The land concessionaire for a development project next to the Lisboa Gardens residential estate on Small Taipa Hill, with the concession initially comprising six plots, has relinquished the development of four of the six plots, while the remaining two plots are now earmarked for the construction of villas, according to a revised agreement on the concession published in the Official Gazette (BO) yesterday.
According to the revised agreement, the two plots cover 3,019 square metres in total, comprising the 2,198-square-metre Plot M2A and the 821-square-metre Plot M2B, earmarked for the construction of 16 four-storey villas and six five-storey villas respectively.
The land concessionaire, Ka Fai Property Investment Company, applied to change certain terms of the concession in 2011 for its then plan to build six residential towers in the area with a height ranging between 139 metres and 154 metres above sea level, as the Lisboa Gardens new residential development, which would have blocked the visibility of the 110-metre Small Taipa Hill. The developer later withdrew the plan after strong opposition by civil society.
In 2019, the government issued its first urban condition draft plan for the six plots with a total area of 15,431 square metres, with Plots M2A, M2B and C earmarked for villas, M3 for a hotel, A4 for clubhouses, and D for residential buildings.
The government did not approve the land concessionaire’s construction plan for its hotel project on Plot M3 after a meeting of the government-appointed Urban Planning Council (CPU) last year.
Last month, the Lands and Urban Construction Bureau (DSSCU) issued a revised version of the land concession’s condition draft plan, according to which the concessionaire is required to revert Plots A4, C, D, and M3 to the government, covering 12,412 square metres in total. Consequently, the concessionaire will only be allowed to build villas on Plots M2A and M2B.
The land concession’s revised agreement published in the Official Gazette yesterday confirms that the concessionaire has conceded the development of Plots A4, C, D, and M3.
The revised version of the land concession’s condition draft plan was discussed during yesterday’s regular meeting of the Urban Planning Council, which was chaired by DSSCU Director Lai Weng Leong, who approved the draft plan after no councillors voiced opposition.
Members of the Urban Planning Council (CPU) attend yesterday’s regular meeting at the Transport Bureau Building on Estrada de D. Maria II. – Photo: CPU
This file photo taken in 2021 shows some of the previously abandoned buildings constructed on Small Taipa Hill, by the concessionaire for its Lisboa Gardens new residential development. – Photo: Tony Wong
