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Hong Kong Town Planning Board rejects proposal to switch 2 prime sites at former Kai Tak airport from commercial to housing use

  • Keeping commercial plots will be good for city’s long-term economic development, some board members say
  • Government last year said five commercial sites at Kai Tak would be turned over for private housing to produce 6,000 flats

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A sunset view from the former Kai Tak airport runway. Photo: Martin Chan
Hong Kong’s Town Planning Board has rejected a government proposal to switch two prime commercial sites on the runway of the former Kai Tak airport to housing use, after developers raised objections.
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Keeping the commercial plots would be good for the city’s long-term economic development, some board members said, as it had been planned for the runway to become a tourism hub.

“After discussions, the board agreed the two sites should serve to support the tourism node on the runway, where we already have the cruise terminal,” a board spokeswoman said on Friday night.

Kai Tak has been under development as part of a second central business district with Kowloon East, with mixed uses including commercial, residential, tourism, sports and recreation.

The board, comprising professionals and community representatives, met on Friday to discuss government-proposed amendments to the outline zoning plan for Kai Tak, which included rezoning five commercial plots for housing.

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