of a wide range of facilities to meet the needs of Tsing Yi residents. Existing facilities include a divisional police station, an ambulance depot, clinics, fire stations, schools, a technical institute and waterworks installations. Sites have also been reserved for an indoor recreation centre and a transport terminus cum public lorry park.

About 46.8 hectares of land is zoned Open Space" ("O") intended for both active and passive recreational uses. This zone comprises land reserved for the development of a town park in Area 2, a promenade running along the waterfront of Area 3 in the east to Area 8 in the north, and a district open space west of Ching Tai Court and Cheung On Estate. Local open spaces are also provided in other zones to meet local demand.

About 172.3 hectares of land is zoned "Other Specified Uses" ("OU") for specific uses including mainly the CT-9 development and back-up areas, and land reserved for container-related uses and marine-related uses. It also includes the "OU" annotated "Business" zone at the Tsing Yi Industrial Area, a chemical waste treatment facility, a cement plant, a sewage treatment plant, petrol filling stations, and ventilation building for the Airport Railway.

About 421.1 hectares of land is zoned "Green Belt" ("GB") mainly covering steep hillsides not suitable for urban development. It also serves the purpose of protecting the existing ridgeline which provides physical barriers separating the oil depots in the south and west of Tsing Yi from residential development in the north-east.

The approved Tsing Yi OZP No. S/TY/19 is available for public inspection during normal office hours at the Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, the Tsuen Wan and West Kowloon District Planning Office, and the Kwai Tsing District Office.

Copies of the approved OZP are available for sale at the Map Publications Centres in North Point and Yau Ma Tei. The electronic version of the plan can be seen on the Town Planning Board's website at http://www.info.gov.hk/tpb.

7. Draft Wang Tau Hom and Tung Tau OZP amended
Hong Kong Government, 14 May 2004

The Town Planning Board today (May 14) announced amendments to the draft Wang Tau Hom and Tung Tau Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).

The amendments mainly involve the excision of an area to the west of Upper Wong Tai Sin Estate from the Planning Scheme Area for inclusion in the Planning Scheme Area of the Tsz Wan Shan, Diamond Hill and San Po Kong OZP.

The draft Wang Tau Hom and Tung Tau OZP No. S/K8/16, incorporating the amendments, is now available for public inspection during normal office hours at the following locations:

* Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, 15th Floor, North Point Government Offices, 333 Java Road;

* Kowloon District Planning Office, 14th Floor, North Point Government Offices; and

* Wong Tai Sin District Office, 2nd Floor, Lung Cheung Office Block, 138 Lung Cheung Road.

Any person affected by the amendments can submit a written objection to the Secretary of the Town Planning Board on or before June 4, 2004.

Copies of the draft plan are available for sale at the Map Publications Centres in Yau Ma Tei and North Point. The electronic version of the plan is viewable from the Town Planning Board's website (http://www.info.gov.hk/tpb).

8. Ho Man Tin Outline Zoning Plan approved
Hong Kong Government, 14 May 2004

The Chief Executive in Council has approved the Ho Man Tin Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).

"The approved OZP provides a statutory land use planning framework to guide development and redevelopment within the Ho Man Tin area," a spokesman for the Town Planning Board said today (May 14).

The Planning Scheme Area (the Area) of the Ho Man Tin OZP, covering about 210 hectares of land, is located in central Kowloon within the Kowloon City Administration District. It has been substantially developed and forms part of the existing urban areas of Kowloon.

The area is bounded by Boundary Street to the north, the Kowloon-Canton Railway and Princess Margaret Road to the west, Chatham Road North to the south, and Lomond Road, Tin Kwong Road, the eastern slopes of Ho Man Tin Hill and Shun Yung Street to the east.

A site covering 0.2 hectares of land located to the north of Argyle Street is zoned "Commercial" ("C").

Residential developments are the predominant land uses within the area. About 36.8 hectares of land covering nearly all the existing high-density public and private residential developments in the Area is zoned "Residential (Group A)" ("R(A)"). Existing public housing developments including Ho Man Tin Estate, Oi Man Estate, Chun Man Court and Valley Road Estate are mainly located in the southern part of the Area.

Some 31.2 hectares and 12 hectares of land are zoned "Residential (Group B)" ("R(B)") and "Residential (Group C)" ("R(C)") respectively. They are medium-density and low-density private residential developments located along Argyle Street, Princess Margaret Road and Waterloo Road in the northern part of the Area.

To serve the needs of the local and district population, about 70.7 hectares of land are zoned "Government, Institution or Community" ("G/IC"). Examples of the major existing facilities are the Kowloon Hospital, the Kowloon Rehabilitation Centre, the Hospital Authority's Headquarters, the Hong Kong Eye Hospital and the St. Teresa's Hospital.

About 13.1 hectares of land are zoned "Open Space" ("O") for active and passive recreational uses. In addition, the decked-over surfaces of the existing service reservoirs have also been proposed/developed for recreation ground and open space use.

About 0.4 hectares of land are zoned "Other Specified Uses" ("OU") for the existing petrol filling stations and a kerosene store. In addition, slopes with an area of about 7.5 hectares along the south-eastern boundary of the Area are zoned "Green Belt" ("GB").

The approved Ho Man Tin OZP No. S/K7/18 is available for public inspection during normal office hours at the Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, the Kowloon District Planning Office and the Kowloon City District Office.

Copies of the approved OZP are available for sale at Map Publications Centres in North Point and Yau Ma Tei. The electronic version of the plan can be seen on the Town Planning Board's website at http://www.info.gov.hk/tpb.

9. Draft Tsz Wan Shan, Diamond Hill and San Po Kong OZP amended
Hong Kong Government, 14 May 2004

The Town Planning Board today (May 14) announced amendments to the draft Tsz Wan Shan, Diamond Hill and San Po Kong Outline Zoning Plan (OZP).

The proposed amendments mainly involve the inclusion of an area to the west of Upper Wong Tai Sin Estate (excised from the Wang Tau Hom and Tung Tau OZP) in the Planning Scheme Area and the rezoning of various sites to reflect the existing land uses within the Tsz Wan Shan, Diamond Hill and San Po Kong planning area.

The draft Tsz Wan Shan, Diamond Hill and San Po Kong OZP No. S/K11/18 incorporating the amendments is now available for public inspection during normal office hours at the following locations:

* Secretariat of the Town Planning Board, 15th Floor, North Point Government Offices, 333 Java Road, North Point, Hong Kong;

* Kowloon District Planning Office, 14th Floor, North Point Government Offices; and

* Wong Tai Sin District Office, 2nd Floor, Lung Cheung Office Block, 138 Lung Cheung Road, Wong Tai Sin.

Any person affected by the amendments can submit a written objection to the Secretary of the Town Planning Board on or before June 4, 2004.

Copies of the draft plan are available for sale at the Map Publications Centres in Yau Ma Tei and North Point. The electronic version of the plan can be seen on the Town Planning Board's website at http://www.info.gov.hk/tpb.

10. Approved Sai Ying Pun & Sheung Wan Outline Zoning Plan referred back
Hong Kong Government, 14 May 2004

The Chief Executive in Council has referred the approved Sai Ying Pun & Sheung Wan Outline Zoning Plan (OZP) to the Town Planning Board for amendment.

"Amendments to the approved OZP are necessary to reflect the latest development proposals in the Sai Ying Pun & Sheung Wan area," a spokesman for the Board said today (May 14).

The Sai Ying Pun & Sheung Wan OZP incorporating the amendments will be exhibited for public inspection under the Town Planning Ordinance.

The Sai Ying Pun & Sheung Wan OZP was last approved by the Chief Executive in Council on December 16, 2003.