Hong Kong Housing Society
The Hong Kong Housing Society (Chinese: 香港房屋協會) or Housing Society (房屋協會, 房協) for short, is the second largest public housing provider in Hong Kong (the first being the Hong Kong Housing Authority). The Society housed 147,346 residents as of 2012.[1]
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| Founded | 1948 (incorporated 1951) |
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| Type | Non-profit non-governmental organisation |
| Location |
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Area served | Hong Kong |
| Product | public housing |
| Owner | Hong Kong Housing Society |
Key people | Walter Chan Ka-lok, Chairman |
Revenue | HK$1,769,000,000 |
Employees | 1218 |
| Website | hkhs |
The society is a non-governmental organisation and non-profit organisation. The Chairman of the society is Walter Chan (陳家樂) and the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director is Chan Yum-min (陳欽勉).[2]
History
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The Hong Kong Housing Society was the first major public housing agency in Hong Kong.[3] The society, as an independent voluntary agency, was founded in 1948[4] and was incorporated by Ordinance in Hong Kong in 1951.[4][5]
During World War II, about one fifth of urban domestic accommodation was damaged or destroyed, a tenth being totally destroyed.[3] With the influx of refugees soon after the war, the population of Hong Kong grew at an alarming rate, one out of four were considered homeless. Others were under poor housing conditions.
In 1947, £14,000 was donated from the Lord Mayor of London's Air Raid Distress Fund to the Hong Kong Social Welfare Council to alleviate the problem. In 1948, the society was established with the aim of providing self-contained homes for families in need. Its first official meeting was attended by members of the council, Bishop Ronald Hall and other citizens.[5]
With a low-interest loan of HK$2.5 million repayable over 40 years[5] from the Hong Kong government and land granted at a concessionary price, its first estate, Upper Li Uk Estate (上李屋邨) in Sham Shui Po, was built the following year after its incorporation.[3] It was designed by Stanley Feltham.[6] The estate was redeveloped in 1995 as Cronin Garden.[5]
To date, about 67,000 units have been built. However, the mission has changed: the society now acts as a bridge between the government housing and the private market.
Services
Some of the services that the HKHS provides are:
- Developing senior citizen housing
- Subsidized housing
- Rural public housing
- Sandwich Class Housing Scheme
Business
- Property development
- Housing Society Elderly Resources Centre
- Property Management and Commercial Leasing
- Loan services
- Building Management and Maintenance Scheme
- Hong Kong Housing Society Academy
See also
References
- "HKHS – Info Bank". hkhs.com. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
- "Housing Society Appoints New Chief Executive Officer" (Press Release) 31 March 2009
- Asian urbanisation: a Hong Kong casebook by Denis John Dwyer, Peter Bishop; University of Hong Kong. Centre of Asian Studies
- Hong Kong Housing Society 2003 brochure Archived 3 May 2004 at the Wayback Machine
- Extracts from the 1997 Annual Report of the Housing Society setting out the history and development of the Society. Appendix I: History and Development, 10 September 2001
- Hutcheon, Robin (1998). High-rise Society: The First 50 Years of the Hong Kong Housing Society (PDF). Chinese University Press. p. 6. ISBN 9789622018419.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hong Kong Housing Society. |
- Hong Kong Housing Society (in English and Chinese)
- Housing, Planning & Lands Bureau
- Urban Renewal Authority
- Housing Authority and Housing Department
- Hutcheon, Robin (1998). High-rise Society: The First 50 Years of the Hong Kong Housing Society (PDF). Chinese University Press. ISBN 9789622018419.
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