Urban Renewal Authority
| 市區重建局 si5 keoi1 cung4 gin3 guk6 |
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Urban Renewal Authority logo
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | 2001 |
| Preceding agency |
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| Jurisdiction | Hong Kong |
| Headquarters | COSCO Tower, Sheung Wan |
| Agency executives |
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| Website | www |
The Urban Renewal Authority (Chinese: 市區重建局; URA) is a quasi-governmental, profit-makingstatutory body in Hong Kong responsible for accelerating urban redevelopment.
The authority's predecessor, the Land Development Corporation (土地發展公司, or 土發 for short), was founded in 1988. The new Urban Renewal Authority was founded in 1999 with the aim of speeding up urban renewal. Difficulties reaching agreement on compensation packages for people affected by planned redevelopments delayed the actual commencement of the URA. The agency was finally established on 1 May 2001 and the LDC was dissolved the same day.
A main difference between the former LDC and the URA is the URA's ability to directly resume land (akin to expropriation in other countries). The LDC was required to undertake lengthy negotiations with owners in order to acquire land, and had to demonstrate that it had taken all steps to acquire land on a fair and reasonable basis before it could apply to the Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands for compulsory land resumption. The difficulty in overriding dissenting property owners was the main reason the LDC was slow to undertake urban renewal.
Unlike the LDC, the URA is also tax-exempt.
At present, there are about 16,000 private buildings that are 30 or more years old within the metro area of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, Tsuen Wan District and Kwai Tsing District. By 2030, the number of buildings over 30 years old will increase fourfold.
Urban renewal in Hong Kong typically involves relatively large-scale redevelopment of urban areas, rather than piecemeal rebuilding of individual buildings or the provision of specific facilities. Streets are often closed, combining smaller urban blocks into larger superblocks. When urban renewal is announced for a specific area, a "freezing survey" is undertaken to identify the current inhabitants, with an aim to preventing opportunists from moving into urban renewal sites in order to receive compensation. The URA then compensates owners and demolishes the district. URA redevelopments generally comprise luxury shopping centres and luxury residential developments.
With the stated aim to address the problem of urban decay and improve the living conditions of residents in dilapidated areas, the Urban Renewal Authority Ordinance (Chapter 563) was enacted in July 2000. The Ordinance provides a new institutional framework for carrying out urban renewal in locations that the private market finds unprofitable. The Hong Kong Government conducted a comprehensive review of "Urban Renewal Strategy" in 2008. After two years' 'community engagement', the new strategy was promulgated on 24 Feb 2011.
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Wikipedia