Shek Lei Estate

Shek Lei Estate
Estate sign
General information
Location	Kwai Chung, New Territories Hong Kong
Coordinates	22.364344°N 114.140021°E / 22.364344; 114.140021
Status	Completed
Category	Public rental housing Interim housing
Population	39,896 (2016)
No. of blocks	21
Construction
Authority	Hong Kong Housing Authority

Shek Lei Estate
Chinese	石籬邨
Cantonese Yale	shek6 lei4 tsun1
Jyutping	sek6 lei4 cyun1
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Shílí Cùn Hakka Romanization sak6 li2 cun1 Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization shek6 lei4 tsun1 Jyutping sek6 lei4 cyun1
Shek Lei
Chinese	石梨
Cantonese Yale	shek6 lei4
Jyutping	sek6 lei4
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Shílí Hakka Romanization sak6 li2 Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization shek6 lei4 Jyutping sek6 lei4
Shek Lei Pui
Chinese	石梨貝
Cantonese Yale	shek6 lei4 pui3
Jyutping	sek6 lei4 bui3
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Shílí bèi Hakka Romanization sak6 li2 bui4 Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization shek6 lei4 pui3 Jyutping sek6 lei4 bui3

Shek Lei Estate (Chinese: 石籬邨), also known by Shek Lei (石籬/石梨, both are currently used) is a public housing estate in Hong Kong, situated in the Shek Lei Pui (石梨貝/石梨背/石犁背) area in northeast Kwai Chung,^[1][2] New Territories, near Shek Yam Estate, On Yam Estate and Shek Yam East Estate.^[3]

The estate is separated into two parts, namely Shek Lei (I) Estate (石籬(一)邨) and Shek Lei (II) Estate (石籬(二)邨). It has a total of 21 residential blocks with a population of about 40,000, as well as two shopping centres. It is the second-largest public housing estate in Kwai Chung, after Kwai Chung Estate.

In addition, there is a two-block Home Ownership Scheme property connected to the estate, called Yi Fung Court.

History

Resettlement estate

The estate sits on the lower slope of Golden Hill, near the boundary of Kam Shan Country Park. The original Shek Lei Pui Village was located some distance away, at the current site of the Shek Lei Pui Reservoir, on the opposite site of the Golden Hill ridgeline to the south-east.

Shek Lei Resettlement Estate was built in the 1960s by the Architectural Office of the former Public Works Department (PWD), and was completed in 1971.^[4] Architecturally, the estate took the form of interlinked high-rise Old Slab blocks, similar to other 1960s estates in Hong Kong.^[5] Public housing estates built by PWD tended to be more basic in design, with fewer amenities, than those built by the Housing Society or Housing Authority, which took over the construction of all public housing estates in the 1970s.^[4]

A unique sculptural children's playground, designed by American artist Paul Selinger for the Urban Services Department, opened in 1969. It was funded with a donation by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club.^[6][7] The playground was demolished in the 1990s.^[8]

By 1975, the estate had a population of approximately 69,600, making it the most populous public housing estate in Tsuen Wan New Town at that time.^[4]

Redevelopment

In the 1960s, when the estate was built, Hong Kong suffered from chronic water shortages, and some building contractors wrongly prepared concrete using seawater, leading to corrosion and spalling in subsequent years. By the 1980s, this had prompted safety concerns at numerous Hong Kong public housing estates. Tests carried out at Shek Lei Estate revealed areas of weak concrete in certain blocks.^[9] The entire estate was redeveloped in the 1980s and 1990s except for the original blocks 10 and 11, which were converted into interim housing in 1996–97.^[10]

The site of Shek Foon House, the newest block, was originally reserved for construction of an indoor Regional Council recreation centre.^[11] However, the council was abolished at the turn of the millennium, and the site lay derelict for many years, much to the dissatisfaction of local residents, as the government debated whether the new Leisure and Cultural Services Department should take the project forward.^[12] In the end, the Housing Authority took over the site and developed housing there. Construction of the 41-storey block began in November 2009 and was completed in 2013. Built at a cost of approximately HK$370 million, the project included construction of a lift tower and footbridges linking Shek Lei Estate to the neighbouring On Yam Estate.^[11]

Shek Lei (I) Estate

Badminton court at Shek Lei (I) Estate

Shek Lei (I) Estate (also referred as Shek Lei Extension 石籬擴展區 and New Shek Lei 新石籬) has nine blocks. Of the nine blocks, seven were completed in the 1980s, and are situated on Lei Pui Street; the other 2, Shek On House and Shek Tai House, located on Shek Pai Street, were built during the redevelopment project of the estate in the 1990s.^[13]

Name[14]	Type	Completion
Shek Ning House	Slab	1985
Shek Sau House
Shek Chun House	Double H
Shek Yat House		1986
Shek Hing House	Linear 3	1989
Shek On House	Harmony 1	1994
Shek Tai House		1997

Shek Lei (II) Estate

Residential blocks of Shek Lei (II) Estate

Shek Lei (II) Estate is located between Shek Li Street and Tai Loong Street. It is also referred as Shek Lei District or Shek Lei Resettlement Estate, as it was built on the site of a resettlement estate completed in the 1960s.^[15][16] The estate was redeveloped between the 1990s and 2000s (decade).^[17] However, two old blocks are retained, and were converted into Interim Housing.

Block 10 and 11, part of the original resettlement estate built in the 1960s

Two old blocks, Blocks 10 and 11, are retained for Interim Housing since 1997, to provide totally 1,946 units for rehousing those homeless families who are not immediately eligible for public housing.^{[18][19][20][21]}

The Housing Authority completed a structural investigation of Shek Lei Interim Housing and decided it would not be cost-effective to retain the buildings.^[22] In the chief executive's 2020 policy address it was announced that the two interim housing blocks would be demolished and the site redeveloped.^[23] In early 2021, the Housing Authority said that the 329 households living in the blocks would all be rehoused by the end of 2022, either in public rental housing or at the Po Tin Interim Housing in Tuen Mun.^[24] Redevelopment of the site is expected to be completed in 2028, and is planned to provide 1,600 new flats.^[22]

Name[25]	Type	Completion
Shek Wah House	Harmony 1	1995
Shek Kai House
Shek Fu House		2000
Shek Cheung House
Shek Kwong House		2002
Shek Wing House
Shek Yan House	Harmony 3A
Shek Hei House	Small Household Block	2000
Shek Fuk House		2003
Shek Wai House	New Harmony 1	2008
Shek Yi House
Shek Foon House	Non-Standard Domestic (T-shaped)	2013
Block 10 (Interim Housing)	Old slab	1966
Block 11 (Interim Housing)		1967

Yi Fung Court

Yi Fung Court

Yi Fung Court (怡峰苑) is a Home Ownership Scheme court in the upper hills of Shek Lei Extension, Lei Pui Street. It has 2 blocks built in 1999.

Name[26]	Type	Completion
Yuet Fung House	New Cruciform (Ver.1984)	1999
Ho Fung House

Demographics

According to the 2016 by-census, Shek Lei (I) Estate had 13,567 residents, while Shek Lei (II) estate had 26,329 residents, adding up to a total of 39,896.^[27]

This represents an increase from the 37,994 recorded in the 2011 census.^[28] The increase may be attributable to the opening of Shek Foon House in 2013.

Education

CNEC Christian College

There are many schools in the Shek Lei area, including the following institutions within or directly adjacent to the estate:

• CNEC Christian College
• CTU Training Centre Shek Lei Campus
• Pope Paul VI College
• Salesian Yip Hon Primary School
• Shek Lei Catholic Primary School
• Shek Lei St. John's Catholic Primary School

The estate had another secondary school, Sheung Kwai Chung Government Secondary School [zh], which closed in 2009.

Shek Lei Estate is in Primary One Admission (POA) School Net 64, which includes multiple aided schools (schools operated independently of the government but funded with government money); none of the schools in the net are government schools.^[29]

Politics

Due to its high population, Shek Lei Estate falls within three different District Council constituencies. The elected representatives of these constituencies sit on the 32-seat Kwai Tsing District Council.

• Shek Lei South constituency encompasses the entirety of Shek Lei (I) Estate, as well as Shek Wah and Shek Kai houses of Shek Lei (II) Estate.^[30] Since the 2019 election, it has been represented by Leung Kwok-wah of the Democratic Party.
• Shek Lei North constituency covers the core area of Shek Lei (II) Estate.^[30] It is represented by Lam Siu-fai of the Democratic Party, who has held the seat since 1999.
• Tai Pak Tin East constituency includes three blocks of Shek Lei (II) Estate: Shek Fu, Shek Cheung, and Shek Foon houses.^[30] Created for the 2019 election, it is represented by Lau Kwai-mui of the Democratic Party.

Shopping centres

Interior of Shek Lei Shopping Centre, 2016

Shek Lei Shopping Centre serves the shopping needs of residents in the vicinity. It is divided into Phase I and Phase II, and both of them are located at the junction of Tai Loong Street and Wai Kek Street. A wet market is located inside Shek Lei Shopping Centre Phase I.^[31]

Shek Lei Shopping Centre (Phase 1), a four-storey retail building, was built in 1993. The six-storey Shek Lei Shopping Centre (Phase 2) was built in 1999.^[32] Both phases were originally built and owned by the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA).

In 2005, the Hong Kong government controversially divested various HKHA assets, mainly shopping centres and car parks, into a new real estate investment trust called Link REIT. Both Shek Lei properties were transferred to Link REIT on 25 November 2005.^[32]

In late 2017, Link REIT sold 17 Hong Kong shopping centres, including Shek Lei Shopping Centre, to a consortium led by Hong Kong-based Gaw Capital, which paid HK$23 billion for the properties.^[33] The sale caused anxiety among tenants of Shek Lei Shopping Centre due to speculation that the sale could mean additional rent increases.^[34] The chairman of Gaw Capital, Goodwin Gaw, sought to allay such fears by suggesting that rent would be tied to sales turnover, and stated that their business model meant that Gaw Capital was not pressured to pursue the hefty rent increases which had made Link REIT so controversial.^[33]

The shopping centre now operates under Gaw Capital's "People's Place" banner. Phase I has approximately 59 shops and/or market stalls. Phase II has approximately 74 shops.^[35]

Covid pandemic

Shek Wah House on the Shek Lei (II) Estate was placed under lockdown for mandatory tests on 30 January 2022, after the virus was found in sewage samples.^[36] Shek Chun House was blocked on 26 February 2022.^[37] Shek Sau House was sealed on 27 February.^[38]

See also

• List of public housing estates in Hong Kong
• Public housing estates in Kwai Chung
• Public housing in Hong Kong

References

1. Kwai Tsing District Archived 2011-07-20 at the Wayback Machine
2. https://www.catholicheritage.org.hk/en/catholic_building/st_john_the_apostle_chapel/shek_lei_pui_mass_centre/index.html Archive index at the Wayback Machine
3. Kwai Chung (East) Integrated Family Service Centre
4. Hong Kong's New Towns: Tsuen Wan. New Territories Development Department. 1976.
5. "Aerial view of Shek Lei Estate". Hong Kong Memory. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
6. Fan, Lok-yi (28 February 2019). "A Brief History of Playgrounds in Hong Kong". M+.
7. Fan, Lok Yi (2018). "The Shek Lei Adventure" (PDF). HKAI Journal (74). Hong Kong Institute of Architects: 124–125.
8. Tsang, Emily (23 October 2021). "City's golden era of fun". South China Morning Post. p. 5.
9. Chiu, Kit-yin (24 February 1985). "Housing estate tenants 'at risk'". South China Morning Post. p. 7.
10. "Housing Bureau". Progress Report: The 1997 Policy Address. Hong Kong Government.
11. "LCQ11: Progress of leisure and cultural services projects of the former Municipal Councils". Hong Kong Government. 19 May 2010.
12. "Minutes of LegCo Members' Meeting with Kwai Tsing District Council Members" (PDF). Legislative Council. 8 December 2005.
13. HOUSING MATTERS DISCUSSED AT DISTRICT BOARDS AND THEIR COMMITTEES (1998)
14. Shek Lei (I) Estate
15. OFFICIAL REPORT OF PROCEEDINGS (1969)
16. 徙置區 (Chinese)
17. KWAI TSING DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (2000-2001) Archived 2011-06-09 at the Wayback Machine
18. Memorandum for the Housing Authority (1997)
19. Memorandum for the Housing Authority (2008)
20. Interim housing
21. 中轉房屋 (Chinese)
22. "Redevelopment of Shek Lei Interim Housing". The Chief Executive's 2020 Policy Address. Office of the Chief Executive. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
23. Wong, Rachel (25 November 2020). "Policy Address 2020: Controversial HK$624 billion Lantau Tomorrow housing project to go ahead". Hong Kong Free Press.
24. "Households at Shek Lei Interim Housing to be rehoused". The Standard. 26 January 2021.
25. Shek Lei (II) Estate
26. Yi Fung Court
27. "Major Housing Estates". 2016 Population By-census. Census and Statistics Department. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
28. "Major Housing Estates". 2011 Population Census. Census and Statistics Department.
29. "POA School Net 64" (PDF). Education Bureau. Retrieved 2022-09-27.
30. "District Council Constituency Boundaries - Kwai Tsing District" (PDF). 2019 District Council Ordinary Election. Electoral Affairs Commission. 2019.
31. Shek Lei Shopping Centre
32. "Annual Report 2005/06" (PDF). The Link Real Estate Investment Trust. 2006.
33. Sito, Peggy (28 March 2018). "New owner of Link Reit's 17 Hong Kong shopping centres says rent rises not 'winning formula'". South China Morning Post.
34. Zhao, Shirley (30 November 2017). "Tenants of small shops fear 'inevitable' rent rises that will force them out after Link Reit's HK$23 billion mall sale". South China Morning Post.
35. "Shek Lei Shopping Centre I & II". People's Place. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
36. RTHK
37. RTHK
38. RTHK

External links

• Media related to Shek Lei Estate at Wikimedia Commons