CPU members concerned with divergences between PCUs and Detailed Plan for Zone A
Several Urban Planning Committee (CPU) members have expressed concerns about urban conditions plans (PCUs) for several land plots in Zone A of the new landfills.
Of concern were the PCUs for five land plots located at Zone A (B5, B7, B8, B11, and B12).
Members noted the PCUs conflicted with the Urban Master Plan and, more recently, the Detailed Plan for the area identified as East-2.
Several members also noted the Detailed Plan of East-2 was subject to public consultation.
The members asked how the CPU could be approving conditions different from those in documents undergoing public consultation and that are unapproved. They asked how the matter will be resolved in the future.
The discussion, launched by member Teng Kai On, soon had members like Kou Ngon Seng and Si Kun Hong raising questions.
Kou noted that for plot B5, the PCU under discussion stated a soil occupancy of 100% for the transport hub whereas the Detailed Plan under consultation has an occupancy of 80%.
Kou also noted that a 2,000 square meter facility, which he said is for a public library and other public facilities, has disappeared from the PCU.
Noting similar problems, member Si said the plot B6 was originally a public market facility, which is also not referenced on the PCU. Cultural venues have been removed or there is no reference to them.
The government responded that there are, in some cases, very significant changes between what was originally planned for the plots and the reality now. The Detailed Plan will be the one to be amended to include the changes now approved by the issuing of the PCUs.
The CPU vice president, Mok Kai Meng, told members that, as these plots are already in an advanced phase of design, the government has realized more space is needed for the transport hub that will now have two floors. Such changes also affect the surrounding areas, he said.
As for the cultural and municipal facilities missing from the plots’ PCUs, the same official said they might be transferred to other plots in the same area, also due to the need for space for the transport hub.
Mok reaffirmed that by the end of this year, “when we will have the Detailed Plan approved, it will already include the necessary adjustments according to the PCUs approved today.”
The five land plots include mostly public housing and other public use facilities.
The final report on the public consultation of the Detailed Plan for the East-2 area was published Monday (May 29) with many items gathering a low approval rate from the public.
‘To keep’ can mean ‘to build’ a new façade, IC says
During yesterday’s meeting of the Urban Planning Committee, an imbroglio occurred about an opinion issued by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) on the urban conditions plan of a plot located at the Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro.
In the opinion, the IC noted the land plot owner should “keep the original façade” but, as member Teng Kai On noted, there is nothing left from the old building.
“How can the owner comply with such a requirement?” he asked.
In response, the president of IC, Deland Leong, said that “to keep the original façade does not necessarily mean to have the old one included in the new building but, to build a new one that follows a similar style and looks like the original one.”
“In case the owners do not know how the original façade looked, the IC can help, providing proof such as old photographs as well as guidelines so that owners can rebuild it,” she said.
