Developer HKR urges government: allow more space to build in Discovery Bay to help ease Hong Kong’s housing shortage
Popular residential area on Lantau island launched 40 years ago has only been allowed to consist of low-to-medium rise buildings, and so far about 10.8 million sq ft of space has been developed, or some 8,000 properties
HKR International, the developer behind Discovery Bay – the popular residential complex on Hong Kong’s Lantau island – has challenged the government’s allowable land-use density on the 650-hectare site, saying much of its nearby countryside is still highly under used.
Hong Kong currently faces a chronic shortage of available land on which to build homes.
The plot ratio for Discovery Bay’s 70 million sq ft land area – equivalent to 8 per cent of the size of Hong Kong island – which equates to just 0.16 times, compared with 3.7 times on The Peak, for instance, said HKR deputy chairman and managing director Victor Cha Mou-zing.
We have vast amounts of undeveloped land there (at Discovery Bay)
Plot ratio is the industry term for measuring the density of building in a specific area.
“We have vast amounts of undeveloped land there (at Discovery Bay). Our infrastructure and facilities can support a higher building density, even double the existing 0.16 times,” he said.
Over the past 40 years, he said, Discovery Bay has only been allowed low- to medium-rise buildings, and so far about 10.8 million square feet has been developed – or some 8,000 properties.
“Discovery Bay could provide a short- to medium-term solution for Hong Kong’s housing shortage, if a higher plot ratio is allowed,” he said.
