3.5 Graham Street: A Case Study: Graham Street In Hong Kong
3.5 Graham Street: A Case Study
As stated in the introduction, Graham Street is a character street specialized in selling fresh and affordable produce to people all over Hong Kong. One can find meat, vegetables, dried seafood and even Chinese medicine and incense there. At the age of 172, it is Hong Kong’s oldest wet market, but it might not survive for much longer because of the URA.
During the process of urban renewal, the URA has disregarded its “people first” objective and its procedure lacks much consultation and communication. In 2007, the URA announced the demolition of many old walkups and as part of it, Graham Street market. After much protest from local activists, the URA promised to build a 2-storey wet market on Site B in order …show more content…
In order to do so though, they would have to give up their compensation fee of several hundred dollars. These terms seem fair, but shop owners did not have any concrete information of the new space, they didn’t know the size, the rent, or the opening year. “And with only 10 shops, the market might organically dissolve away”. Moreover, the URA states that they will charge rent at market rates, and when the three-year lease is up, there are no promises that the shops can stay. Among the eligible shops, only 2 have taken up this offer, which is not surprising considering the how risky the conditions …show more content…
An example of this is when at least 5 shop owners states that the authorities told them to not worry if they did not join the Local Fresh Food Shop Arrangement as they could still get a spot in the new complex, but recently a spokesperson said it might rent out shops using a public auctions. This means that shop owners must compete with others from all over Hong Kong and bid for the highest price, something many are almost guaranteed not to win. The URA takes advantage of the fact that many of these vendors are not well educated, and its choice of using verbal communication keeps things very flexible, causing many to believe that current plans will continuously change. With this kind of mentality, many vendors do not assert their rights or fight against the URA. Alan Wong, owner of a paper and joss offering shop said “If I had known that the URA would back down from its words, I would have fought with my life to make sure dry goods were also included in the new plan”. His business will close when the market is
As stated in the introduction, Graham Street is a character street specialized in selling fresh and affordable produce to people all over Hong Kong. One can find meat, vegetables, dried seafood and even Chinese medicine and incense there. At the age of 172, it is Hong Kong’s oldest wet market, but it might not survive for much longer because of the URA.
During the process of urban renewal, the URA has disregarded its “people first” objective and its procedure lacks much consultation and communication. In 2007, the URA announced the demolition of many old walkups and as part of it, Graham Street market. After much protest from local activists, the URA promised to build a 2-storey wet market on Site B in order …show more content…
In order to do so though, they would have to give up their compensation fee of several hundred dollars. These terms seem fair, but shop owners did not have any concrete information of the new space, they didn’t know the size, the rent, or the opening year. “And with only 10 shops, the market might organically dissolve away”. Moreover, the URA states that they will charge rent at market rates, and when the three-year lease is up, there are no promises that the shops can stay. Among the eligible shops, only 2 have taken up this offer, which is not surprising considering the how risky the conditions …show more content…
An example of this is when at least 5 shop owners states that the authorities told them to not worry if they did not join the Local Fresh Food Shop Arrangement as they could still get a spot in the new complex, but recently a spokesperson said it might rent out shops using a public auctions. This means that shop owners must compete with others from all over Hong Kong and bid for the highest price, something many are almost guaranteed not to win. The URA takes advantage of the fact that many of these vendors are not well educated, and its choice of using verbal communication keeps things very flexible, causing many to believe that current plans will continuously change. With this kind of mentality, many vendors do not assert their rights or fight against the URA. Alan Wong, owner of a paper and joss offering shop said “If I had known that the URA would back down from its words, I would have fought with my life to make sure dry goods were also included in the new plan”. His business will close when the market is