Ball in Jockey Club's court on using prime site: govt
It is up to the Hong Kong Jockey Club to call the shots on how to use a parcel of land it owns in upmarket Happy Valley, the government said on Thursday, after the non-profit body was given the green light to redevelop its sports complex there into a residential site.  But a lawmaker said the charity and gaming organisation should provide details on the intended use of housing blocks at 48 Shan Kwong Road.  The Buildings Department had in June approved the club's plan for constructing three 21-storey residential buildings with a total gross floor area of nearly 486,000 square feet, as well as a block to offer recreational facilities for residents. The Development Bureau said the site was brought by the body through public auction, and that the lease did not have any restrictions on its land use.  "The Jockey Club is not required to apply for modifying its lease or pay a land premium to construct residential buildings on the site," the bureau said.  "It is the Jockey Club's decision, as a private land owner, whether and when to develop the site for residential purposes."  The site was occupied by two stable blocks in the 1930s, before it was rezoned for residential purposes in 1981.  The club had periodically applied to renew the site's use as a recreational facility since then. The sports complex houses facilities such as tennis and squash courts, a golf simulation room, and fitness studios.  But lawmaker Andrew Lam noted the organisation owed the general public an explanation on the project, which he said had attracted a lot of attention.  "People are guessing [whether] the Jockey Club would be renting [out] the flats or even selling the flats to the general public...it attracts a lot of queries and concerns," he told RTHK. The club was recently asked by the Town Planning Board to "actively implement" the zoned use of the site as originally designated. In securing the extension of the temporary planning permit this year, the organisation "had committed to redevelop the site into a residential cum sports complex, subject to further studies to be undertaken".