The Civic Exchange think-tank has launched a study titled Treating the Symptoms: A Critical Review of Urban Renewal in Hong Kong authored by Carine Lai. This critical analysis of Hong Kong's urban-renewal policies since 2000 has the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) as a main focus.

Set up in 2000, the URA was to oversee redevelopment, rehabilitation, revitalization and preservation on the urban landscape. After 10 years, what results? Are its policies environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable? The author interviewed experts and reviewed academic literature, government documents and Legislative Council records.

Lai said, “I went to Hong Kong experts on urban planning, land policy, finance and urban design to ask deeper questions: Why are our buildings in bad condition after a few decades while other cities have buildings that stand for centuries? Why is it hard to get a mortgage on an old flat? I found the answers fascinating, sometimes surprising.”

With photo documentation, the author reviews the effects of urban renewal on Hong Kong's built environment. “We need to think beyond merely how to deal with old buildings and look more into how our city works,” she said.

Michelle Wong
Civic Exchange, Hong Kong

(August 27, 2010)



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