Hong Kong authorities have found some 100,000 illegal structures at around half of the city’s village houses inspected so far. They plan to allow a grace period for houses with minor unlawful structures, given the sheer caseload.
Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn said that the illegal additions were found at 60,000 village homes in Hong Kong, adding that more than 30,000 had yet to be inspected. The inspections, carried out by the Buildings Department, had found structures including additional floors and enclosed balconies.
Owing to manpower concerns, a phased approach will be needed to handle the illegal structures, Linn said told RTHK on Saturday.
Linn revealed the department’s findings after the government earlier this month proposed amendments to the Buildings Ordinance to increase penalties for serious breaches over unauthorised building works. She did not specify the period during which the 100,000 violations were discovered. HKFP has reached out to the Buildings Department.
Under the proposed legislative amendments, owners could face stronger penalties for non-compliance with removal orders for serious unauthorised building works. The government has proposed a fine of HK$300,000, up from HK$200,000, and two years imprisonment, up from a year.
See also: Hong Kong urban planning NGO finds 173 alleged illegal structures at luxury houses
Landlords who build unauthorised structures – such as basements – will face a maximum fine of HK$2 million, up from the current HK$400,000.
“It should not be the case that [structures] this big can be retained after simply getting someone to carry out an inspection,” Linn said.
High-risk illegal structures include those found last year at Redhill Peninsula, an upmarket housing estate in Tai Tam where houses were revealed to have been fitted with illegal additions.
Safety risks came to light at the estate after a landslide triggered by record rain uncovered unauthorised basements in the area.
Three-year grace period
Authorities are planning to grant leniency for minor illegal structures such as air conditioner support frames, canopies, and laundry racks, by reviving a decade-old mechanism allowing a grace period before the government issues removal orders.
The 2011 scheme, introduced to crack down on illegal structures in village houses in the New Territories, allowed owners to declare minor additions in exchange for the Buildings Department holding off on issuing a removal order. Instead, owners could hire registered surveyors to carry out inspections every five years.
Of the 100,000 unauthorised structures identified, at least a quarter might be granted leniency, Linn said on Saturday. Owners will be allowed to retain small unauthorised structures as long as they hire professionals to carry out inspections within a three-year window, she added.
Linn also said that the department would still take action against owners who did not declare illegal structures at their homes, though structures erected before the scheme was initially implemented in June 28, 2011 would be exempted.
She said that the revival of the declaration scheme did not amount to “amnesty” for contraventions of building laws, as regular inspections every five years would still be required.
Authorities could begin tackling illegal structures at village houses in 2030 at the earliest, taking into account its other priorities, she said.
New Territories North lawmaker Edward Lau said that there were enough cases spotted over the past decade or so, demonstrating the success of the scheme: “For owners of village houses, there are precedents that inspire confidence in the plan,” he told RTHK on Monday.
