Is heritage zoning feasible in Hong Kong?

Abstract

Heritage conservation has received unprecedented attention over the past decade in Hong Kong. Conservation controversies, such as the West Wing of the Central Government Offices and Tung Tak Pawn Shop have brought huge awareness from the public regarding the HKSAR Government’s approach to heritage conservation. In the above cases, a deficiency has been shown that the government cannot efficiently regulate the use of heritage buildings, especially those privately owned. This problem has led to an issue that even graded historic buildings can still be torn down since the existing grading system does not have statutory powers. To make up for this deficiency in Hong Kong’s conservation policy, Heritage Zoning may be a solution. Heritage Zoning refers to the adding of a new land use to the existing Outline Zoning Plan in the planning system. This would be the same as other existing uses, such as commercial, residential or open space, to zone all the graded historic buildings and declared monuments in Hong Kong. This paper examines the feasibility and possible difficulty of implementing Heritage Zoning in Hong Kong, as a modification to the current heritage conservation policy. It also considers it as a potential control on the use of historic buildings. Local heritage conservation issues in Hong Kong, in situations without Heritage Zoning, are used to point out the possible deficiencies of the current heritage policies. It is hoped that through this analysis, Heritage Zoning can be brought to the attention of the public and the government, to be considered as a way to improve Hong Kong’s conservation practice.