Hong Kong authorities ‘concerned’ about leaks in state-subsidised housing

Hong Kong’s Housing Department has expressed concern about leaks in a government-subsidized temporary housing project in Kai Tak, following reports of water seepage a month after tenants moved in.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the Housing Department said it became aware of water seepage at the T-Loft project in Kai Tak in early May. Emergency repair work has been carried out, the department said, adding that the contractor had completed the “necessary remedial work” for about 60 affected households.

The housing project with over 500 units is operated by the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals charity. Construction of the four-storey complex began in December 2022, and residents will move in in March.

As part of a government grant, charities can receive government grants to build transitional housing projects. The projects target low-income individuals and households waiting for public rental housing.

The housing authority’s statement came after local media reported that residents of the Kai Tak housing project had complained about water leaking from pipes and seeping through walls. Some residents reported that their apartments had mold and cracked tiles.

One woman said she noticed the leak about a month after moving into the project in March, HK01 reported.

Jimmy Lam, a district councillor of Kowloon City, told Oriental Daily that he had met with representatives of the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals in May but the problem still persisted, adding that some residents had moved to hotels or stayed with family or friends as a result.

100 units affected

The T-Loft housing project in Kai Tak is one of many subsidised by the government as part of its efforts to increase housing supply and help low-income Hong Kongers who can no longer afford the city’s exorbitant housing market.

In 2018, authorities set up a task force working with NGOs to run transitional housing projects. In addition to using hotels and vacant buildings, the government also provides funding to NGOs to build projects using the Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) approach, which uses prefabricated units that are manufactured off-site and installed on-site.

In a statement on Tuesday, the housing authority denied any connection between the leaks and the construction method: “There are numerous projects in the area built according to the modular integrated construction (MiC) principle with guaranteed standards. The water leak in this case has nothing to do with MiC.”

On Sunday, the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals said in a statement that a team of consultants had begun investigating the problem after receiving complaints about leaking pipes in April and concluded that the quality of construction was “suboptimal”.

About 100 units were affected, the aid organization said, adding that it had arranged for maintenance work and that no complaints about leaking pipes had been received since devices to stabilize water pressure were installed in late July.

Other repair work is still underway, the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals said, with the aim of completing it by September. The charity has already hired other construction companies to speed up progress, it said.

Support HKFP | Policies and Ethics | Errors/Typos? | Contact | Newsletter | Transparency and Annual Report | Apps

Help protect press freedom and keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team