Analyzing subsidized rental housing estates redevelopment project : understanding the differences in residents' social relations before and after the redevelopment project

Abstract

Buildings decay happened in many subsidized rental housing estates where constructed during 1960s and 1970s. The Hong Kong Housing Authority and Hong Kong Housing Society established and proposed some redevelopment projects to rebuild the subsidized rental housing estate in order to improve the living standard of residents and increase the subsidized rental housing supply. However, under the redevelopment project, residents were being relocated. This dissertation studied the changes in social relations under three relocation policies in qualitative research method, including relocated all residents to a new subsidized rental housing estate, partially relocated residents to a new subsidized rental housing estate and partially relocated residents to the redeveloped blocks in the same estate, and relocated all residents to the redeveloped blocks inside the estate that resident originally living in. Based on the study's results, it was found that social relationships were altered due to relocation as part of the redevelopment project. It is suggested that communication between the authority and affected residents should be encountered and provide implications for minimizing the influence of the changes in social relations for the future subsidized rental housing redevelopment project.