Statutory body planned to oversee new harbourfront developments

A statutory Harbourfront Authority will directly develop and manage 12 sites with a total size of 37 hectares in the next 10 years, according to a consultation document to be released today.

The sites to be managed by the future authority include newly reclaimed land in Central, Wan Chai, Causeway Bay and North Point, a waterfront park in Quarry Bay, a promenade in Kwun Tong and a new public space next to the Hung Hom ferry pier. The government hopes they will be put to more creative use under the authority's watch, according to the paper.

Waterfront sites are now run by numerous government departments, resulting in red tape. The proposed Harbourfront Authority will be a "one-stop shop". It will first manage these 12 newly created sites, with a view to eventually taking responsibility for all the sites alongside Hong Kong's harbour.

A law to set up the authority is expected to be drafted by June. It will come into operation by 2016 at the earliest, pending Legco approval. The authority will develop these sites, granted by the government at a nominal or reduced land premium, in the next decade. Partnerships can be formed with the private sector, according to the document.

Sites now managed by other government departments or authorities will not be given to the new body for the time being.

A controversial People's Liberation Army berth on the new Central waterfront will be excluded, even though the government has pledged that the site will be open to the public when it is not used by the military.