Choi Hung Estate residents to move out by April 2029, Housing Authority says
Hong Kong Free Press
Residents affected by the first stage of redevelopment at Choi Hung Estate have until April 2029 to move out of their homes, Hong Kong’s public housing provider has announced.
Some 1,790 households at Pik Hoi House, Kam Pik House and Tan Fung House will have to move out of their units by April 2019, the Housing Authority said in a statement on Friday. They will be notified 52 months prior to the target clearance date, and relocated to the redeveloped Mei Tung Estate nearby.
The redevelopment of the rainbow-coloured estate will provide a net increase of 1,800 flats, the Housing Department said earlier, up from the current 7,400, and improve road traffic at the Choi Hung interchange.
Tenants affected by the clearance will be offered a Domestic Removal Allowance covering moving costs ranging from HK$10,030 to HK$31,910, depending on the household size.
Allowances
One-person and two-person households may also choose to receive an allowance if they opt out of rehousing to a public rental unit. The rate for singletons is HK$78,820, or HK$96,050 for two-person households, according to the Housing Authority.
See also: Inside Hong Kong’s rainbow-coloured Choi Hung Estate ahead of expected redevelopment
To retain small shops on the estate, the authority will identify stores and determine whether they are worth retaining through community engagement exercises. Shop owners who successfully bid for new premises will be given a three-month rent waiver.
Eligible tenants who do not participate in the arrangements will be granted a lump-sum payment of HK$125,000.
“The HA will also consider incorporating the unique design elements of the existing estate into the design of the estate and adopt new architectural design techniques and consider retaining the cultural characteristics of [Choi Hung Estate],” the statement said.
In response to residents’ calls to purchase government-subsidised flats under the Home Ownership Scheme, the authority has also converted a public rental development on Wang Chiu Road in Kowloon Bay into a subsidised sale flat project with 2,576 flats.
Separately, the clearance date for two housing blocks at Wah Fu Estate have been brought forward by six years, from 2040-41 to 2034-35.
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