Tsueng_Kwan_O

Assessment of the change in Hong Kong Hong Kong has been a place of change for many years. One of the main changes is the increase of Hong Kong's population. This inflow of people has caused many problems because most major parts of the territory cannot support such a dense population. The government's solution to this problem was the New Town Development Program. The New Town Development Program was introduced in 1973. Its main purpose was to cope with the increased population of Hong Kong in major urban areas. The inflow of people was caused by many major historic events. One such event was the Cultural Revolution. During the Cultural Revolution, huge numbers of refugees came to Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Government did not know what to do with these people, they had no way of giving the refugees jobs or housing. The dense population was to much for the government to handle, especially when people started moving into shanty towns in major urban areas. The New Territories Development Department was established to develop the New Towns. The towns were developed in order to give such people a balanced and self-contained community where all basic needs are met. A good thing about the New Town Developments is that it provides facilities and services that people need. The New Towns have attracted many people because they have public, government paid housing and community facilities.The many community services located in New Towns also attract people to the area, for example schools, hospitals, libraries, and emergency services. The New Towns are mostly industrial estates, providing jobs for the people living there. New Town Industrial Estates such as Tsueng Kwan O also make commuting easier and cheaper as most blue collar jobs are located on or near the estate. There are some people who pay for New Town housing privately because of the town's closeness to the mainland where they may have jobs. People are also willing to pay for New Town housing because it is cheaper than living on Hong Kong island and also because they prefer new flats and convenient services. The government supports the New Town Development Program because by providing places for people to live and providing jobs, it helps Hong Kong grow economically. The New Town Development Program also helps Hong Kong grow because the New Towns are normally quite far from urban areas. This means that Hong Kong has to expand by means of improvement works such as building more roads, tunnels and extending the MTR, as is the case with Tseung Kwan O. When new conveniences are added to an area, this prompts even more development, as well as encouraging even more people to move there. However, there are also many problems with the New Town Development Program. Most of these issues have to do with the environment, disruption to local communities and overdevelopment. Some would argue that New Towns are overdeveloped, they take up to much room and are unsightly. New Towns may also be disruptive to people already in that area and local communities, especially during the development process as construction is loud and people may be inconvenienced. Development of New Towns is also harmful to the environment as natural areas may need to be destroyed. The energy and resources put into creating New Towns will also have an impact on the environment. Although there are some negative points about the New Town Development Program, it is there for a good reason and there are more good points than bad. The Development Program is a good way of dealing with population density and helps Hong Kong grow. There is no way to stop Hong Kong from changing, but the New Town Development Program is a good way of showing how you can control the changes.