Treating the Symptoms - A Critical Review of ... - Civic Exchange

Social ImpactSocially sustainable development fulfils people’s social and cultural needs in addition to their economic and environmental ones. The concept of social sustainability is applied to urban designthrough the goal of creating urban environments that enhance a society’s social capital, which is defined as the value brought to society by social networks. Such environments meet people’scultural aspirations, foster a sense of community, and provide inclusive and accessible places which encourage, rather than repel social interaction.The following section will look at the social aspects of urban design produced by the URA. It is not an analysis of the URA’s public consultation processes, its compensation and rehousingpolicies, or its social impact mitigation policies. While these are important and worthy topics, the focus and methodology of this project is limited to the built environment.The Loss of Character StreetsIn Hong Kong, it is said that land uses and patterns of street activity define places morethan the architecture. 186 Character streets full of small businesses selling specialized goodsand services are a distinctive feature of Hong Kong’s urban ecology. Yet a surprising numberof them have been targeted by the LDC and URA for redevelopment. These include WingOn Street in Central (“Cloth Alley”); Hong Lok Street (“Bird Street”), part of ShanghaiStreet (“Bridal Gown Street”) and Fa Yuen Street (“Sneaker Street”) in Mong Kok; and LeeTung Street (“Wedding Card Street”) in Wan Chai. The Graham Street market in Centralwill be severely disrupted. This can be explained because the URA needs to select sites witha large redevelopment potential, meaning that it usually targets areas of thriving but lowrentcommerce rather than economically depressed areas with little commercial activity(i.e. obsolete industrial areas). It is exactly the former sort of site that is home to HongKong’s character streets because they offer a combination of relatively low rents and highaccessibility.While there have been efforts to relocate or recreate some of these shopping experiences,these attempts are usually less vibrant than what existed originally. Cloth merchants whowere relocated to Western Market (a refurbished historical wet market) reported a significantdecline in business. 187While shop owners and commercial tenants are compensated by the URA, 188 they often facedifficulties re-establishing their businesses elsewhere. Firstly, there are practical and financialdifficulties in finding suitable shop spaces at comparable rents because re-developmentdecreases the supply of affordable shop spaces. Secondly, redevelopment disrupts theirbusiness model. Character streets depend on the agglomeration of similar businesses in onelocation, which enables them to collectively attract a wider customer base. Dispersing themdestroys this effect.While there have been cases where the URA won praise for displacing socially undesirablelocal economies (i.e. the red light district on Portland Street), the disappearance of characterstreets is widely perceived as a net loss for the city. A purely economic viewpoint would holdthat failing to maximize the development potential of any given site is inefficient, but thisfails to take into account the social and cultural benefits that are produced by these streets.Despite their poor physical condition, Hong Kong’s older buildings perform functions thatcontribute towards the city’s sustainability. They provide a stock of housing for low-incomeearners in urban areas close to jobs and services. Relocating low-income tenants to publichousing estates in the New Territories reinforces the city’s spatial inequalities and imposeslong commutes on people who are less able to afford them.Older buildings also provide flexible and affordable incubation space for small businesses,which if successful, might invest in repairing the buildings themselves. Street markets offervery low barriers to entry for tiny businesses, enabling people who might otherwise rely onsocial assistance to make a living.Some urban theorists argue that a mixture of buildings of different ages is necessary to fostervibrant and diverse local economies. 189 Vibrancy reinforces a city’s cultural capital, whichmight turn into an economic asset by enhancing a city’s international image and attractingvisitors. In recent years, LegCo has passed motions calling for the preservation of local colourand character: in 2005, it asked for a review of the government’s policy towards dai pai donglicense holders, 190 and in 2007 it called on the government to promote street markets andbazaars to “to enhance the attractiveness of tourism in Hong Kong, as well as to furtherrevitalize on-street economy”. 19193