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1. Three groups in fight to save mansion

2. More super-jail lies by anonymous government official

3. Paul Y to take 94pc of Skynet

1. Three groups in fight to save mansion
CHLOE LAI, SCMP 7 June 2004

A three-pronged push has begun to save Happy Valley's 68-year-old King Yin Lei mansion, valued at $400 million, from the bulldozers.

Two organisations and the Wan Chai District Council have each launched campaigns to save the historic building.

The Conservancy Association said yesterday it would submit a $6 million bid to save the 25,000 sq ft, red-brick residence.

The Antiquities Advisory Board, which warned against any plans to pull down the mansion after it met last Thursday, is also considering moves to declare it as a monument.

The Wan Chai District Council will discuss the future of King Yin Lei mansion at 45 Stubbs Road at a meeting on June 15 after many residents and tourists expressed concern over the fate of the historic building. Owner and businessman Stephen Yow Mok-shing decided to put it on the market in April.

Tenders for the mansion, which property agents have valued at $400 million, will close tomorrow.

Selling agent Henry Lam Wai-hon, executive director of CB Richard Ellis, has said it is a sensible guess the buyer will demolish the property and redevelop the site into several townhouses because of strong demand for luxury homes.

Conservancy Association chief executive Lister Cheung Lai-ping said: "It is one of the oldest, most spacious and well-maintained residential buildings on Hong Kong Island. It is a model example of a mixed-style, pre-war residence and displays intricate oriental design and craftsmanship."

With its panoramic views across the harbour, the Happy Valley residence was featured as a backdrop for TVB's legendary series Yesterday's Glitter, starring Liza Wang Ming-chuen.

It was also used in Hollywood films such as Soldier of Fortune (1955), starring Clark Gable, and Love Is a Many Splendored Thing (1955), with William Holden.

Ms Cheung, who wants every citizen to donate $1 for the bid, admitted the chances of winning the tender was close to zero.

The conservation group is collecting signatures to urge Mr Yow to preserve the historic mansion and consider an alternative solution that would benefit the businessman and the community.

Ms Cheung said that if the government failed to save the mansion from demolition, it would be "a mockery" of the recent drive to formulate a policy on how to protect Hong Kong's heritage.

"We respect the rights of the owner. Hence, we would like to see the government discuss with the owner how to preserve the mansion," she said.

The association has sent a letter to the Secretary for Home Affairs Patrick Ho Chi-ping, requesting that he consider declaring the mansion as a monument. But it has not yet received a reply.

Antiquities Advisory Board chairman Edward Ho Sing-tin said members had unanimously agreed the mansion should be preserved.

He said the board would like to visit and inspect the mansion, but the owner had yet to reply.

Mr Ho said if the buyer moved to pull down the mansion before the board declared it as a monument, it would announce it as a proposed monument to protect against demolition for 12 months.

Wan Chai District Councillor Wong Wang-tai, whose constituency includes Stubbs Road, also joined the campaign: "Heritage is like a life. Once it is gone, no one can get it back with money."

2. More super-jail lies by anonymous government official
CHEUNG CHI-FAI, SCMP 7 June 2004

Super-jail seen as best use of island

Economic potential an ‘overriding’ factor for to choosing border site for prison.

The choice of Hei Ling Chau as the site of a proposed super-jail was made after a selection process that concluded there was little potential for alternative development, a senior security official said.

Green groups and Lantau residents have expressed outrage at the choice of Hei Ling Chau, where an 80-hectare plot is to be reclaimed from the sea and a 2.2km bridge built to connect it with Lantau.

Opponents say Kong Nga Po near the border - which was shortlisted along with Hei Ling Chau by the government as a feasible site - was more suitable for the $12 billion prison project.

The senior security official, who wanted to remain anonymous, said there was an "overriding reason" for not picking Kong Nga Po.

"It is located at the centre of the frontier closed area and occupies a unique strategic position. It will have great potential in economic integration with the mainland," she said.

The official admitted that the Kong Nga Po site was operationally better than Hei Ling Chau as it was closer to the bases of the disciplined forces, including police and ambulance. But its strategic location for economic integration was irreplaceable, which was not the case for Hei Ling Chau.

"Some might argue that Hei Ling Chau also has its economic potential to become an eco-tourism site, but such a site could also be developed elsewhere," she said.

"The island is now a closed area and there are already three prisons there. The public couldn't freely go there anyway."

According to the "Hong Kong 2030" planning study, released late last year, Kong Nga Po could be used for logistic or entertainment purposes. But these proposals are not final and more feasibility studies are needed.

She said the land formation costs of developing either site as a super-jail were about the same - $2.5 billion.

The Kong Nga Po site would involve land resumption, removal of burial grounds and the clearance of some fung shui woodland, while the Hei Ling Chau site needed a bridge and reclaimed land.

She said there was no "perfect site" for a super prison and a "choice between evils" had to be made after considering a basket of factors such as economic benefits, conservation concerns and cost.

"There are not many alternative sites as we need 80 hectares. Our professional colleagues looked at all places across Hong Kong and came up with some shortlisted sites," she said.

"The criteria are objective and they are reasonable. No one has ever come forward to question the reasonableness of the criteria."

The criteria included levelness of the land, whether the site was fragmented or needed to be cut and filled and avoidance of villages, burial grounds and ecological sites.

The official said all necessary procedures, such as environmental impact assessment and public consultation, would be undertaken.

3. Paul Y to take 94pc of Skynet
Staff reporter, The Standard 7 June 2004

Paul Y-ITC Construction, Hong Kong's largest listed builder, has unveiled plans to inject its construction unit and shareholder loans of a subsidiary with a combined value of HK$513.6 million into Skynet (International Group) Holdings for up to 94 per cent stake.

Skynet said the proposal would help revitalise its business. Its shares have been suspended since October 16, 2003 and were on track for delisting as the firm failed to show sufficient level of operations or tangible assets.

``With new working capital, the group will be in a position to acquire new stock of marble and granite products and employ additional sales and marketing staff so as to solicit new business,'' the companies said.

Under the proposal, Paul Y will sell all shares and shareholder loans in Paul Y Construction Group to Skynet for HK$400 million for 10 billion shares at 4 HK cents each. It will also transfer HK$113.6 million in loans owed by another unit, Hidden Advantage Investments, to Skynet for 2.84 billion shares at the same price.

The price represents a 60 per cent discount to the last closing of 10 cents, after adjustment for Skynet's proposal to cut share capital and merge 10 shares into one.

Before the sale, Paul Y will take out two units under Paul Y Construction, Paul Y-ITC Management and Paul Y-ITC Investments Group, and other non-construction businesses. Paul Y Construction's work-on-hand exceeds HK$11 billion, Skynet said.

``The acquisition will enable Skynet to acquire one of the leading businesses in the construction and engineering sectors in Hong Kong,'' according to the company statement.

Paul Y will offer 500 million Skynet shares to Wellington Equities to fund the purchase of Hidden Advantage.

Paul Y may also receive up to 1.13 billion shares as Skynet's underwriter for the proposed open share offer to let shareholders subscribe five shares for every two they own at 4 cents each.

Skynet said it planned to use HK$20 million of the HK$44 million net proceeds from the open offer to revitalise its granite and marble products business and HK$24 million to fund existing business.

Skynet will raise HK$100 million by issuing convertible notes to Paul Y for general working capital, which can be swapped into 2.5 billion shares at 4cents each within four years.

The notes carry coupon interest of 1 per cent above the 6-month Hong Kong interbank rate.

After the transactions, Paul Y will hold 93.4 per cent in Skynet, assuming no existing shareholders take up the open share offer, or 94.4 per cent after all convertible notes are swapped into shares.

Wellington will hold 3.5 per cent while Dong Fang Gas Holdings, a property unit of PCCW, will see its stake diluted to 0.7 from 22.6 per cent, before the notes are converted.

Paul Y will apply for a waiver from regulators to exempt it from making a mandatory offer to buy all remaining shares. It also plans to restore the public float, which may be diluted to as little as 5.6 per cent, to the required 25 per cent, via a share placement.

Skynet's turnover rose to HK$51.4 million for the year ended March from HK$46.6 million a year ago while pre-tax loss shrank to HK$115 million from HK$219 million.