Hundreds queue all night for car parks
THERE were almost 200 people lined up outside the sales office doors of Parc Oasis when they opened yesterday at 9 am, all wanting to pay up to $700,000 for a space to park a car.
Residents at the luxury development at Yau Yat Chuen, or in some cases their maids, began lining up two days ago in anticipation of yesterday's car park sale.
Up for grabs were 233 parking spaces at Wheelock Properties' posh development - the Parc Oasis - selling for between $600,000 and $700,000 each.
The sale was expected to generate $153 million and a company spokesman said it was a resounding success.
'When I went to work this morning there were well over 100 people lined up, wanting to get in,' she said.
'It has been pandemonium in here all day with residents waiting their turn to buy their own space. People were arriving with their friends and family.' She said Wheelock officials were still processing applications at 8 pm and she did not know when they would finish.
Residents buying a car park space were required to put down a deposit of $60,000 when they signed their sales and purchase agreements.
They were required to produce a further 20 per cent within three days and the rest in 21 days.
Residents complained about having to queue all night, and some were furious that Wheelock only gave them two days' notice of the sale.
'I'll stay all night simply because I have no other choice,' said Larry Ngai Ming-sing.
'The residents are very angry about the way this has been done. There is no reason why we had to line up.' Like most people who queued for the evening, Mr Ngai, a director of a trading company, arrived immediately after work and planned to return to work the next morning after his night-long vigil.
According to a company spokesman, the parking spots are being sold on a first come, first served basis, with priority being given to flat owners in Towers 1 to 21. There are 25 towers in the development.
She said it was 'theoretically possible' for non-tenants to snap up one of the much sought after spots.
They would have to rent the parking spot to an existing tenant.
Towers 1 to 20 of Parc Oasis feature 819 parking spots which tenants have been leasing by the month.
There also are parking spaces for hire by visitors.
About 20 maids lined up to reserve spaces for their employers.
Emmy Dotimas, who has been working for a family for three years, said her employer brought her dinner but expected her to stay in line all night.
Resident Frankie Fung thought that tenants who sent their maids to line up were being underhand.
'It is unfair to send your amah out to stand in line when the rest of us are willing to stand here all night,' he said.
The company spokesman said the parking spaces were a bargain.
'Parking spaces at a nearby residential development are selling for $1 million each,' she said. 'The price is very good.' She said it was possible for someone to buy more than one parking spot, if some were unsold by the end of the sale.
