4 homeowners in Hong Kong luxury estate face court proceedings over illegal structures
- Four out of 20 householders in Beaulieu Peninsula ordered to demolish illegal structures served with court summonses for failure to comply
- Buildings Department says action taken after aerial surveys show some structures not removed as ordered
Four of 20 homeowners in an upmarket Hong Kong seaside estate issued with demolition orders in the wake of a joint inspection designed to tackle illegal structures and encroachment on government land have been prosecuted, officials have said.
The Buildings Department on Monday confirmed that four householders from Beaulieu Peninsula in Tuen Mun in the New Territories were served with court summonses in mid-December for failure to comply with the orders to demolish structures put up without permission and cease illegal use of government land.
“The department had previously received reports of the unauthorised site formation and construction works in the estate, and removal orders were issued to individual houses, with owners who failed to comply with the orders being prosecuted,” a department spokesman said.
The department said it and the Lands Department had made joint efforts and taken further action targeting the estate after recent aerial photos had shown that some structures had not been removed.
It added that notices were served on the owners of 20 properties earlier given a removal order.
Recipients of an order must submit a demolition proposal to authorities within 30 days and the work should be completed within 150 days.
“We will carry out our inspection on the remaining properties in phases, issue orders to those who have violated the rules, and follow up on whether some had proceeded with the removal,” the spokesman said.
The Development Bureau on Saturday said that inspections had found 14 out of 28 waterfront houses at the estate had taken over government land without permission.
The Post also identified at least 11 such instances based on online Lands Department maps as well as drone photos. Houses 6, 23 and 30 still had outstanding enforcement orders dating back to 2013.
The continuing inspections were launched after the departments targeted 85 houses in Redhill Peninsula, a luxury estate in Tai Tam, where illegal work was exposed after record-breaking rainfall in September triggered a landslide.
Inspections of the 85 houses showed 40 had unauthorised structures and one had illegally occupied government land only. Another 29 were found to have violated both regulations.
The remaining 15 homes showed no signs of unauthorised building work or illegal occupation of government land.
