Shaw studios project hits a roadblock
Planners delay approval for redevelopment amid worries it will add to traffic problems in the area which the department has yet to tackle
Approval for the redevelopment of the 53-year-old Shaw Studios in Clear Water Bay is on hold because of concerns over much-needed roadworks nearby, town planners say.
The plan is to transform the landmark site - where late media tycoon and philanthropist Sir Run Run Shaw built his entertainment empire - into a residential-commercial project with 642 flats and 115 hostel rooms.
But the added population would put more strain on a key roundabout where Clear Water Bay, Hang Hau and Ying Yip roads met. That junction was, according to the Transport Department, already "operating close to capacity" in peak hours. Yet the department said it did not have a plan for improvement works.
"Since the government itself does not have a plan yet, how can it require the applicants to ensure the works are completed by the time residents move in?" asked director of planning Ling Kar-kan, who is also chairman of the Town Planning Board's rural and new town planning committee.
Committee member Ivan Fu Chin-shing agreed.