LCQ22: Land Sharing Pilot Scheme

Following is a question by the Hon Chan Hak-kan and a written reply by the Secretary for Development, Mr Michael Wong, in the Legislative Council today (February 16):

Question:

The Government announced on August 6, 2021 that it had received an application under the Land Sharing Pilot Scheme. The application concerns a site located at She Shan Road and Lam Kam Road, Tai Po (near Lam Tsuen) (the site), which covers about 19.3 hectares of land and is estimated to provide about 12 120 residential units. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the progress in processing the application; whether it will conduct public consultation on the application;

(2) of the current traffic flow of Lam Kam Road which is mainly linked to the site; the additional traffic flow estimated to be brought about by the development plan of the site (the development plan);

(3) of the design capacity of Lam Kam Road; the current utilisation rates of the road during the morning and afternoon peak hours, as well as the proportions of various types of vehicles;

(4) of the current population of the villages near the site; as the population that may be brought about by the development plan is estimated to be as high as 33 937, of the anticipated impacts of the development plan on nearby villages and residents, as well as the estimated number of residents affected; whether it will give compensations to the affected residents, and whether it has planned how to assist the residents concerned; and

(5) given that the development plan proposes to construct two primary schools with 30 classrooms each, whether the Government has assessed if there will be sufficient school-age children for admission to the two schools in the future?

Reply:

President,

The Land Sharing Pilot Scheme (LSPS) aims to facilitate infrastructural upgrading to enhance the development intensity of a site through public-private partnership and release the development potential of private land as soon as possible by leveraging on the resources and efficiency of the private market, with a view to expediting the supply of public and private housing in the short and medium terms.

We have received three applications under the LSPS since its launch in May 2020. The locations concerned are respectively Lo Fai Road and Ting Kok Road in Tai Po, Ho Chau Road in Yuen Long (near Tung Shing Lei) and She Shan Road and Lam Kam Road in Tai Po (near Lam Tsuen). The site on She Shan Road, Tai Po covers 19.3 hectares with a proposed provision of 12 120 flats, 70 per cent (approximately 8 400 flats) of which are for public housing.

Regarding the question raised by the Hon Chan Hak-kan on the application concerning She Shan Road in Tai Po, the reply is as follows:

 (1) According to the mechanism, the applications will first be referred to relevant departments for preliminary assessment. They will then be vetted by the Panel of Advisors of the LSPS (Panel of Advisors) appointed by the Chief Executive, which comprises 10 professional members. Applications supported by the Panel of Advisors will be submitted to the Chief Executive in Council (CE in C) for endorsement in principle, followed by relevant statutory processes (such as rezoning and gazettal of infrastructure works) and land administration procedures.

The Panel of Advisors has initially reviewed the above three applications earlier on. It has considered the preliminary assessments of the applications by the relevant departments and made comments from a variety of perspectives including the proposed development parameters, such as plot ratios, building heights, demarcation between public and private portions, building disposition, scales of proposed provision of Government, Institution and Community facilities and supporting infrastructure under the applications, as well as impacts of the projects on the surrounding environment.

On the basis of the comments of the Panel of Advisors and the departments, the Land Sharing Office (LSO) under the Development Bureau is liaising with the applicants and requiring them to provide supplementary information and revise their proposals, such that the Panel of Advisors can complete the vetting in the coming months and the CE in C's in-principle endorsement can be sought subsequently. If things go well, we will strive to commence the subsequent statutory and administrative procedures within this year. 

As with other residential developments, any application endorsed by the CE in C in principle will undergo relevant statutory procedures including conduct of public consultation in accordance with the applicable mechanisms in rezoning and gazettal of infrastructural works.

(2) and (3) According to the Annual Traffic Census published by the Transport Department (TD), the average daily vehicular traffic flow on Lam Kam Road was around 19 660 vehicles in 2020. The TD does not maintain data on the respective percentages of vehicle types using Lam Kam Road and the utilisation rates of the road during the morning and evening peak hours. Based on information from the TD, the section of Lam Kam Road between She Shan Road and Lam Tsuen Heung Kung Sho Road is a single two-lane carriageway of approximately 7.3 metres wide. Taking into account the number of traffic lanes and the width of the road section concerned, it has a design traffic capacity of 1 700 vehicles per hour by calculation. The actual traffic capacity is affected by traffic congestions at particular downstream sections and the connecting roads, other traffic factors or traffic management measures implemented.

As mentioned above, the scales of development of the applications are initial proposals from applicants subject to approval. The LSO is currently following up with the applicant of the She Shan Road Project in Tai Po on the views offered by the Panel of Advisors and the departments. Among others, the applicant has to submit more detailed technical assessments to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed development in terms of land use compatibility, infrastructure capacity (including transport infrastructure capacity) and environment protection, etc, and that the proposal would not impose adverse impacts on the vicinity. In the event that the existing infrastructure is inadequate to support the project, or the project would bring about adverse impacts on the surrounding areas, the applicant shall implement mitigation measures which have been vetted and agreed by the authorities concerned. Before the scale of proposed development, relevant technical assessments and mitigation measures are finalised, the additional traffic flow to be brought about by the project cannot be confirmed at the present stage.

 (4) According to 2016 Population By-census conducted by the Census and Statistics Department, Lam Tsuen Valley has a population of 19 369.

As mentioned above, the proposed scale of development of the application is an initial proposal. As with other development projects, the applicant has to provide detailed technical assessments to demonstrate the feasibility of the project in terms of land use compatibility, infrastructure capacity and environmental protection, etc, and that the proposed project will not impose any adverse impacts on the vicinity. In the event that the existing infrastructure is inadequate to support the proposed project or the proposed project will bring about adverse impacts on the surrounding areas, the applicant has to implement mitigation measures which have been assessed and approved by the authorities concerned. As mentioned above, if the application is endorsed in principle by the CE in C, consultation with the public including local stakeholders will be conducted in accordance with the applicable mechanisms.

(5) According to the Education Bureau, there are 19 public sector primary schools in Tai Po District in 2021/22 school year running a total of 78 primary one classes. The projected mid-year school-age population aged six who are residing in Tai Po District from 2022 to 2029 school years provided by the Education Bureau are tabulated as follows:
 

Note 1: The projections of school-age population residing in Hong Kong are compiled on the basis of the 2019-based population projections released by the Census and Statistics Department in September 2020 and the "Projections of Population Distribution 2021-2029" released by the Planning Department in March 2021. 

Note 2: School-age population aged six is considered appropriate for primary education (i.e. primary one). Figures refer to the projected number of local children (i.e. Hong Kong usual residents) aged six residing in the districts concerned. The projected figures should not be taken as the projected number of students attending schools in the districts concerned. The latter will be affected by the prevailing distribution of school places, demand for school places and parental choices. Students under or over the age of six may also be enrolled in primary one.

Note 3: The projections of population have taken into account a number of factors and assumptions. Any deviations in the assumptions from the eventual situation may render the projected figures different from the actual turnout figures. Projected figures after 2030 school year are currently not available.

Note 4: Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.

The applicant initially proposes to construct two primary schools with 30 classrooms each but may be required to make appropriate revisions to the plan according to the comments of the Education Bureau. If the application is endorsed in principle by the CE in C, public consultation will be carried out in accordance with the applicable mechanisms.
 
Ends/Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Issued at HKT 13:03
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