Land beside Jai Alai Hotel for gov’t facility

The land plot at the Avenida do Dr. Rodrigo Rodrigues, between the Jai Alai Hotel and the Hotel Casa Real in the Outer Harbour area, will be used for an undisclosed government facility, the Urban Planning Committee (CPU) has revealed.

The Committee approved the urban conditions plan (PCU) for the plot, recovered by the government, yesterday.

In discussions about several land plots from Zone A of the new landfills, member Kou Ngon Seng expressed surprise about the purpose as, according to Urban Master Plan, the area had been dedicated to entertainment and leisure facilities.

Once again, the head of the Department of Urban Planning of the Land and Urban Construction Bureau (DSSCU), Leong Io Hong, defended the idea.

Leong said that although the Master Plan says that in this area most of the land plots should be dedicated to entertainment and leisure facilities, “this does not mean that we cannot use the land for something else.”

“Since the government needs to have some facilities, this land will be used for this purpose. There is no incompatibility with the Master Plan,” Leong added.

The building, whose purpose remains undisclosed, will have a maximum height of 52.5 meters above the average sea level.

lack of access, services at Wai Long

Another of the land plots for which a PCU was being issued yesterday was the one located at the Avenida Wai Long in Taipa, beside the Treasure Hotel.

The plot, now with its purpose adjusted for housing and with a maximum height revised when compared to the last PCU issued in 2017 will, according to DSSCU estimations, have some 4,000 housing units.

Initially planned to be used as public housing, the change in the project also led to the dropping of several public facilities that had been planned to be included in the project.

Members of the CPU were mostly concerned over the lack of commercial spaces and services in the area, such as supermarkets or restaurants.

They called on the government to carefully consider accessibility as the building towers will represent a very important increase in the number of people residing in the area, which can cause pressure on the access to public transportation.

In the reply, the government noted the buildings will be linked through flyovers to the airport, Light Rapid Transit and the Macau University of Science and Technology. As for a potential link over the mountain to the Taipa village side, the government said it did not have such a plan at present.