The government is pressing ahead with plans to take back the land despite loud opposition from wealthy golf club members, underscoring the gravity of Hong Kong’s housing problem.
The decision to build on the golf course reflects how old business elites in Hong Kong are losing political sway as more staunchly pro-Beijing loyalists gain ground.
Photographer: Bertha Wang/BloombergHong Kong’s government will begin taking back a large chunk of an exclusive golf course near the border with mainland China to build much-needed public housing, a move that has provoked an unusual schism between the city’s political class and its powerful business elites.
Some 32 hectares (79 acres) of land from the Fanling Golf Course will be resumed on Friday to build 12,000 apartments, a day after the Hong Kong Golf Club’s current lease expires. The swath of land, known as the Old Course, was built in 1911 and is the oldest 18-hole course in Greater China. Members pay an entrance fee of about HK$400,000 ($51,000) to join, and some have been vocal in their opposition to the redevelopment plan, citing ecological, commercial and social reasons to make their case.
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Hong Kong Is Building Public Housing on a Golf Course in a Snub to the Old Elite