Historical Background of Lower Ngau Tau Kok (II) Estate

Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate was a resettlement estate built in the 1960's to provide accommodation for families who had lost their homes in natural disasters or had to be rehoused as a result of the redevelopment of old built-up areas. After the establishment of the Hong Kong Housing Authority in 1973, Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate was divided into two parts, with Blocks 1 to 7 grouped under Lower Ngau Tau Kok (I) Estate and Blocks 8 to 14 grouped under Lower Ngau Tau Kok (II) Estate, for greater efficiency in management. Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate was a milestone in the history of public housing construction in the 1960's as Blocks 8 to 12 were the first resettlement blocks built with prefabricated parts.

The intake of Lower Ngau Tau Kok (II) Estate took place in mid-1967. There were about 5 400 flats in seven Mark V resettlement blocks. Different from those built in the 1950's, these blocks featured wider corridors and self-contained flats of various sizes, each equipped with a bathroom and a kitchen. The number of flats on each floor varied in each housing block, ranging from 24 to 77, with the doors facing one another on the opposite sides of the corridor. The housing blocks were also linked by long corridors. This unique design had helped foster a sense of neighbourliness and encouraged mutual assistance among the residents. Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate was among the first batch of resettlement estates built with lifts. In those 16-storey blocks, the 8th and the 13th floors could be reached by lifts. The estate was one of the largest in scale and among the earliest to adopt the concept of overall community development, where primary and secondary schools and street front shops were well provided.

The housing blocks of Lower Ngau Tau Kok (I) Estate were pulled down in 2003 and the demolition works of Lower Ngau Tau Kok (II) Estate were commenced in early 2010. Most of the residents are able to move to Upper Ngau Tau Kok Estate (Phases 2 and 3) within the same neighbourhood.