In the public interest
The government has finally made a tactical rethink of the controversial West Kowloon arts hub project - which has been stalled for almost six years - after it failed to get a clear commitment from developers.
Two major bones of contention - the single-developer approach and the proposed giant canopy - have both been discarded. Instead, Chief Secretary Rafael Hui Si-yan is to head a consultative committee to gather public opinion. Its three panels are expected to submit their conclusions by September. An independent statutory body will then be established next January, to chart and carry out the next steps forward.
Some have called the move another setback for the government led by Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen. In reality, the political gains for the government have far exceed its losses, as it has defused the storm over the West Kowloon project and dashed allegations about government collusion with business. This is in line with Mr Tsang's promise of strong governance.
Mr Hui revised the initial West Kowloon proposal soon after he took charge of the project. He swiftly scrapped the single-developer approach, carved out 50 per cent of the commercial and residential gross floor areas for open bidding, and asked the successful bidders to deposit $30 billion up front to fund the future cultural facilities.
Despite the developers' attempts to negotiate the terms, the government adhered to the revised conditions - meeting public hopes at the risk of having the whole scheme temporarily put on hold.
The three changes imposed by Mr Hui made it impossible for the developers to make large profits. The successful bidder would have been given only one-third of the land-development rights, which added up to a gross floor area of 2.8 million sq ft. The payment of $30 billion to fund cultural projects and $15 billion for building infrastructure - including the $6 billion giant canopy - pushed the land price to over $10,000 per square foot. It is not surprising that no developers were willing to commit themselves. The government has safeguarded the public interest by not selling the land at a low price.
Former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa would have given in to the demands of the developers, painting the government into an embarrassing position. In contrast, Mr Tsang and Mr Hui stuck to their principles and headed off a political crisis.
As a member of the Legislative Council's subcommittee on the West Kowloon arts hub, I am convinced that the project as envisioned by the Tung administration was merely a property project disguised as a cultural development. From the beginning, the single-developer approach stoked suspicions about government and business collusion.
Had Mr Tung stayed in power, the government, under great pressure from developers, would have backed down. Now that we are starting afresh, it is a good opportunity to take a serious look at cultural policies and developments in general.
Land is Hong Kong's most precious resource, and should be used carefully. Instead of turning West Kowloon into a cultural space, the government should sell the most valuable piece of waterfront land by auction, and use the revenue to fund cultural developments. The current site of the Central Government Offices could be redeveloped, along with nearby areas, creating a better cultural district than West Kowloon would have been.
The consultative committee will study the size of the proposed performing venues, the themes of the four proposed museums and the financial arrangements for the various facilities.
While the government should appoint Legco members to the consultative committee, Legco's subcommittee on West Kowloon should be dissolved, as its work is done. Of course, it could be reconvened any time, if and when that was necessary.
Albert Cheng King-hon is a directly elected legislator
