Hub targets property sale to plug funding drain

The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority has proposed to the government to allow selling residential property as it does not want to seek money from public funds, board chair Henry Tang Ying-yen has revealed.

Tang said last month that the financially strapped WKCDA's cost-cutting efforts were like stemming "rivers of blood" as it awaits approval of development proposals.

In an interview with Sing Tao Daily, sister publication of The Standard, Tang said he is glad that facilities including the M+ Museum and Palace Museum are being welcomed by the public, and the district has already become an arts and cultural exchange center.

Almost no cultural district in the world can be self-financed, Tang said, and the WKCDA has already done a good job in its operations and controlling costs. For it has recovered 40 percent of its outlays.

The operational cost of the two museums has been cut by half over the past three years, he said, and the authority had tried its best to save money.

Tang said the district has various cultural facilities, but commercial areas were earlier lent to the high-speed rail project, which slowed it down by seven years and caused the break in its capital chain.

People do not want to see the museums closed for a few days a week, Tang added, but he does not want to ask for public funds like Ocean Park did.

"I don't want to act so passively and compete for resources with livelihood issues," he said, so the WKCDA should make good use of its valuable land resources. "It would be disrespectful for the authority, society and citizens if we waste the beautiful and valuable land in the district."

According to a proposal submitted to the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, the authority wants the sale of residential property in the district to be given approval. Currently, flats can only be rented.

Tang said the authority decided not to sell anything within the district 10 years ago, but the social and economic situation has changed.

Various options are laid out in the proposal, including adjusting commercial facilities and changing floor areas, as he urged officials to respond as soon as possible. The market is constantly changing and WKCDA only needs to protect the capital chain to pay for employees' salaries and hold cultural exhibitions, Tang said.

"The land of the district belongs to the WKCDA," he argued. "If we plan well there will be sufficient land supply and we can decide which area should be used and when. The land can be used for different purposes at different times."

Tang has been chairman of the authority board since 2017. He did not say whether he will seek another term but noted the administration usually changes people in top positions every six years.