Public Housing Development and the Changing Landscape

It has been nearly 60 years since the first development of public housing in Hong Kong. Over the years, public housing has not only been providing homes for many families, but also changing the landscape of Hong Kong. You can hardly imagine many of those areas now covered with modern public housing buildings were originally remote rural areas and bare hills. Housing Dimensions has gathered some old and new photos from which you can see the sea changes in the landscape.

Let's start from the Hong Kong Island. In the 1980s, there were only a few public rental housing (PRH) estates in the east of the island, such as Model Housing, Wan Tsui and Yue Wan Estates in Chai Wan and the Shau Kei Wan Typhoon Shelter area. Today, many more developments have been completed, including Siu Sai Wan and Hing Tung Estates, as well as Chai Wan Estate which had its intake last year. There are totally 12 PRH estates in this district.

Just across the harbour in the far eastern part of Kowloon is Yau Tong. The place used to be a remote area built with warehouses for the storage of petroleum. But it has now turned into a densely populated district with comprehensive facilities and convenient transportation. In recent years, the Housing Authority (HA) has completed Lei Yue Mun and Yau Lai Estates there. Domain, the HA's flagship commercial and lifestyle centre will be the jewel on the crown when it opens next year.

Below the Lion Rock Hill stand large clusters of PRH blocks. In the 1980s, there were only sporadic residential developments in the districts of Kowloon City and Wong Tai Sin, but it is now wrought with over 20 PRH estates.

Kowloon West has also seen rapid progress. The six- and seven-storey resettlement blocks built around the 1960s have been redeveloped into much taller tower structures with better facilities in recent decades.

The once rarely inhabited Tin Shui Wai area has undergone drastic changes. With the development of public housing, in just a little more than a decade the area has grown from a remote rural area into a new town, housing tens of thousands of people. So far, the HA has built 12 PRH estates in the district.

Tung Chung on Lantau Island is another vivid example of how public housing has transformed the landscape. It's amazing to see a quiet countryside has turned into a vibrant new town since the turn of the century. Fu Tung Estate with its intake in 1997 as well as Yat Tung (I) and (II) Estates completed in the first few years of the new millennium consist of 25 PRH blocks in total.