Page 14 - Urban Renewal Authority 2023-24 Annual Report

MANAGING DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

Planning-led Approach to Maximise the Utilisation of Land Resources
One of the key highlights of the year was the commencement of the Sai Yee Street/Flower Market Road
Development Scheme, the first project from the development nodes proposed in the Yau Mong District Study
(YMDS).
In planning this project, we incorporated Government land and obsolete community facilities into the area for
redevelopment in order to enhance the site’s development potential and capacity. We also made good use of
planning tools such as the Linked Site approach and Transfer of Plot Ratio (“TPR”) proposed in the YMDS to
restructure and replan the lands of small and scattered sites within the project area. Together with the “Single
Site, Multiple Use” model for diverse and mixed-use developments, we plan to build a multi-purpose complex
that accommodates existing facilities that will be upgraded to modern standards for both Government and
public use. Such an approach aims to maximise the utilisation of land resources and generate significant planning
benefits.

Through restructuring and replanning of land use, the Sai Yee Street/
Flower Market Road Development Scheme will adopt the “Single
Site, Multiple Use” model to construct a multi-purpose complex,
and provide more than 200 public parking spaces and other loading/
unloading bays to address current issues such as traffic congestion
and the blocking of pedestrian walkways by loading/unloading
activities (right).

In addition, our team exercised robust control over the scale and area of property acquisition, allowing us to
minimise cash expenditures incurred in property acquisitions while enhancing the environment of the old district
and maximise planning benefits.

In fact, the URA had earlier established a Planning Reserve for projects similar to the Sai Yee Street/Flower
Market Road Development Scheme, where the extent of property acquisition is relatively modest. Planning
Reserve refers to holistic urban renewal studies with feasibility and technical assessments in different selected
districts. Once these studies are completed, a master concept plan and development parameters will be
formulated for potential projects, thereby creating a Project Reserve. Currently, the Project Reserve comprises
projects of different scales that can be promptly implemented in tandem with changes in the economy and
property markets as well as the URA’s cash flow.
Over the past year, the two Reserves have had a positive impact on the URA, allowing us to undertake projects
that involve smaller-scale acquisitions yet offer significant development potential in a volatile economy and
property market. These projects are expected to generate future cash flow and strengthen the URA’s financial
reserves, ensuring the sustainability of our urban renewal initiatives.

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