Government eyes launching 460,000 housing units for the next decade

200,000 will be public rental units.

Chief Executive CY Leung has outlined plans to boost housing supply through a series of measures, including changing land use, increasing development density, developing new areas and extending new towns.

Delivering his 2017 Policy Address, CE Leung projected the housing supply target for the next decade from 2017-18 is 460,000 units, including 200,000 public rental units and 80,000 subsidised sale flats.

The coming three to four years will yield 94,000 new private housing units, according to the government news agency.

The next five years will yield 94,500 public housing units, including about 71,800 public rental units and about 22,600 subsidised sale flats.

Short- and medium-term measures to boost land supply include changing land uses and increasing development intensity, which will yield over 380,000 units.

They involve sites in the Kai Tak Development Area, Diamond Hill Comprehensive Development Area, and projects including reuse of three quarry sites, railway property developments, and urban renewal projects.

For the medium- and long-term measures, developing new areas and new town extensions will provide over 220,000 units.

The new towns and new development areas are located in Kwu Tung North, Fanling North, Tung Chung, Hung Shui Kiu and Yuen Long South.

Potential railway property development projects are also being planned for Siu Ho Wan Depot and Pat Heung Depot which can provide over 220,000 residential units.

CE Leung added the Government will consult the public on proposals to relocate to caverns Diamond Hill reservoir, Sham Tseng Sewage Treatment Works and Sai Kung Sewage Treatment Works.

The public will also be consulted on the development of underground spaces in Causeway Bay, Happy Valley, Admiralty, Wan Chai and Tsim Sha Tsui.

Lantau Island's development blueprint, with North Lantau earmarked for development and South Lantau for conservation, will be published in the first half of this year.

CE Leung added the Government has started the "Hong Kong 2030+: Towards a Planning Vision & Strategy Transcending 2030" planning study.

"The Planning Department estimates that at least 4,800 hectares of land is required up to 2046. Even if all the on-going short-, medium- and long-term land supply initiatives are timely implemented in full, we will still need to identify at least another 1,200 hectares of land," he said.