Lai See | Tennis court saga reflects weakness of the Building Management Ordinance

We hear of more building management related nonsense. This story concerns the tennis court at the Oscar by the Sea development at Tseung Kwan O, and is another example of how the Building Management Ordinance offers little protection to minority owners in the face of an entrenched owners' committee.

Last November the owners' committee wanted to replace the mesh fence surrounding the tennis court, which was rusting, with one made of plastic wood. This was deemed to be unsuitable by the Hong Kong Tennis Association as it was likely to bend and break if players ran into it. The other problem was that this fancy new fence would cost HK$1 million, which some residents felt was high since it was about twice as much as the standard mesh fence.

After a mail shot to residents raising these points and suggesting the tender should be examined more closely, and another letter questioning the transparency of finances of the owners' committee, the proposal was vetoed. The owners' committee then spent HK$18,000 on a survey report that concluded the court was safe but should be inspected every three months.

Nevertheless, at the beginning of February the management company Hong Yip Services, which is owned by Sun Hung Kai Properties, was told by the owners' committee to lock the court. Two residents then broke in and played tennis to assert their right to use the court. The management company called the police who determined this was a civil and not a criminal matter and left.

The next day, there was a lock and chain on the court. The same residents broke the lock and played tennis again, having checked with the police that they were not committing a criminal act. Meanwhile, Hong Yip tried to stop the tennis players from explaining their position to other residents by warning their security guards that if they allowed the players to put letters into residents mail boxes they would face disciplinary action.

This is despite police advice to the contrary, and the existence of a Lands Tribunal case that also supports this. However, the tennis court is now heavily padlocked and the players are reluctant to keep breaking into the court. Since there is no avenue for resolving this issue except a visit to the Lands Tribunal, this situation, like so many others in Hong Kong, remains in limbo.