Avoiding 'new town blues' in the Northeast New Territories
K.K. Ling says that by generating employment close to the planned development areas in the Northeast New Territories, Hong Kong can avoid another case of 'new town blues'
There have been many controversies about the Northeast New Territories. Some believe we do not need new development if we can control our population growth, which comes mainly from mainland immigration. Others ask why new developments must be put there. Some suggest that the military land and the so-called brownfield sites now occupied by containers should be used first.
There are also nature conservation and ecological concerns. Other controversies are about sustainable communities and how we can plan for new towns that provide us with jobs as well as homes. Should the government resume all private land or should developers be allowed to participate? If yes, what are the terms and conditions?
As a town planner, I would like to focus on the planning aspects: where to accommodate the additional population, what a "new development area" is, and what we can expect from it.
Planning for the new development areas will respect nature and promote agriculture
Proposals for developing the Northeast New Territories date back to the 1990s. In 1998, the "Planning and Development Study on Northeast New Territories" identified Kwu Tung North, Fanling North and Ping Che/Ta Kwu Ling as new development areas. An economic downturn in 2003 led to the project being temporarily shelved.
In 2007, the "Hong Kong 2030 Planning Vision and Strategy" was formulated after a comprehensive study and extensive public engagement. The direction taken was to "do more with less", that is, strive for better quality and higher efficiency. Following this rationale and after evaluating different options, the preferred choice was to complete the undeveloped parts of existing new towns, especially Tseung Kwan O and Tung Chung. And it was suggested that housing developments in the Northeast New Territories and Hung Shui Kiu new development areas could accommodate 350,000 people.
The 2007-2008 policy address included these recommendations as one of 10 major infrastructure projects. These areas are on our railway corridors and there is a good opportunity to make use of the brownfield sites.
Uppermost in our mind is the "Hong Kong-style new town blues". We try to avoid a jobs mismatch and people having to commute long distances, which costs a lot of time and money.
This is why I have been advocating a land-use concept that generates employment. For the Northeast New Territories new development areas, we have reserved a large piece of land for job-generation purposes.