A lawmaker who sits on the legislature's housing panel on Monday said incorporating elderly-friendly designs into Housing Society projects is an effective way to use its resources.

His remarks came after the Housing Society announced it would no longer build standalone units under the Senior Citizen Residences Scheme over the next decade.

The scheme, which was launched in 1999, combines housing, recreation and healthcare services and grants “lease-for-life” for senior residents upon paying a one-off lump sum as an entry contribution.

Dennis Leung, who is also a member of the Housing Authority’s subsidised housing committee, told an RTHK radio programme that the Housing Society has to maintain sustainable development.

“The design concept of the scheme was to help elderly residents, preventing them from being forced to move and granting long-term residency,” he said.

“However, in terms of the resources of the [Housing Society] that operates on a self-financing basis...for its sustainable development in the long term, where do the resources come from?”

Leung went on to say that incorporating elderly-friendly designs in future projects could create more homes to cater to seniors’ housing needs.

“We noticed that there are still many elderly people wishing to move into flats under the Senior Citizen Residences Scheme, and [the current arrangement] may not be able to meet the market demand.”

“Therefore, if elements of the scheme can be introduced in other projects with designs to facilitate elderly activities in the public area and home modifications, we believe the supply can be increased.”

Leung added that more housing catered for the elderly could allow seniors to stay in districts that they are familiar with or nearby areas.


Edited by Aaron Tam