Public housing hurdle
Finding suitable sites for public housing could become increasingly difficult within five years, according to a senior housing official.
Permanent Secretary for Transport and Housing Thomas Chan Chun-yuen said the concerns of local residents and district councils made pinpointing locations for public housing sites complicated. He made the comments in a speech yesterday during the Housing Authority's regular open meeting.
North District Council is opposing an authority proposal to build public housing in Luen Wo Hui, Fanling. But Sham Shui Po District Council has approved use of factory buildings in Shek Kip Mei and Cheung Sha Wan for public housing.
Mr Chan said most of the public housing projects planned for the next five years were in the late stages of design or were already being built.
He said the average waiting time for a public housing flat would remain at about three years. The development of new public housing would need to align with demand and the growth in new families.
Michael Suen Ming-yeung, the then secretary for housing, planning and lands, said in 2002 that the government would not stop building public flats, but the same year saw an increase in government-subsidised rent and loan schemes.
The authority also enacted schemes to allow the elderly to rent flats in the private market in 2001, resulting in an increase in the number of public flats vacated.
