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urban reneWal

There has been an ageing building stock in Hong Kong with some parts of our
city having a high concentration of old buildings with poor physical conditions

and inadequate basic facilities. To address the problem of urban decay and to
improve the living environment of the dilapidated urban areas, the Department

works closely with the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) and other stakeholders in
the planning and processing of the redevelopment, rehabilitation, preservation,

revitalisation and retrofitting projects for improving the urban fabrics of the city.

The new Urban Renewal Strategy promulgated by the Government advocates a
'people-first, district-based, public participatory' approach in providing guidance

for undertaking urban renewal works in Hong Kong. The URA has been adopting
the 'planning-led' and 'district-based' approach in taking forward urban renewal in

old districts like Kwun Tong and To Kwa Wan, and will adopt the same approach to
improve other old districts including Kowloon City and Mong Kok.

In February 2019, the URA commenced the development scheme at Kai Tak Road/

Sa Po Road in which an underground public vehicle park will be provided to
address the parking demand in the district and a sunken plaza will be developed

to connect with the proposed pedestrian subway across Prince Edward Road East
to the Kai Tak Development Area and its future underground shopping street. The

related statutory planning procedures have been completed. In October 2020,
the URA commenced the development scheme at Shantung Street/Thistle Street

in Mong Kok whereby a sunken plaza will also be provided connecting the re-
provisioned rest garden and shops in addition to the provision of government/

institution/community facilities, and buildings along Thistle Street and Nelson
Street will be setback for pavement widening.

In response to the Policy Addresses in 2018 and 2019, the URA commenced two

pilot projects in May 2020, including a development project at Shing Tak Street/
Ma Tau Chung Road and a development scheme at Kau Pui Lung Road/Chi

Kiang Street in Kowloon City, to redevelop buildings under the Civil Servants’ Co-
operative Building Society.

59 PLANNING DEPARTMENT