An online campaign to save the Cadogan Street Temporary Garden in Kennedy Town from demolition has garnered more than 360 signatures.
A joint letter calling upon the Development Bureau to scrap its plan to remove the public park to build housing projects and a school was issued on supporthk.org, reported InMedia.
The garden, built more than a decade ago, is home to more than 100 different kinds of plants, the report said. It is also one of the few large public spaces in Kennedy Town but it set to be demolished early next year, according to InMedia.
Residents and district councillors have called on the government to extend the public consultation period. But the government went ahead with the plan and applied for funding for preparation work.
According to a Legislative Council Finance Committee document, the Civil Engineering and Development Department has applied for HK$1.1 billion for a seven-year project to decontaminate a site that includes the park and nearby areas. The park site was home to the Kennedy Town Wholesale Market until the early 1990s and became a park at the turn of the millennium. An adjacent incinerator and an abattoir were demolished between 2007 and 2009.
The department said the redeveloped site will include private housing compounds, a primary school, a harbour front promenade, public car park, bus terminus and community facilities.
The joint letter, initiated by an unknown party who identified themselves as “Hong Kong tree lover”, urged the government to retain the Cadogan Street Temporary Garden permanently.
