More than half of Hongkongers denied enough space for recreation, think tank says
Civic Exchange urges government to develop more plots to ensure everyone benefits from new target
More than half of Hong Kong’s population does not enjoy the amount of recreational space specified in the government’s latest development blueprint, a think tank says.
Civic Exchange found that those living in Mong Kok were restricted to just a fifth of the proposed space.
It called on the authorities to identify plots that could be quickly developed into quality recreational spaces and to allocate more funding.
According to government guidelines, the standard for provision of open space in urban areas is a minimum of two square metres per person. A new blueprint for housing and economic development beyond 2030 unveiled by planning authorities last year suggested increasing this to 2.5 square metres.
While official statistics in 2012 showed that Hong Kong met the current and 2030 targets with 2.7 square metres of open space per person, Carine Lai Man-yin, a researcher at Civic Exchange, said the actual situation was more complicated.