Thousands of residents of Hong Kong’s rainbow-coloured Choi Hung Estate will begin moving out of their homes in 2028 to make way for its redevelopment, the city’s housing authorities have said. The project is expected to be completed in 2049 and will provide 9,200 flats in three phases over a period of 15 years.
The phased clearance and resettlement plan for the redevelopment of the decades-old public housing estate that is currently home to some 17,500 Hongkongers was laid out in a document submitted to the Wong Tai Sin District Council on Wednesday.
Choi Hung Estate on October 30, 2024. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
The plan will provide a net increase of 1,800 flats, the Housing Department said, up from the current 7,400, and improve road traffic at the Choi Hung Interchange and adjacent areas.
Tenants of 2,450 units in Pik Hoi House, Kam Pik House, and Tan Fung House will have to move out in 2028 and 2029, and will be relocated to the nearby New Mei Tung Estate.
The three blocks will be redeveloped under the first phase of the project, along with two vacant school premises, providing some 3,200 units to be ready some time in 2035 to 2036, the department said.
Using the vacant school sites would allow for the construction of new residential blocks to accommodate the households affected by the second phase of redevelopment.
The clearance and rehousing proposal for the Choi Hung Estate redevelopment. Photo: Screenshot via Housing Department.
Kam Wan House, Hung Ngok House, Kam Hon House, and Pak Suet House fall under the second phase of the redevelopment, expected to provide 4,100 flats between 2042 and 2043. Tenants will be moved to the new flats under the first phase of redevelopment.
The third phase of the redevelopment will see Chui King House, Kam Wah House, Luk Ching House, Chi Mei House, and the estate’s car park demolished to provide 1,900 flats, expected to be ready between 2048 and 2049.
Residents of the four blocks will be resettled in the new flats under the second phase of redevelopment.
Resettlement arrangements
The department said the government would provide “adequate rehousing resources” for affected households. “Where resources permit, we will allow the affected households to move to suitable refurbished [public rental housing] flats in any district of their choice,” it said.
A Domestic Removal Allowance (DRA) will be provided to the affected households to help them meet part of the removal expenses, the department added.
Choi Hung Estate on October 30, 2024. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
Singletons and two-person families affected by the redevelopment may also opt for rental allowances in lieu of a subsidised rental flat. Those who wish to purchase a flat under home ownership schemes would be eligible for priority flat selection.
Talks began in early 2024 with other government bureaus and departments on transport improvement measures, and arrangements for schools and social welfare facilities, according to the department.
The department has also been “actively collecting valuable views from stakeholders,” including tenants, district councillors, and NGOs through engagement activities, it said. Some of the land near Tan Fung House would be freed up for improvement works intended to relieve traffic congestion.
A portion of land in the vicinity of Pik Hoi House and Kam Pik House will be set aside for a bus bay to be set up on Choi Hung Road. The second phase will also be configured to widen a section of Lung Cheung Road, and to reconfigure bus bays nearby.
To ensure that welfare services will not be disrupted by the redevelopment, demolition works at Kam Hon House, Kam Wah House, and Chi Mei House, where the estate’s social welfare facilities are located, will only commence once similar facilities have been set up.
