Hong Kong's country parks are under threat. A developer who paid HK$16 million for a former village in Tai Long Wan, Sai Kung, is believed to be turning the area into his own private playground, with a helipad that allows him to shuttle in and out of it at his pleasure. The area, described in a government landscape study as 'an area still largely inaccessible and almost free from development', is known for its remoteness and natural beauty.
Yet, the new owner can seemingly redevelop the old village structures with impunity. He can trace ding rights - rights of the former Sai Wan villagers to build houses - and create a villa park under the established practice of the Lands Department and Town Planning Board. One just needs to look at Tai Tan and other similar 'private pocket areas' within or surrounded by country parks to see this already happening.
Public outrage has forced the developer to halt work at the site for now and wait for the storm to pass. But the problem has not gone away.
The situation that Hong Kong finds itself in - where country parks and areas of unspoiled, remote natural beauty are open to the whims of developers - is due to a lack of foresight. When country parks were created, the settling of private property rights was avoided so the government did not have to pay compensation to their then inhabitants. No planning or development controls were introduced because significant development wasn't seen as practicable - the lack of access alone was deemed to be a sufficient barrier.
How times have changed.
With the huge increases in wealth of mainland China and its entrepreneurs, remote areas have become accessible. The latest 'must have' toys of the affluent - powerboats and helicopters - are turning Hong Kong's country parks into the next neighbourhood for the ultra-rich. The only player that seems surprised by this development is the government - which, ironically, is responsible for making the city so attractive to the Chinese diaspora with friendly tax, financial and legal regimes. What Monaco is for the Europeans, Hong Kong is now for the Chinese.
