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Importance Of Heritage Preservation

1301 Words6 Pages
There are several challenges faced in heritage preservation in Hong Kong, which can be illustrated in the social, political and economic perspectives. Cultural preservation is being placed in a lower priority while the sufficient land supply is more important in the government development plan. Hong Kong has a high population density with limited land resources, which has 1104 kilometer square and 7 million people. Every single piece of land has to be utilized. Old buildings that were constructed in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries usually have fewer floors; they have to be pushed down to build modern skyscrapers to give a higher economic value and marginal benefit to the property development companies as well as the government. Also, more land is required to meet the needs of growing population as more dwellings are required to provide residential, social and cultural facilities. Hong Kong land issue and housing problem are so critical that the government should do a tradeoff, by giving up the heritage preservation to meet the social needs. The heritage preservation projects may not be fully supported by the major public. Conservation of the historical buildings involves a lump sum of taxpayer’s money. The majority of the historical buildings are privately owned like the Hong Kong Club Building and Ho Tung Gardens. If the government wants to preserve any dwellings, it has to compensate the private owner for the loss of “developmental potentials” such as
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