URA Plans Makeover In Kowloon's 'Little Thailand'

The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) has announced plans for a redevelopment in Kowloon City which will affect around 670 households and 40 shops.

The 6,100 square metre site, covering Kai Tak Road and Sa Po Road, is known for its Thai community and officials say restaurant owners affected by the redevelopment will be invited to reopen their businesses once the project is complete.

The URA said on Friday that most of the buildings that will go are around 40 to 50 years old and they were subject to height controls before the old Kai Tak Airport closed.

In their place, buildings as high as 29 storeys will be built, providing around 810 small to medium sized flats. The project is expected to be completed in around eight to 10 years' time.

The URA's planning and design director, Wilfred Au, said an underground plaza will be built on part of the site with retail and community facilities, and there will be an underground shopping street connecting the area to the new Kai Tak district.

Au said the project will also involve building a 300-space car park below ground.

"We hope, with the provision of the car park, we can later on talk to the government to see whether we can have the opportunity to widen some of the pavements," he said.

It's not yet known how much the project will cost because officials haven't completed a survey on the exact number of households that will be affected and on the current status of the area's buildings.