Hong Kong authorities reassure brownfield operators they may use sites for free until ‘actual eviction day’

Hong Kong authorities will delay evicting logistics operators slated to be uprooted from brownfield sites to make way for new developments amid calls for help with resettlement from the industry.

Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho on Wednesday told lawmakers the government would strive to postpone the date for the brownfield sites to be reclaimed for new development in the New Territories, referring to agricultural lands that are no longer suitable for farming and are currently occupied by warehouses for industrial use, storage, logistics or parking.

“After the government has reclaimed the plots of land, we will allow operators to use the site for free until the actual eviction date depending on the construction timeline,” Linn said, but she stopped short of giving an exact period of time.

She added the government would start tendering five sites for the construction of the first batch of multi-storey industrial buildings next year, of which 30 per cent of the floor area would be used for accommodating displaced brownfield operators.

Logistics operators, however, called for resettlement before forced eviction in the coming two years because according to a previous government timetable the first multi-storey industrial buildings would only be completed starting in 2027.