The Government announced today (September 16) that a total of seven sites on the 2011-12 Application List will be sold by tender from October to December, the third quarter of the 2011-12 financial year.
"This is to fulfil our commitment to continue to supply more housing land to the market and to announce our land sale programme in advance on a quarterly basis," a spokesman for the Development Bureau said.
Of the seven sites, five are residential sites which could produce about 1,770 units; the remaining two are business and hotel sites which could provide about 32,700 square metres gross floor area and an estimated 750 rooms respectively.
Since the announcement of the 2011-12 Land Sale Programme in February 2011, the Government has adopted a proactive approach in selling land to meet housing and business needs. By end September 2011, the Government will have sold 14 residential sites. Thirteen of these were initiated for sale by the Government while the remaining site at Sai Kung was successfully triggered for sale. Another two residential sites are under tender while one will be put to tender later this month.
"The 17 residential sites could provide about 5,700 flats. Together with the West Rail Nam Cheong site capable of providing 3,313 flats for which the MTR Corporation Limited, on behalf of the West Rail Property Development Limited, would invite tenders later this month, the Government has supplied land to build over 9,000 flats in the first half of this financial year," the spokesman added.
The land sale programme for the coming quarter of October to December consists of two bigger lots at Tseung Kwan O and Tuen Mun in terms of flat supply, as well as three low density residential sites on Lantau Island.
"In order to better safeguard the quantity of flat supply, we will continue to specify the minimum number of flats that developers have to provide in the two bigger lots at Tseung Kwan O and Tuen Mun. The Lands Department will announce the details in due course.
"Apart from the sale of government sites, railway property development projects are an important source of housing land supply in 2011-12, especially in providing small and medium-sized flats. In addition to the Nam Cheong site, we are making good progress in the statutory processes concerning the West Rail property development projects at Tsuen Wan 5 (Cityside), Tsuen Wan 5 (Bayside) and Long Ping (North). We hope to be able to put to tender Tsuen Wan 5 (Bayside) and Tsuen Wan 5 (Cityside) projects at the West Rail Tsuen Wan West Station in the coming quarter. These two projects will provide 3,326 flats in total, about 55 per cent of which (1,832) are small and medium-sized flats," the spokesman said.
"The land sale programme for the coming quarter also contains one business site and one hotel site. There is a clear demand for these sites which is reflected in the successful triggering of three commercial/business sites and one hotel site by developers from this year's Application List. While developers may continue to apply for sites from the Application List, we have selected the business site at Sha Tin Shek Mun and the hotel site at Hung Hom for sale by tender to meet growing business needs."
A list of the sites to be sold by tender in the coming quarter of October to December is attached. The Lands Department will separately announce detailed arrangements for the sale of the individual sites.
Ends/Friday, September 16, 2011
Issued at HKT 19:39
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