EXPLORING THE DIVERSITY OF GENTRIFICATION AND THE ROLE OF
GENDER IN HONG KONG, 1986 TO 2006

By

Minting Ye

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

Geography –Doctor of Philosophy

2014

ABSTRACT

EXPLORING THE DIVERSITY OF GENTRIFICATION AND THE ROLE OF
GENDER IN HONG KONG, 1986 TO 2006

By

Minting Ye

Gentrification is restructuring the geography of cities all over the world (Clark,
2005; Hackworth and Smith, 2001; Lees, 2000; Smith and Defilippis, 1999; Wyly and
Hammel, 1999). As a global city, Hong Kong experienced a transformation from an
industrial to a specialized services and high-tech economy in the late 20

th

century (Ho,

1992; Lo, 1997; 2005). Accompanying this shift, there has been a notable drive for urban
redevelopment that has fundamentally altered the physical and social characteristics of
Hong

Kong’s

neighborhoods.

Despite

the

economic

and

built

environment

transformations in Hong Kong, not much attention has been given to neighborhood
displacement of the poor, including women. With a focus on gentrification, I examine the
various types of physical and social upgrading processes in Hong Kong from 1986 to
2006 and explore how women were involved in or affected by these redevelopment
processes. This research answers the following four major questions: 1) How extensive
have gentrification processes been within Hong Kong between the years 1986 and 2006?
2) What is the degree of displacement that has resulted from gentrification in Hong Kong
during these years? 3) Have redevelopment efforts in Hong Kong resulted in a diversity
of gentrification processes and what are some of their basic characteristics? 4) What is
the role of women in Hong Kong’s gentrification?

Principal component analysis and K-means clustering are used to identify areas
within Hong Kong that are experiencing physical and social upgrading. From the
quantitative analysis, three neighborhoods—Tiu Keng Leng, Kennedy Town, and Yuen
Long—are selected for a qualitative study of neighborhood change, and an examination
into the complexity and the diversity of capital reinvestment, social conflict, and
displacement. These three neighborhoods are also used to show the diversity in the role
of women in gentrification.
Results shows that in different parts of Hong Kong, gentrification is driven by
different agents and diverse redevelopment processes that have resulted in a range of
displaced income groups. The case study of Hong Kong reaffirms the importance of the
extra-ordinary powers of the state in driving gentrification. It also reveals the increasing
importance of the private sector initiating large-scale redevelopment and displacement. In
addition, women are involved in or affected by gentrification in different ways in
different parts of the city. Besides being an agent of gentrification, women are also the
prominent segment of the urban population who are most vulnerable to displacement.
The scale of gentrification and displacement is extensive in Hong Kong. The criticism by
some researchers that gentrification is a highly limited process within small areas of the
inner city is challenged by this research. This study of gentrification across an entire city
shows that capital reinvestment and displacement is extensive and affects large areas of
the city.
Key words: Hong Kong
analysis

redevelopment

gentrification PCA and cluster analysis
displacement

qualitative

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

During my PhD years I have received support and encouragement from a number of
people. Without their help, this dissertation would not have been possible. I would like to
express my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Igor Vojnovic. Dr. Vojnovic has been a
mentor, role model and a good friend. I would like to thank him for his advice on
academic and professional development. I also appreciate his inspiration, patience and
caring. His excellent guidance has made my PhD years a thoughtful and rewarding
journey. Heartfelt thanks goes out to my dissertation committee, consisting of Dr. Guo
Chen, Dr. Peilei Fan, Dr. Joseph Messina, and Dr. Bruce Pigozzi for their valuable advice
on the dissertation and in other areas of professional growth. I would also like to thank
Dr. Laura Reese for facilitating funding at different stages of my PhD program. She also
provided important personal and professional guidance. I owe the greatest debt to the
Department of Geography, the Social Science Dean’s Office and the Graduate School for
the research awards and financial support; without them I would not have been able to
conduct this research. I am forever indebted to my family. This dissertation would have
never become possible if it were not for the unconditional love and support of my
parents, sisters and brother. I owe them more gratitude than words can capture. Special
thanks goes to my husband Xiaoyi Mu who was always there with support and
encouragement. He stood by me through the good times and the bad. This dissertation is
dedicated to my newborn daughter Lansing Mu who came to my life on December 19th,
2013 and shares with me the joy of this long, yet wonderful journey.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... viii
LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... xi
Chapter 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 1
1.1. Background ............................................................................................................ 1
1.2. Statement of problem ............................................................................................. 4
1.3. The general hypothesis .......................................................................................... 6
1.4. Research methods and dissertation outline ............................................................ 7
1.4.1. Research methods ............................................................................................ 7
1.4.2. Outline of the dissertation ............................................................................. 10
Chapter 2 Literature Review ............................................................................................. 13
2.1. The definition and causes of gentrification ......................................................... 13
2.2. Diversity of gentrification.................................................................................... 18
2.2.1. Diversity in the nature of capital reinvestment ............................................. 19
2.2.1.1. Refurbishment ....................................................................................... 20
2.2.1.2. Private-sector blockbusting ................................................................... 21
2.2.1.3. Urban renewal ....................................................................................... 22
2.2.1.4. Rural gentrification ............................................................................... 23
2.2.2. The diverse nature of actors in gentrification ................................................ 26
2.2.2.1. Super-gentrification .............................................................................. 26
2.2.2.2. Studentification ..................................................................................... 28
2.2.2.3. Gayification........................................................................................... 29
2.2.3. Commentary .................................................................................................. 30
2.3. Gentrification and displacement .......................................................................... 31
2.4. The gender dimensions of gentrification ............................................................. 33
2.5. Gentrification in the Chinese context .................................................................. 37
2.5.1. Gentrification in Mainland China ................................................................. 39
2.5.2. Gentrification in Hong Kong......................................................................... 42
2.6. Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 53
Chapter 3 The research area: Hong Kong ......................................................................... 56
3.1. Location and brief introduction ........................................................................... 56
3.2. Urban development in Hong Kong ...................................................................... 62
3.2.1. The development during colonial period: before 1980 ................................. 62
3.2.2. Urban development in transition: from 1980 to 1997 ................................... 64
3.2.3. Postcolonial development: from 1997 to present .......................................... 65
3.3. Economic restructuring in Hong Kong ................................................................ 68
3.4. Urban redevelopment initiatives and policies in Hong Kong .............................. 70
3.5. Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 79

v

Chapter 4 Quantitative Analysis ....................................................................................... 81
4.1. Data selection....................................................................................................... 81
4.2. Normalizing boundaries and data processing ...................................................... 87
4.3. Changes occurring in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006 ........................................ 92
4.4. Principal Component Analysis and Clustering .................................................. 101
4.5. Quantitative results ............................................................................................ 106
4.6. Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 129
Chapter 5 Kennedy Town ............................................................................................... 131
5.1. A Brief History of the settlement of Kennedy Town ........................................ 132
5.2. Changes in built environment since the 1950s .................................................. 133
5.3. Recent urban redevelopment and conflicts over space ...................................... 139
5.4. Government involvement in development and redevelopment ......................... 154
5.5. Discussion of Data and Trends .......................................................................... 156
5.6. Summary ............................................................................................................ 159
Chapter 6 Tiu Keng Leng ................................................................................................ 161
6.1. The history of Rennie’s Mill.............................................................................. 161
6.2. From a camp to resettlement cottage estate ....................................................... 167
6.3. Clearance of the resettlement............................................................................. 170
6.4. Redevelopment efforts of Tiu Keng Leng ......................................................... 174
6.5. Data of trends from 1986 to 2006 ...................................................................... 184
6.6. Summary ............................................................................................................ 188
Chapter 7 Yuen Long ...................................................................................................... 192
7.1. Government Driven Reinvestment, Redevelopment and Displacement: 19601980 194
7.2. Private Sector Reinvestment, Redevelopment and Displacement: 1980-2010 . 198
7.3. Policies Shaping Development in the New Territories: the Land Exchange
Entitlements (Letters A/B) and the Small House Policy (SHP) .................................. 222
7.4. Data of trends from 1986 to 2006 ...................................................................... 230
7.5. Summary ............................................................................................................ 232
7.6. Conclusion of the three case studies .................................................................. 235
Chapter 8 Women and Gentrification in Hong Kong ..................................................... 239
8.1. Introduction........................................................................................................ 239
8.2. Population and demographics through the lens of gender ................................. 241
8.2.1. Population change ....................................................................................... 241
8.2.2. Marriage and family .................................................................................... 245
8.3. The gender dimension of Hong Kong’s socio-economic transformation .......... 247
8.3.1. Education ..................................................................................................... 249
8.3.2. Work and employment ................................................................................ 251
8.3.3. Occupation .................................................................................................. 256
8.3.4. Income ......................................................................................................... 263
8.4. Role of women in gentrification ........................................................................ 269
8.4.1. Agency and/or Victimhood ......................................................................... 269
8.4.2. Comparing gentrified and non-gentrifies neighborhoods ........................... 276

vi

8.4.3. Case studies of a gentrified neighborhood .................................................. 280
8.4.3.1. Kennedy Town .................................................................................... 280
8.4.3.2. Tiu Keng Leng .................................................................................... 284
8.4.3.3. Yuen Long .......................................................................................... 290
8.5. Summary ............................................................................................................ 295
Chapter 9 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 302
APPENDIX ..................................................................................................................... 314
BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 323

vii

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3- 1 Land Utilization in Hong Kong, 2011 ............................................................. 57
Table 3- 2 Services and Manufacturing Sector’s Share in GDP, 1980-2007 ................... 68
Table 3- 3 Working Population by Industry in 2006 ........................................................ 69
Table 4- 1 Major variables used in the gentrification literature........................................ 83
Table 4- 2 Description of the variables ............................................................................. 85
Table 4- 3 Positive and negative loading for each dimension ........................................ 107
Table 4- 4 Change in gross rent, median household income and major employment
income, 1986-2006 (12 groups) ...................................................................................... 120
Table 4- 5 Change in gross rent, median household income and major employment
income (three groups), 1986-2006 .................................................................................. 125
Table 4- 6 Ratio of gross rent, median household income and major employment income
(three groups), 1986-2006 ............................................................................................... 125
Table 4- 7 Characteristics of changes in the three gentrified groups (%) ....................... 125
Table 4- 8 Cluster averages of the key socioeconomic variables for the three gentrified
groups .............................................................................................................................. 126
Table 4- 9 Comparison between case values and cluster averages ................................. 127
Table 4- 10 Two-tailed one sample t-test ....................................................................... 127
Table 5- 1 Percentage of Change in major indicators in Kennedy Town, 1986-2006.... 158
Table 5- 2 Change of percentage in major indicators and comparison to the Hong Kong,
1986-2006 ....................................................................................................................... 158
Table 6- 1 Percentage of Change in major indicators in Tiu Keng Leng, 1986-2006 .... 186
Table 6- 2 Change of percentage in major indicators and comparison to the Hong Kong,
1986-2006 ....................................................................................................................... 186
Table 7- 1 Agriculture land use in Hong Kong, 1960-2010 ........................................... 200

viii

Table 7- 2 Major Private Property Development projects in Yuen Long New Town
since1992 ........................................................................................................................ 204
Table 7- 3 Percentage of Change in major indicators in Yuen Long, 1986-2006 .......... 231
Table 7- 4 Change of percentage in major indicators and comparison to the Hong Kong,
1986-2006 ....................................................................................................................... 231
Table 7- 5 Change in gross rent, median household income and major employment
income (three cases), 1986-2006 .................................................................................... 236
Table 7- 6 Ratio of gross rent, median household income and major employment income
(three cases), 1986-2006 ................................................................................................. 237
Table 8- 1 The Trend of Late Marriage and Childbirth in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006
......................................................................................................................................... 246
Table 8- 2 Sex-ratio of Population Aged 15 and Over by Educational Attainment ....... 250
Table 8- 3 Labor Force Participation Rates by Marital Status and Sex .......................... 253
Table 8- 4 Employed Persons by Industry and Sex, 1986 - 2006 ................................... 258
Table 8- 5 Employed Persons by Occupation and Sex, 1993-2006 ................................ 259
Table 8- 6 Women in senior positions, 2006 .................................................................. 261
Table 8- 7 Civil Service from 1981-2006 ....................................................................... 263
Table 8- 8 Median Monthly Employment Earnings of Employed Persons by Industry of
Main Employment and Sex, 1986-2006 ......................................................................... 266
Table 8- 9 Median Monthly Employment Earnings of Employed Persons by Occupation
of Main Employment and Sex, 1993-2006 ..................................................................... 267
Table 8- 10 Median Monthly Employment Earnings of Employed Persons by Educational
Attainment and Sex, 1986-2006 ..................................................................................... 268
Table 8- 11 Percentage of selected population groups, 1986 ......................................... 277
Table 8- 12 Percentage of selected population groups, 2006 ......................................... 277
Table 8- 13 Percentage of change of selected population groups, 1986-2006 ............... 277
Table 8- 14 Monthly Employment income of men and women ..................................... 278
Table 8- 15 Percentage of female population in different percentile by employment
income, 1986 ................................................................................................................... 279

ix

Table 8- 16 Percentage of female population in different percentile by employment
income, 2006 ................................................................................................................... 279
Table 8- 17 Percentage of change of female population in different percentile,
employment income, 1986-2006 .................................................................................... 279
Table A- 1 Rotated Factor Pattern from the PCA with varimax rotation ....................... 319

x

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 3- 1 Hong Kong and Vicinity ................................................................................ 57
Figure 3- 2 Administrative Map of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ....... 60
Figure 3- 3 Projection of No. of Buildings aged 30 Years and above in the Metro Area
(1998 - 2016)..................................................................................................................... 71
Figure 3-4 Distribution of Urban Redevelopment Sites ................................................... 72
Figure 4- 1 Example of boundary changes ....................................................................... 90
Figure 4- 2 Illustration of normalization process .............................................................. 91
Figure 4- 3 Map of percentage change in total population in Hong Kong, 1986-2006 .... 93
Figure 4- 4 Map of percentage of change in female headed household in Hong Kong,
1986-2006 ......................................................................................................................... 95
Figure 4- 5 Map of percentage change in degree education in Hong Kong, 1986-2006 .. 96
Figure 4- 6 Map of percentage change in household income in Hong Kong, 1986-2006 97
Figure 4- 7 Map of percentage change in rent in Hong Kong, 1986-2006 ....................... 98
Figure 4- 8 Map of percentage change in manufacturing in Hong Kong, 1986-2006 ...... 99
Figure 4- 9 Map of percentage change in professional occupation in Hong Kong, 19862006................................................................................................................................. 100
Figure 4- 10 Map of percentage change in housing units in Hong Kong, 1986-2006 .... 101
Figure 4- 11 Map of factor score dimension 1 ................................................................ 109
Figure 4- 12 Map of factor score dimension 2 ................................................................ 111
Figure 4- 13 Map of factor score dimension 3 ................................................................ 112
Figure 4- 14 Map of factor score dimension 4 ................................................................ 113
Figure 4- 15 Map of factor score dimension 5 ................................................................ 114
Figure 4- 16 Map of factor score dimension 6 ................................................................ 115

xi

Figure 4- 17 Map of factor score dimension 7 ................................................................ 116
Figure 4- 18 Map of factor score dimension 8 ................................................................ 117
Figure 4- 19 Map of factor score dimension 9 ................................................................ 118
Figure 4- 20 Map of K-means clustering on physical and social upgrading in Hong Kong,
1986-2006 ....................................................................................................................... 119
Figure 4- 21 K-means clustering showing ‘social’ upgrading groupings in Hong Kong 123
Figure 5- 1 The locations of the three case studies ......................................................... 131
Figure 5- 2 ‘Unpleasant’ facilities in Kennedy Town: cattle-market in the left foreground,
and an Infectious Disease Hospital in centre background (1935-1941) ......................... 134
Figure 5- 3 Old buildings were gradually replaced by multistory houses in the Kennedy
Town district (1963) ....................................................................................................... 135
Figure 5- 4 Sai Wan Estate (2012) .................................................................................. 136
Figure 5- 5 The Kung Man Village and its surrounding (1970) ..................................... 138
Figure 5- 6 The Belcher’s (2012).................................................................................... 141
Figure 5- 7 The Merton (2005) ....................................................................................... 144
Figure 5- 8 The Mount David 33 (2012) ........................................................................ 145
Figure 5- 9 The Cayman Rise in Kennedy Town (2012)................................................ 148
Figure 5- 10 A Major redevelopment projects in Kennedy Town .................................. 150
Figure 5- 11 A mixture of old and new buildings in Kennedy Town (2012) ................. 151
Figure 5- 12 A typical streetscape in Kennedy Town, showing a mixture of old and new
buildings (2012) .............................................................................................................. 152
Figure 5- 13 An old building complex in Kennedy Town (2012) .................................. 153
Figure 5- 14 Kennedy Town (2011) ............................................................................... 154
Figure 5- 15 West Island Line Railway Alignment (MTR Corporation, 2012) ............. 156
Figure 6- 1 Squatters in Tiu Keng Leng (1952) .............................................................. 164
Figure 6- 2 Tiu Keng Leng (1955) .................................................................................. 165
Figure 6- 3 Tiu Keng Leng (1970) .................................................................................. 170
xii

Figure 6- 4 Former Tiu Keng Leng development with Kuomintang flags (1995) ......... 173
Figure 6- 5 Tiu Keng Leng before demolishment in the foreground, with encroaching
new developments and construction in the background (1995)...................................... 174
Figure 6- 6 Metro Town above Tiu Keng Leng MTR station (2012)............................. 177
Figure 6- 7 Metro Town is a large scale private development (2012) ............................ 178
Figure 6- 8 Ocean Shores (2012) .................................................................................... 179
Figure 6- 9 Hong Kong Design Institute in Tiu Keng Leng (2012) ............................... 180
Figure 6- 10 Choi Ming Court (2008)............................................................................. 181
Figure 6- 11 Kin Ming Estate (2007) .............................................................................. 182
Figure 6- 12 Shin Ming Estate (2012) ............................................................................ 183
Figure 6- 13 Major redevelopment projects in Tiu Keng Leng ...................................... 184
Figure 6- 14 Tiu Keng Leng, a concentration of newly developed high-rises, and
particularly public housing projects, with all physical remnants of the original community
erased (2012) ................................................................................................................... 188
Figure 7- 1 The rural setting of Yuen Long (1951) ........................................................ 193
Figure 7- 2 Yuen Long town center. The majority of the buildings are low-to-medium
rise with a few new high rise developments (2012) ....................................................... 199
Figure 7- 3 Yuen Long in 1983; a view looking north from the village Ma Tin Tsuen. An
example of land-use transitions as farm land is making space for urban development.
Farmers and farms are being displaced by the increasing concentration of housing and
commercial space. ........................................................................................................... 201
Figure 7- 4 An old style house near the Yuen Long (E) roundabout and new residential
buildings near Sai Tai Street in the back (1983). ............................................................ 202
Figure 7- 5 A view looking north from an area around Yuen Long Tai Yuk Road in the
1980s. Villages are making way for emerging and higher-density residential development.
......................................................................................................................................... 203
Figure 7- 6 The typical village setting in Yuen Long (2012) ......................................... 205
Figure 7- 7 Village houses after upgrading (2012) ......................................................... 206
Figure 7- 8 New built village homes for higher income renters (2012) ......................... 206
Figure 7- 9 Remaining traditional, lower-income village houses (2012) ....................... 207
xiii

Figure 7- 10 The Parcville is a large scale private redevelopment, providing 1,618
housing units, largely to upper-middle income earners in the region. Across the street is
the village (Shan Pui Hung Tin Tsuen). (2012) .............................................................. 209
Figure 7- 11 Villages in Yuen Long and its surrounding ............................................... 210
Figure 7- 12 Village houses in the front and the Sereno Verde, shown in the back. Village
houses were replaced with new model housing units, with the original residents displaced
(2012). ............................................................................................................................. 211
Figure 7- 13 The village of Tai Kiu Tsuen, in Yuen Long, will soon be erased to
accommodate upscale private redevelopment in the district. (2009) .............................. 212
Figure 7- 14 The whole village of Tai Kiu Tsuen, Yuen Long will be relocated. (2010)
......................................................................................................................................... 213
Figure 7- 15 Area around Yuen Long San Hui in 1982. The neighborhood was crowded
with traditional village housing and some early high-rises starting to emerge in Yuen
Long’s town center by the early 1980s. With new town development, all these old houses
were demolished by 1984. .............................................................................................. 214
Figure 7- 16 With the traditional village housing gone, Yuen Long has become a
landscape of high-rises (2012). ....................................................................................... 215
Figure 7- 17 Castle Peak Road in 1982 (above) and in 2011 (below). ........................... 216
Figure 7- 18 The Old Theater, near Tung Lok Street, has been redeveloped into a
shopping mall, featuring the different needs of Yuen Long’s changing demographic
profile. ............................................................................................................................. 217
Figure 7- 19 The Landscape change in Yuen Long (1978, 1995, and 2008) ................. 218
Figure 7- 20 Contrasting the village setting (Shan Pui Hung Tin Tsuen) in the front and
highrise private redevelopment (The Parcvilles) in the back (2009) .............................. 220
Figure 7- 21 Major redevelopment projects in Yuen Long ............................................ 221
Figure 8- 1 The Population Growth Trend by Sex in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006 ... 241
Figure 8- 2 Live Births in Hong Kong from 1981 to 2006 ............................................. 244
Figure 8- 3 Population Pyramids, 1996 and 2006........................................................... 245
Figure 8- 4 Labor Force Participation Rates by Sex ....................................................... 252
Figure 8- 5 Change of Manufacturing Employment from 1986 to 2006 ........................ 254
Figure 8- 6 Change of Manufacturing and Services Employment in Hong Kong, 19802005................................................................................................................................. 255
xiv

Figure 8- 7 Employed Persons by Occupation and Sex, 2006........................................ 260
Figure 8- 8 Income from major employment in percentiles by sex in Kennedy Town,
1986 and 2006 ................................................................................................................. 283
Figure 8- 9 Income from major employment in percentiles by sex in Tiu Keng Leng,
1986 and 2006 ................................................................................................................. 288
Figure 8- 10 Income from major employment in percentiles by sex in Yuen Long, 1986
and 2006 .......................................................................................................................... 294
Figure A- 1 Hong Kong Tertiary Planning Unit Groups (2006) .................................... 315

xv

Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1. Background
Along with urban decentralization and disinvestment, many inner-cities in the
North American context have faced increasing physical and social decline since the
1960s. A large population who could afford to suburbanize moved out of the city, leaving
those who are predominately poor, minority, and marginalized behind. Those who
remained trapped in the inner-city suffered increasing social ills, such as declining
education quality and employment opportunities, as well as increasing crime rates
(Wilson, 1966). In attempting to revitalize deteriorated inner-cities, the public and the
private sectors have engaged in various initiatives and programs to physically upgrade the
U.S. downtowns and surrounding areas. It is within this context that gentrification
st

became an important topic and continues to be so into the 21 century.
Since first introduced by Glass (1964), the gentrification discourse and
gentrification research have permeated urban studies, and particularly studies of urban
redevelopment processes. Gentrification involves various actors, agencies, development
tools and leads to different outcomes in different cities or different neighborhoods within
a city (Clark, 2005). Gentrification processes and impacts have been documented in
different places in the existing literature, but the notion of the diversity of gentrification is
underrepresented in the research (Clark, 2005). In particular, there have only been four
studies that have explored the characteristics of gentrification processes and all four have
concentrated on urban redevelopment in North American cities (Rose, 1984; Beauregard,
1986; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011). Among

1

these, only one study has advanced a systematic approach to study the diversity of
gentrification, and it uses Houston as a case (Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011).
In addition, the by-product of upgrading–the displacement of the urban poor–is a
topic that has not received adequate attention. Along with the removal of the original
structures in neighborhoods experiencing redevelopment, many of the traditional
residents of the central city are also displaced; the majority of whom are the low-income
industrial poor, the non-working poor, and a growing number of women.
Gender has also been an understudied aspect of research on this topic, despite the
fact that women in poverty have been increasing, as recognized in the literature on the
feminization of poverty (Goldberg and Kremen, 1990; McLanahan and Kelly, 1998;
Scott, 1984). As overrepresented among the poor, women are likely facing a greater
possibility of displacement in the physical and social upgrading processes. Up until now,
however, there has been very little research focusing on this aspect of gender.
In addition, existing research has mainly focused on North American and
European cities. Studies on physical and social upgrading in the rest of the world are still
scarce, especially in China, where such upgrading is rapid and ongoing and yet hardly
any attention is focused on the displacement of the traditional poor that occupied the
urban cores of Chinese cities. In the West, there are some five decades of research on the
impacts of inner-city redevelopment and urban revival on residential displacement. This
is a research focus that has simply not been evident in China.
In sum, therefore, the literature discussing redevelopment processes in Asia, and
particularly China, has typically neglected the negative social consequences that have
emerged from redevelopment. Research gaps also exist in exploring the diversity of

2

gentrification and the complexity of the role of women in the gentrification process, and
especially in the Chinese context. My research on redevelopment and displacement
processes in Hong Kong intends to fill these gaps in the literature.
For my dissertation, I will explore the physical and social transformation of Hong
Kong from 1986 to 2006, examining various types of physical and social upgrading
processes as well as the role of women in gentrification. Special attention in the research
is given to gender as it intends to bring the dimension of gender equity to gentrification
research, a unique dimension of urban redevelopment in the Chinese context. The case
study is Hong Kong, a city that has undergone a major economic transformation in the
Chinese context. The research period is from 1986 to 2006, because Hong Kong was
undergoing tremendous urban restructuring during this period. Hong Kong has
experienced a transition from an industrial based economy to a diversified economy with
an increased emphasis on specialized services.
Along with the economic restructuring, as this research will show, the
socioeconomic landscape has also experienced dramatic changes, as evident in the makeup of the population, as well as education, employment, household characteristics and
housing. Local stresses over the availability of affordable housing has intensified. Large
scale urban redevelopment has been rapidly transforming the city over the last two
decades. Despite the economic and built environment transformations in Hong Kong,
both neighborhood displacement of the poor and the displacement of women have not
been systematically studied and particularly in the context of the entire city.
Corresponding to Hong Kong’s transformation into a specialized services and
high technology economy was a fundamental change in the physical and social

3

characteristics of Hong Kong’s neighborhoods. This physical and social transformation
was evident in changes in household incomes, occupation of residents, people living in
poverty, female headed households, and education levels, as the industrial and poor areas
of the city were torn-down and replaced by upscale dwelling units for the new middle
class of the service economy. With the growing number of poor being women, this
dissertation also intends to explore to what extent the most burdened sub-group of these
economic and physical shifts, in terms of the numbers displaced, were lower-income
women.
1.2. Statement of problem
In an effort to physically revitalize downtowns and surrounding areas, various
forms of gentrification have been evident in global cities since the later 20

th

century

(Smith, 1996; Atkinson and Bridge, 2005; Atkinson, 2000a; Butler, 2003; Préteceille,
2007; Hedin, 2012; Van Criekingen and Decroly, 2003). Processes and effects of
gentrification in different places have been documented in the existing literature, but the
notion of diversity of gentrification still remains a novel and understudied concept. Only
one study has shown the diversity and scale of gentrification across an entire city.
Gentrification research mainly focuses on North American and European cities. Also, the
literature discussing redevelopment processes in Asia, and particularly China, has
typically neglected social conflict, displacement, and ‘social upgrading,’ all of which are
fundamentals in understanding gentrification.
Upgrading processes in China, however, are rapid and ongoing and yet hardly any
attention is focused on the displacement of the traditional poor that occupied the urban
cores of Chinese cities. In the West, there are some five decades of research on the

4

impacts of inner-city redevelopment and urban revival on residential displacement. This
is a research focus that has simply not been evident in China. Gender has also been an
understudied aspect of research on this topic, despite the fact that the number of women
in poverty has been increasing, as recognized in the literature on the feminization of
poverty (Goldberg and Kremen, 1990; McLanahan and Kelly, 1998; Scott, 1984). As
overrepresented among the poor, women are likely to face a greater possibility of
displacement in the physical and social upgrading processes. Up until now, however,
there has been very little research focusing on this aspect of gender in urban
redevelopment processes, and particularly in Asian cities. My research intends to fill this
gap in the literature. It will test the notion of the diversity of gentrification in an Asian
context and analyze the role of gender in gentrification.
Hong Kong is a major global city that has undergone a major economic
transformation in the Chinese context, and yet there is a notable absence of research on
gentrification. Hong Kong has also been undergoing tremendous urban restructuring in
recent decades. Associated physical and social impacts are evident, socioeconomically,
spatially, and in the urban built environment (Lo, 1997, 2005). Despite the economic and
built environment transformations in Hong Kong, both neighborhood displacement of the
poor and the displacement of women is underrepresented in the existing research.
One of the criticisms of gentrification research has been focused on what is
assumed by some to be a very limited urban redevelopment process. Some view
gentrification as being highly localized to a few specific areas of the urban core, and
within the context of broader development and redevelopment processes within cities, the
impacts are viewed as rather trivial (Berry, 1985; Bourne, 1993). Brian Berry’s (1985)

5

notion of “islands of renewal in seas of decay” effectively captures this argument against
the importance of gentrification processes in urban development and redevelopment.
Another line of criticism of gentrification research has focused on the degree of
displacement that actually takes place after a redevelopment and upgrading process.
Researchers such as Freeman, Braconi, and Vigdor argue that there is little evidence of
widespread displacement associated with gentrification (Freemen, 2005; Freeman and
Braconi, 2004; Vigdor, 2002).
Within this context, there are four main research questions. First, how extensive
are gentrification processes within Hong Kong between the years 1986 and 2006?
Second, what is the degree of displacement that has resulted from gentrification in Hong
Kong during these years? Third, have redevelopment efforts in Hong Kong resulted in a
diversity of gentrification processes and what are some of their basic characteristics?
And fourth, what is the role of women in Hong Kong’s gentrification processes?
1.3. The general hypothesis
In the second half of the 20

th

century, and following the path of other global

cities, Hong Kong experienced a transformation from an industrial to a specialized
services and high technology economy (Ho, 1992; Lo, 1997, 2005). Accompanying this
shift has been a notable drive for urban redevelopment that has likely fundamentally
altered the physical and social characteristics of Hong Kong’s neighborhoods. The
general hypothesis of my research is that Hong Kong has experienced a diversity of
gentrification processes, with potentially important and unique dimensions to the Hong
Kong context. In different parts of Hong Kong, women are involved in or affected by
gentrification in different ways. Besides being an agent of gentrification, women are also

6

the prominent sector of urban population who are most vulnerable to displacement.
Women themselves, thus, play a diverse role in the gentrification process.
1.4. Research methods and dissertation outline
1.4.1. Research methods
Qualitative and quantitative analyses are used in this research in order to explore
the diversity of gentrification and the complexity of women’s roles in physical and social
upgrading processes in Hong Kong between the years 1986 and 2006. There are four
major steps in this PhD dissertation.
The first part is a literature review relying on academic research, newspaper
articles, government reports. I have reviewed the existing literature on the processes and
effects of physical and social upgrading in large Western cities. I focus on the diverse
nature of capital reinvestment and displacement and the diverse nature of actors in
gentrification. I assess urban reinvestment processes–locally driven urban renewal,
private-sector

‘block-busting,’

refurbishment,

rural

gentrification,

and

super-

gentrification–in terms of causes, characteristics, and impacts. I also explore the
displacement and the role of women in the gentrification process. Then I compare and
contrast different upgrading processes evident in western cities with the Chinese and
broader Asian urban contexts.
Second, statistical analysis is conducted to assess changes in demographic,
socioeconomic, and housing characteristics in the city of Hong Kong and its residents
from 1986 to 2006. I have collected data from the Hong Kong 1986 census and 2006 by-

7

census1. As suggested by the existing literature, I have collected data on socio-economic
and physical characteristics. In order to provide a more detailed assessment of the
condition of women, the data analysis is broken down by gender.
Figures are compiled for all Tertiary Planning Unit Groups (TPU) in the territory
of Hong Kong. As the data suffer from certain differentials particular to geographic
delineation from 1986 to 2006, an agglomerated system of TPU is used to identify
attribute differentials over space to make the data comparable between 1986 and 2006.
Maps have also been produced to show spatial changes in population, socioeconomic and
demographic attributes and housing characteristics. These maps provide an overview of
general patterns in neighborhood change throughout the city.
Following the method presented in Podagrosi (2006) and Podagrosi, Vojnovic,
and Pigozzi (2011), a principal component analysis is performed on census data followed
by a K-mean clustering process to group together TPU experiencing similar
characteristics of change. This process enables me to determine the areas within Hong
Kong that are experiencing similar scales of physical and social upgrading, regardless of
the class composition of the neighborhoods.
Third, I review and analyze government documents, archives, newspapers,
development reports, and research papers to explore different redevelopment initiatives,
projects, and policies in Hong Kong. This is an important qualitative component of the
study that provides the details of the gentrification process; variables such as the actors
involved in the reinvestment and displacement and the tools used in redevelopment of the

1

The earliest census data in Hong Kong can be traced back to the 1960s, but only a few
variables were collected at that time. Census data from 1986 onward are more
standardized. The 2006 by-census is the latest census available at this point in time.
8

neighborhoods.
This exploration into the details of various types of upgrading processes and their
synergies focuses on three case study neighborhoods. The analysis examines individual
actors and agencies in both the public and the private sectors engaged in urban
reinvestment, and resulting physical and social upgrading. In all, different redevelopment
initiatives, projects, and policies that have facilitated the physical and social upgrading of
Hong Kong are explored.
The case studies are selected where class composition and the path of
neighborhood development are diverse and unique and are reflective of the complexity
and diversity of gentrification. In each case, I analyze the different mechanisms of
redevelopment in driving reinvestment and displacement. I also conduct a more detailed
analysis to reveal the history of the neighborhoods as well as conduct semi-structured
interviews with local officials from the Urban Renewal Authority, the Lands Department,
and the District Council to explore the increasing redevelopment stresses faced by
residents.
The assessment of these neighborhoods should reveal the complexity of these
upgrading processes, as well as how different tools can be used concurrently, but in
different combinations, throughout different areas of a city to encourage redevelopment
and revitalization, depending on the physical and social characteristics of the original
neighborhoods.
Special attention is paid to the assessment of the benefits and burdens placed on
women from physical and ‘social upgrading.’ Up until now, there has been very little
research focusing on this aspect of gender. Proportions of the female population that

9

include never-married females, female-headed households, females within a certain
income range, females with certain education levels, as well as other socioeconomic
variables separated by gender, are calculated to assess whether there are specific
characteristics in the women that are displaced versus women that are gentrifiers. I
compare the differences between women and men in terms of socioeconomic
characteristics, as well as the rate of displacement in certain income and occupational
groupings. I also compare the differences in the socioeconomic characteristics of women
in gentrified and non-gentrified neighborhoods, as well as in different gentrified
neighborhoods.
1.4.2. Outline of the dissertation
After the introductory chapter, I introduce the literature review. This chapter
provides an assessment of the existing literature concerning the processes and effects of
gentrification in large cities within a global context. It starts with an exploration of the
causes of gentrification. Then it explores diverse events and processes and the different
economic agents involved in gentrification. It also assesses the different outcomes of
these processes. Special attention is paid to the role of women in gentrification.
Chapter three provides a brief introduction of Hong Kong’s history and its
development. It then explores Hong Kong’s shift from an industrial based economy to a
service based economy. The chapter then focuses on exploring different redevelopment
initiatives, projects, and policies that have facilitated the physical and social upgrading of
Hong Kong. Variables reviewed include the actors involved in the reinvestment and
displacement and the tools used in the redevelopment. It explores how individual actors
and agencies in both the public and the private sectors are engaged in urban reinvestment

10

that results in gentrification.
Chapter four is the quantitative analysis chapter. After introducing the data
selection and data processing, the chapter explores neighborhood change through
analyses of built environment, demographic, socioeconomic, and housing characteristics
of Hong Kong and its residents from 1986 to 2006. A set of maps showing the spatial
changes in terms of population, socioeconomics, and housing characteristics with the
assistance of ArcGIS is produced. Then, a principal component analysis is performed on
census data, followed by a K-means clustering process to group together TPUs
experiencing similar characteristics of change. This process enables me to determine the
areas within Hong Kong that are experiencing similar scales of physical and social
upgrading regardless of the class composition of the neighborhoods.
Chapters five, six and seven are the qualitative analyses of three Hong Kong
neighborhoods experiencing physical and social upgrading as case studies in order to
provide a detailed review of the diversity of gentrification. These three qualitative case
studies were selected based on the results of the quantitative analyses. The three
neighborhoods include Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng, and Yuen Long. In each case, I
analyze the unique history of redevelopment, the different mechanisms driving the
reinvestment and displacement. I also conduct a more detailed analysis and qualitative
description of space conflicts between the residents and different agents.
Chapter eight explores how women in different parts of Hong Kong are involved
in or affected by gentrification in different ways. Following an overall analysis on socioeconomic change experienced by women in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006, this chapter
then provides an assessment of three gentrified neighborhoods. It illustrates in which

11

cases women might be the gentrifiers and in which they might be the displaced; and also
which income, occupation, and education sub-groups of women have emerged as the
gentrifiers and which have emerged as the displaced.
Differences between women and men, in terms of socioeconomic characteristics
and their roles in gentrification are compared. The differences among women in terms of
socioeconomic

characteristics

in

gentrified

neighborhoods

and

non-gentrified

neighborhoods, as well as the condition of women in different gentrified neighborhoods
are also examined. This chapter also focuses on certain groups of women to reveal the
benefits and burdens placed on women from Hong Kong’s gentrification processes.
Chapter nine summarizes the findings of this dissertation research. Overall, this
research intends to test the notion of the diversity of gentrification in an Asian context
and provide a broader and more robust assessment of the role of gender in gentrification.
It provides insights in the complexity of these upgrading processes, as well as how
different tools that can be used concurrently, but in different combinations, throughout
different areas of a city, to encourage redevelopment and revitalization depending on the
physical and social characteristics of the original neighborhoods. In addition, it provides a
holistic exploration into how women of different socioeconomic status (income,
occupation, education) have been involved in transforming a city. The scale of
gentrification and the degree of displacement in Hong Kong are also examined in the
concluding chapter.

12

Chapter 2 Literature Review
In this chapter, I provide an assessment of the existing literature concerning the
processes and effects of gentrification within a global context. The chapter will begin
with a definition of gentrification. It will then develop into an exploration of the causes of
gentrification, examining the diverse processes and the different agents involved in
physical and social upgrading. It also assesses the different outcome of these processes.
Special attention is paid to the role of women in the upgrading. Last but not least,
gentrification in the Chinese context is discussed and compared with the Western context.
2.1. The definition and causes of gentrification
Despite the diversity in gentrification processes, there are two common traits that
define gentrification. Following the work of Beauregard (1986), Clark (2005), Podagrosi
and Vojnovic (2008), Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi (2011), and Rose (1984), the two
common characteristics in redevelopment that have been used to define gentrification
involve, first, capital reinvestment in the urban built environment, and second, the
displacement of the traditional residents that have occupied these neighborhoods by
residents of a higher socio-economic or class status. Thus, gentrification is evident with
both the physical upgrading and the social upgrading of neighborhoods. This discussion
will be developed further later in this chapter.
The phenomena of gentrification can be dated back to at least the mid-1850s,
although the term gentrification did not exist until Ruth Glass first coined the term in
1964 in her example of London (Clark, 2005). Glass used the term “gentrification” to
describe a redevelopment process where wealthier individuals move into working class

13

neighborhoods, which maintain housing of unique architectural detail, and replace the
lower-income groups who originally lived there (Glass, 1964). Since then, the term
gentrification has been widely used to describe class succession and displacement in
many cities around the world (Atkinson, 2000a). Despite the fact that gentrification is
now globally recognized, some basic questions about this process remain contentious
(Clark, 2005). One of the most controversial discussions is about the causes of
gentrification. There are different explanations of how and why gentrification happens.
The interpretation of the process is greatly affected by the different theoretical and
political underpinnings of the researchers studying gentrification (Slater, 2002).
By and large, the debate has been focused around two groups, structural Marxists
who emphasize the economics of the capital reinvestment process in declining urban
cores (production-side explanations) and liberal humanists who are interested in the
characteristics of the gentrifiers (consumption-side explanations). The earlier
gentrification literature has been overwhelmed with arguments for and against
explanations of the process from both sides (Hackworth and Rekers, 2005; Vanweesep,
1994). We now generally agree that gentrification is shaped by both production-side and
consumption-side explanations. It should be acknowledged that this literature, and this
debate, has largely been focused on a North American context.
Researchers who emphasize production-side explanations theorize gentrification
using modernistic structural Marxist theories (Simth, Duncan, and Reid, 1994; Smith,
1987). They emphasize the relationships between flows of capital and the production of
urban space (Smith, 1979b). They believe that the inevitable condition for gentrification
to occur is the availability of inexpensive housing, with the key explanatory model being

14

the rent gap theory (Badcock, 1989, 1995; Smith, 1979a, 1979b, 1987, 1996).
Neil Smith’s economic-driven explanation of gentrification is highly influential
and exerts extensive influence on gentrification research (Hamnett, 1992). According to
Smith, gentrification is “a leading edge of a larger process of uneven development” of
urban space under “the structure of capitalist mode of production” (Smith, 1982, p. 139).
According to this line of thought, gentrification is “less an organic shift in preferences
than a highly produced one” (Hackworth and Rekers, 2005, p. 214).
One of the major criticisms of Smith’s work is that the supply-side approach
neglects the role of people in a gentrification process. As Smith argued, gentrification is
driven by the “movement of capital rather than people” (Smith, 1979b, p. 547).
Hamnett is highly critical of using the rent gap as the only explanation of
gentrification. He points out that “although the gentrification process does involve capital
flows, it also involves people, and this is the Achilles heel of Smith’s supply side thesis”
(Hamnett, 1991, p. 180). Moreover, Munt expresses his objection to Smith’s apparent
implication that individuals respond “passively to capital movements” (Munt, 1987, p.
1177). He believes that people have individual preferences for their place of residence.
Increasingly research has concluded that in addition to capital fluctuations, a pool of
gentrifiers is also essential within urban areas in explaining gentrification. Gentrification
would not occur without consumers who have a desire to live in the inner-city. In
response to the critics, Smith said, “I do not now believe, nor have I ever believed, that
the rent gap is the only and sufficient explanation of gentrification” (Smith, 1992, p. 112).
Consumption-side explanations tackle the gentrification issue by focusing on
individuals’ consumptive acts and socio-cultural shifts, which are more closely aligned

15

with postmodern theorists (Lyons, 1996; McDowell, 1997; Warde, 1991). They
emphasize the characteristics and consumption orientations of the gentrifiers within the
broader sphere of urban culture in a post-industrial society. According to consumptionside explanations, gentrification is “a spatial expression of a critical class politics that was
built on the notion of consumer dominance” (Hackworth and Rekers, 2005, p. 213).
Work on consumption-side explanations of gentrification have mostly built upon
Ley’s theories, arguing that social and cultural characteristics of gentrifiers are of crucial
importance in understanding gentrification (Ley, 1980, 1986, 1994, 1996). According to
Ley, cities nowadays are becoming increasingly influenced by the emergence of ‘a new
middle class,’ a product of a shift to a post-industrial service-based economy. Ley
believes that cultural and lifestyle values of the new middle class, with liberal political
orientations and a new focus on the urban setting, are major reasons of why gentrification
happens (Ley, 1980, 1986, 1994, 1996).
With the new appreciation of ‘urban,’ there are also new interests in the pursuit of
culture diversity, as evident with ethnic neighborhoods, unique built environments, the
preservation of historic buildings, rich urban amenities, and a profusion of entertainment
districts. There has been a growing interest by the new middle class to reinvest in the
inner-city because of the potential consumption concentration of non-standardized
commodities in the urban core (Bridge, 2001; Cybriwsky, Ley, and Western, 1986; Mills,
1988; Munt, 1987). Demographic changes also contribute to the emergence of
gentrification, as it produces a significant pool of gentrifiers, which includes the rise of
single/dual high income households requiring accessibility to a central location (Bondi,
1991, 1999; Laska and Spain, 1980; Ley, 1986; Lyons, 1996; Mills, 1988; Rose, 1984).

16

In all, the consumption-side explanation frames gentrification as a natural
outgrowth due to a significant pool of gentrifiers (the new middle class), produced by the
economic shifts to a service based economy and the resulting demographic changes
(Bondi, 1991, 1999; Laska and Spain, 1980; Ley, 1986; Mills, 1988; Rose, 1984). But
similar to production-side explanation, it does not provide us with a whole picture of
gentrification. As Hamnett (1991, p. 187) points out, it does not incorporate “the supply
of dwellings and the role of developers/speculators in the process.”
Debates over the explanation of gentrification have been extensive into the 21

st

century (Bondi, 1991, 1998; Butler and Hamnett, 1994; Lees, 1994, 1996; Lyons, 1996;
Mills, 1988; Rose, 1984; Warde, 1991; Zukin, 1982). The recent literature, however, has
reflected a move from the competition of the two approaches to a complementarity of the
two approaches, recognizing that both supply side and demand side explanations are
important in describing this redevelopment process (Lees, 1994; Munt, 1987; Podagrosi
and Vojnovic, 2008; Zukin, 1982).
One of the first attempts to incorporate both views in explaining gentrification
came from a study on the gentrification of SoHo in New York City (Zukin, 1982). Sharon
Zukin believes that gentrification happens as a result of the integration of culture and
capital, not one over the other (Zukin, 1982). Later, work by Lees (1994) also pointed out
that the way forward in the gentrification debate is to integrate the production and
consumption arguments. As Lees (1994, p. 148) indicates, “juxtaposing a Marxist
analysis with a cultural analysis allows political economy, culture and society to be
considered together, enabling a more sensitive illustration of the gentrification process.”
Ultimately, gentrification has its root in production and consumption.

17

Understanding gentrification benefits from the use of both paradigms (Zukin, 1987).
Gentrification should be explored from both sides, integrating the production-side and
consumption-side arguments.
2.2. Diversity of gentrification
The concept of gentrification has been constantly debated. Existing literature on
gentrification has failed to arrive at a consensus definition of what the process entails.
Traditionally, gentrification has referred to the refurbishment of the older, working class
housing stock in the inner-city by risk-taking middle class investors. This original
definition by Glass remains one of the most popular descriptions of the process and is
adopted by many researchers (Atkinson, 2000a; Beauregard, 1990; Betancur, 2002;
Hackworth, 2002; Henig, 1980; Moore, 2009; Smith, 1979a; Smith and Williams, 1986;
Wilson, 2004).
However, given to the dramatic changes to the economies, culture and landscapes
of cities since the term was first coined by Glass in 1964, it makes no sense to insist that
the understanding of gentrification must remain faithful to its original description of
middle class economic agents involved in the redevelopment of industrial, working class
neighborhoods (Slater, 2006). Gentrification remains a process that is extremely difficult
to define due to its diversity and complexity; an argument advanced by Rose (1984) and
Beauregard (1986) who conclude that gentrification is ‘chaotic.’
In order to capture a more comprehensive understanding of capital accumulation,
the reorganization of labor markets, and class conflict within cities, a broader definition
of gentrification is suggested (Beauregard, 1986; Clark, 2005; Harvey, 1985, 1989;
Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Rose, 1984; Smith and Williams, 1986). Under

18

the broader definition, the understanding of gentrification is rooted in the processes of
physical and social upgrading, as noted earlier. Various forms of upgrading have been
embraced under the broader definition of gentrification. Each of these processes has its
own distinct characteristic. However, all typologies have these two basic common traits,
capital reinvestment and displacement (Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Clark,
2005).
First, all forms of gentrification involve capital reinvestment in the urban built
environment. By renovating, refurbishing or engaging in other forms of physical
upgrading, ‘blight’ and signs of ‘physical decay’ are removed and the physical buildenvironment is redeveloped and upgraded. Second, coupled with the physical upgrading,
there are extensive social changes in the make-up of the neighborhood experiencing
gentrification. In most cases, social class composition and neighborhood identity change
in areas experiencing gentrification (Clark, 2005; Kennedy and Leonard, 2001;
Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011). It generally involves the replacement of poorer
residents with wealthier income groups, a ‘social upgrading.’
2.2.1. Diversity in the nature of capital reinvestment
In terms of capital reinvestment, gentrification can involve the refurbishment of
existing housing, as originally defined by Glass. It can be initiated by individual
teardowns, as in the case of new-build gentrification, or involve a larger-scale
redevelopment process, as in the case of private sector blockbusting, by small, medium,
or large development firms (Miller, 1977; Orser, 1994). It can also be initiated by the
public sector, as in the case of federal, state, and local urban renewal programs (Bellush
and Hausknecht, 1967; Susnik and Ganesan, 1997; Vojnovic, 2003a, 2003b, 2007;

19

Wilson, 1966).
2.2.1.1. Refurbishment
The most basic form of capital reinvestment can take the form of renovating the
existing housing stock. As originally identified by Glass (1964), gentrification can refer
to a class-based process of neighborhood transition in which the middle-class moves into
and upgrades deteriorating housing in working-class neighborhoods, primarily through
the refurbishment of the existing housing stock (Buzar, Hall, and Ogden, 2007; He, 2007).
As discussed above, gentrification occurs when there is an availability of
gentrifiable housing and a pool of gentrifiers with specific consumption patterns (Filion,
1991; Hamnett, 1991; Ley, 1986, 1992; Smith, 1979b; Smith, 1996; Wyly and Hammel,
2001). It is argued that gentrifiers and their associated cultural and consumption
orientations are essential in explaining gentrification. The gentrifiers have a preference to
live in architecturally-unique houses located in close proximity to concentrations of
employment and rich cultural amenities (Ley, 1980, 1986, 1994, 1996; Zukin, 1982).
They appreciate the history of the building and refurbish the old housing into more
upscale loft apartments or renovated homes. This process of neighborhood change is
often associated with heightened class conflict and the displacement of lower-income
residents (Betancur, 2002; Wilson, 2004).
In this reinvestment process, comparatively inexpensive housing is occupied and
refurbished by higher-income groups, and in many cases the refurbishment is piece-meal
and completed by the new homeowners in the form of ‘sweat-equity.’ If this process
continues over time in the neighborhood, the displacement of the original residents is the
likely outcome. Many original residents may be unable to pay rapidly increasing rents as

20

an area becomes attractive to gentrifiers. In addition, landlords may not continue to rent
their property and they may even evict residents in order to sell their properties.
Gentrification therefore leaves many residents susceptible to displacement and lacking in
power to hold their residences in the process of physical upgrading (Podagrosi and
Vojnovic, 2008).
2.2.1.2. Private-sector blockbusting
While refurbishment is the traditional, or classic, method of capital
reinvestment—and again, was initially termed by Ruth Glass (1964)—some scholars
argue that it would be anachronistic to assume that gentrification should be “restricted to
the recovery of an elegant history in the quaint mews and alleys of old cities, rather than
bound up with a larger urban restructuring process” (Smith, 1996, p. 39). The term “newbuild gentrification,” which refers to demolition-rebuild development, is proposed to
describe a new form of gentrification (Davidson and Lees, 2005).
In addition to individual teardowns, private-sector blockbusting is another form of
physical and social upgrading (Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Podagrosi and
Vojnovic, 2008). In order to acquire large tracts of property for redevelopment, private
developers use various techniques to pressure property owners to sell their property, and
at below-market price in many instances (Orser, 1994). Buying up surrounding properties
and boarding them up, tearing down structures and not maintaining the vacant land, or
deliberately introducing black families into a white neighborhood are three examples of
how developers further depress land values and break-apart communities (Knox and
Pinch, 2000). Through private-sector blockbusting, considerable profits are available for
developers who can successfully displace local residents, and even greater profits are

21

attainable by displacing entire communities.
2.2.1.3. Urban renewal
Urban renewal refers primarily to public efforts to revitalize aging and decaying
inner-cities, although some suburban communities were also involved in these projects.
Urban renewal, as initially intended, had four main goals: eliminating substandard
housing, revitalizing city economies, constructing good housing, and reducing
segregation (Foard and Fefferman, 1960; Hall, 2002; Scott, 1971; Teaford, 1990, 2000).
Driven by the Housing Acts of 1949 and 1954, the federal government subsidized
and supported numerous urban renewal initiatives across the country with the intent to
counter urban decline during a period of rapid suburbanization (Wyly and Hammel,
2001). In these projects, federal funds were directed toward clearing large tracts of land
in order to make inner-cities more attractive to developers. But the intent of clearing
tracts of substandard slum housing under the federal urban renewal program in order to
provide higher-quality housing for the original residents rarely happened (Foard and
Fefferman, 1960). Given that many of the areas targeted in the inner cities were lowincome, minority neighborhoods, the federal urban renewal program further marginalized
many already disadvantaged populations (Keating, 2000; Marcuse, 1978).
While federal urban renewal programs ended in the 1960s, municipal and state
driven urban renewal initiatives are still evident (Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008;
Vojnovic, 2003a, 2003b, 2007). Similar to federal urban renewal programs, public funds
are used to redevelop urban cores in the case of state and local urban renewal schemes.
For instance, in the recent context of Houston, locally driven urban renewal initiatives,
financed extensively by public funds, facilitated the purchase and clearance of land tracts

22

that made-up the historic African-American ‘Mother Ward,’ Freedmen’s Town. Most
original residents, largely the core poor, were forcibly displaced without any relocation
assistance (Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008).
While federal urban renewal programs were sporadic and concentrated in a few
north-eastern U.S. cities, state and local urban renewal schemes have been taking place
on a larger scale, spreading across U.S. cities since the late-1970s and 1980s (Hackworth
and Smith, 2001). Instead of direct involvement, local and state efforts focus more on
facilitating market environments that would foster urban reinvestment.
2.2.1.4. Rural gentrification
Gentrification processes have also been increasingly recognized in rural and
suburban areas (Lees, 2011). While the term gentrification appeared in both urban and
rural texts during the 1970s, the geography of gentrification has generally been urban in
focus (Phillips, 1993). Recently, researchers have gone beyond the urban spatiality and
recognized gentrification in rural and suburban areas.
Literature on rural gentrification reemerged from Great Britain during the 1990s
and the 2000s. Martin Phillips is one of the pioneers of this line of gentrification research.
By using a questionnaire survey and informal interviews, Phillips (1993) investigated
rural gentrification in four villages in Gower Peninsula, South Wales. He continued his
research in other British countryside settings, for example, rural Norfolk (Phillips, 2004).
In addition to Great Britain, rural gentrification research has also been developed in other
Western contexts. Rural gentrification research has been evident in the US (Friedberg,
1996; Darling, 2005), in France (Raymond, 2005; Guimond and al., 2008; Richard, 2010),
and in a number of other European countries (Hjort, 2009; Solana-Solana, 2010).

23

Different forms of physical and social upgrading have been discussed in the rural
gentrification literature. Similar to urban gentrification, rural gentrification also involves
capital reinvestment and leads to physical upgrading. For example, in the Hebden Bride
district (U.K.), the gentrifiers bought cheap, decaying properties in remote areas and
renovated the existing housing (Smith and Phillips, 2001). The physical and social
upgrading process started with the physical upgrading of individual houses, and then the
area began attracting commercial interests. After adequate small-scale investment took
place, developers came in and began building new properties. The whole area has now
been upgraded and is marketed to managers and professionals (Smith and Phillips, 2001).
In addition to the physical upgrading, rural gentrification also leads to
demographic and socio-economic transformations in the area (Philipps, 1993; Philipps,
2005; Stockdale, 2010). As recognized by Pacione (1984), there was an increase in the
proportion of the settlement population in higher socio-economic groups in the process of
‘rural gentrification.’ As stated by Cloke and Little (1990), rural gentrification can be
described as a process of middle-class residents moving into accessible rural areas at the
expense of the lower classes. However, rural gentrification does not necessarily involve
just the working classes being displaced by the middle classes. Rural gentrification can
also involve middle class fraction, with one middle class sub-group being displaced by
another middle class sub-group, but of a better economic standing (Phillips, 1993).
While researchers have agreed that rural gentrification processes can be seen as
‘class-dictated population movements’ (Cloke and Little, 1990), the motivation of rural
gentrification is still under debate. It is generally agreed upon that gentrification is not
necessarily initiated by home owners who act as capitalist developers, nor is it associated

24

with an emergent service class of the new deindustrializing economies (Phillips, 1993).
Rural gentrification can be initiated by other complex sets of actors (Phillips, 1993). For
example, the retirement-led gentrification in rural areas of England and Scotland
(Stockdale, 2006, 2010), the proliferation of second-home gentrification in rural England
(Gallent, 2009), and the education-led rural gentrification in Cranbrook, Kent (Champion
and Atkins, 2000).
Rural gentrification can also be seen as a means of purchasing particular
lifestyles (Phillips, 1993). In the case of the Hebden Bridge district, relatively affluent
households are motivated by cultural aspirations to consume specific representations of
“greentrified” Pennine rurality (Smith and Phillips, 2001). The term “rural
greentification” was suggested to emphasize the new comers’ cultural predisposition for
“green” residential space. They were attracted here to escape the highly urbanized
environments of Leeds, Manchester, Bradford and London (Smith and Phillips, 2001).
Thus, gentrification should not be viewed as solely an urban phenomenon,
although it has been largely investigated as an urban process. It is recognized that
gentrification happens in a range of locations, including the suburban, the rural,
Central Business Districts and ‘retirement hotspots,’ such as coastal resorts (Smith,
2002). However, only relatively recently has gentrification been viewed as an avenue for
fruitful rural research (Smith and Higley, 2012).
The case of gentrification in the suburbs and rural areas also strengthens the
importance of understanding gentrification as a diverse and complex process. There is an
ongoing need to widen ‘the spatial lens’ of gentrification, corresponding to the increasing
recognition that it is a diverse redevelopment process (Phillips, 2004).

25

2.2.2. The diverse nature of actors in gentrification
In terms of actors involved in upgrading processes, it has been increasingly
recognized that gentrification cannot be reasonably restricted to only the new middle
class displacing the industrial working class, as initially proposed by Glass. It can involve
various actors and thus the process can lead to widely varying outcomes (Podagrosi and
Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi, Vojnovic and Pigozzi, 2011). Gentrification can, for instance,
refer to the poor working class being displaced by another sub-group of the working
class, but a working class sub-group of a higher-income. It can refer to the rich being
displaced by the super-rich. It can also be initiated by specific population sub-groups:
sexual minorities, artists, and higher education institutions and their students. With
similar physical and social upgrading processes, and similar displacement outcomes,
various forms of gentrification and a diversity of gentrifiers have been evident in cities
across the West. However, it should be stressed once again that the exploration into the
diversity and complexity of the gentrification is a research direction that has been
exclusively focused on the West.
2.2.2.1. Super-gentrification
While members of the new middle class are generally accepted as the gentrifiers
and members of the working class are generally considered the ones displaced, recent
research has shown that both the displaced and gentrifiers in a gentrification process can
vary considerably. For instance, in a globalizing economy, there is a new trend of
transforming already gentrified—or simply traditionally wealthy, upper-middle-class or
upper class neighborhoods—into even more exclusive and luxury enclaves (Lees, 2003).
This phenomenon is defined as ‘super-gentrification’ (Lees, 2000, 2003).

26

In her example of Brooklyn Heights, Lees (2000, 2003) suggests that there was a
wealthier group who were attracted to the remodeled (and re-imagined) inner city
neighborhood. This new wave of gentrifiers is referred to as “re-gentrifiers” (Butler, 2003)
or “super-gentrifiers” (Lees, 2000, 2003). Park Slope, located close to Brooklyn Heights,
is also experiencing super-gentrification (Lees, 2000; Slater, 2003). Lawyers, financial
consultants, and other Manhattan residents are re-gentrifying Park Slope, and converting
it into an even more exclusive neighborhood.
Bunker Hill Village in Houston provides another example. It provides the case of
a neighborhood that was a well-established, wealthy White enclave during the 1970s,
which was transformed into an even more exclusive and upscale neighborhood for the
th

extremely rich by the close of the 20 century (Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011).
Super-gentrification is not limited to American cities. Researchers witnessed a
similar process in Britain. According to Butler and Robson (2003), the financial-sector
workers employed in the City of London have re-gentrified Barnsbury in London into
“stopping-off points for the international service-class diaspora” (p. 1804). Butler and
Lees (2006) conducted a further observation and found that Barnsbury is now being
populated by a new group of super-wealthy professionals working in the City of London
who are very different than the first wave of gentrifiers and traditional banking and
stockbroking élites. Butler and Lees (2006) claim that Barnsbury was the first example of
the new phenomenon of ‘super-gentrification’ in Britain.
Super-gentrification is also documented in Sweden’s three largest cities—
Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmo (Hedin et al., 2012). It is reported that supergentrification and low-income filtering has grown from 1986 to 2001. It has been

27

manifested in social geographic polarization. It supports the move in gentrification
research toward a broad generic conception of the upgrading process. A new generation
of super-rich ‘financiers,’ within the context of the global finance and corporate service
industries, are transforming certain gentrified neighborhoods in a very particular way.
International capital flows are being redirected and focused on a few highly desirable
neighborhoods in a few select global cities (Wyly and Hammel, 1999). Within this
handful of global cities, these wealthy investors are creating hyper-exclusive enclaves
where the ‘merely’ rich are the victims of displacement by the ‘super’ rich. Existing
empirical studies of super-gentrification, however, are limited to a few global cities,
including London, New York, Houston, and cities in Sweden. Studies exploring supergentrification in Asian global cities are non-existent.
2.2.2.2. Studentification
Since the early 1990s, research has shown that many neighborhoods in British
university towns have been transformed by higher education institutions, students, and
faculty (Smith, 2002a). Concentrated student settlements in university towns can
encourage substantial population changes in the neighborhood, and they have been
evident in particular with the displacement of working-class households. Smith (2002a),
of the University of Brighton, explored gentrification in Leeds involving students and
higher education institutions as the gentrifiers, and coined the term ‘studentification’ to
describe this physical and social upgrading process, as well as its wider social, economic
and cultural conditions. Since then, the term studentification has permeated into many
research papers and media articles in different places, such as Nottingham (Midgley,
2002) and Brighton (Smith, 2005).

28

Studentification can have great impacts on an urban landscape. In the
neighborhoods shaped by studentification, shopping and residential areas are converted to
better suit the student market. There is a proliferation of fast food and cheap alcohol
retailers. Due to the property investment decisions by real estate investors reacting to the
student presence, house prices may rise substantially. It might ultimately force families
out of these near-campus areas and lead to the rapid decrease in K-12 school class sizes.
Besides affecting working-class neighborhoods, studentification is also reported in some
middle-class areas, as in the case of Brighton (Smith, 2005). This neologism is gaining
increasing recognition within the field of gentrification.
2.2.2.3. Gayification
There is no denying that gays and lesbians have been very visible participants in
the gentrification of neighborhoods, as evident in Castro, San Francisco and Park Slope,
New York City (Castells, 1993; Lauria and Knopp, 1985). But research on the urban
agency of sexual minorities did not catch serious attention until recently. Manuel
Castells’s seminal work on gay men as gentrifiers in San Francisco was the first attempt
(Castells, 1993). He revealed a pattern of how sexual minorities concentrate in certain
neighborhood

and

form

a new community,

fundamentally transforming the

neighborhood. Rothenberg (1995) argues that lesbians, like gays, are also active agents in
the making of urban social space through gentrification.
While there is no doubt that sexual minorities are visible participants in the
process of gentrification, existing literature has failed to reach a consensus on how much
these processes are influenced by sexuality as opposed to other constitutions of
gentrification, such as class and gender (Lees, 2000). So far, however, the issues of

29

gender, class and gentrification—or gender, sexuality, and gentrification—have been
very limited.

Exploring detailed

quantitative changes

in

populations

within

neighborhoods, for instance, has not been examined.
Lauria and Knopp (1985), as well as Knopp (1990), emphasized the
interconnections between class, gender and sexuality in gay gentrification. Knopp (1990),
however, believes that class constitution is perhaps the most important agent in
gentrification after trying to balance out different facets of personal identity in explaining
upgrading processes. As Lees (2000) argues, complex impacts of the myriad of aspects in
personal identity on the constitution of gentrification need to be further explored.
2.2.3. Commentary
Gentrification is restructuring the geography of many central cities all over the
world (Hackworth and Smith, 2001; Lees, 2000; Smith and Defilippis, 1999; Wyly and
Hammel, 1999). With the new appreciation of the urban in the West, the topic of
gentrification has received increasing attention in the academic literature, popular media,
and government reports. Despite unceasing attempts to interpret the definition of
gentrification, existing literature has failed to arrive at a consensus of what the process
entails. However, research has increasingly realized the diverse nature of gentrification
and has suggested a broader definition of this upgrading redevelopment process. The
expanded understanding of gentrification has been linked with broader urban
transformations, such as urban revitalization or urban redevelopment, which have also
involved social upgrading. By linking gentrification to wider processes of economic and
urban restructuring, gentrification reflects a broader and more comprehensive picture of
capital accumulation, the reorganization of labor markets, and class conflict within cities

30

(Beauregard, 1986; Clark, 2005; Harvey, 1985, 1989; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008;
Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Rose, 1984; Smith and Williams, 1986).
Gentrification also involves different forms of physical upgrading processes via
different forms of capital reinvestment. It also involves a variety of different economic
agents, with a diversity of class structures. Gentrification can occur at different scales or
at various sites within one city. Gentrification processes not only vary between cities, but
they can also vary within one city. As the process of gentrification has increasingly
diversified, and their complexity recognized within the academic literature, research on
gentrification is expanding. Yet, research on urban redevelopment in Asia has not
recognized the complexity and diversity of gentrification processes, or, in fact, a
systematic quantitative review of gentrification across an entire city.
2.3. Gentrification and displacement
While the agents involved in gentrification, and the gentrification process, can
vary significantly, resulting in different physical and ‘social upgrading’ outcomes, there
are some common general trends that are evident in the redevelopment outcomes.
Neighborhoods experiencing gentrification can be expected to have several common
traits in terms of changes in demographic, socioeconomic, and housing characteristics.
First, the economic status of the area increases as many of the lower-income residents are
replaced by higher-income earners. Per capita income and household income increase
accordingly. The area can be expected to experience a rise in educational attainment
levels. The percentage of residents who are employed in ‘white-collar’ professional
occupations is also expected to experience an increase (Atkinson, 2000b; Ley, 1986). In
addition, the household size and median age of the residents generally decreases. In terms

31

of the physical housing stock itself, many of the rental units become converted to owneroccupied housing units. Because of the reinvestment in the dwellings, the quality of the
housing structures as well as the house value can be expected to increase (Clay, 1979;
Gale, 1979; Hamnett and Williams, 1980; Ley, 1986; Lipton, 1977; Maher, 1978).
Gentrification remains a debated and controversial topic, particularly as it relates
to how it affects neighborhoods and the original residents. Widely divergent views of
gentrification exist (Freeman and Braconi, 2004; Kennedy and Leonard, 2001). On the
one hand, developers and some residents and politicians can view gentrification
positively (Berrey, 2005; Duany, 2001; Kasinitz, 1988). Gentrification brings benefits,
like increases in property values, increases in revenue to local governments, and an
increasingly vibrant retail sector (Kennedy and Leonard, 2001). It is viewed as a “new
and durable addition to the socio-spatial structure of the city” and deemed by advocates
as a neighborhood evolutionary process (Wyly, 1998, p. 304). On the other hand,
affordable housing advocates and traditional neighborhood residents, and especially the
displaced, tend to view gentrification as harmful with extensive social costs (LeGates and
Hartman, 1986; Marcuse, 1986; Pattillo, 2003; Robinson, 1995; Smith, 1996; Solnit and
Schwartzenberg, 2000; Sumka, 1979).
Research has shown that the process of gentrification has inadvertently or
advertently displaced many of the original residents from the gentrified neighborhoods
(Beauregard, 1986; Cochran, 1990; Fischer, 1982; Hartman, 1980; Keating, 1985; Lee
and Hodge, 1984; Newman and Owen, 1982; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008; Stokols and
Shumaker, 1982; Wellman and Berkowitz, 1988). While most redevelopment projects
are launched in the name of public interest, those projects generally tend to have a

32

preference for higher-end properties targeting the wealthier rather than the original lowerincome residents. The physical environment is redeveloped, with a new focus on
attracting upper-income groups, while uprooting the existing social network and local
communities.
The displacement of the original residents is one of the negative effects of
gentrification. As the lower income neighborhoods are converted to more upscale
enclaves, the original residents often cannot afford to pay the higher rents. In addition,
landlords may not continue to rent their property, even evicting their residents in order to
sell their properties. Meanwhile, local businesses that formerly catered to the needs of
original residents may either have to relocate, close, or sell to new investors.
Gentrification, while achieving its stated goal of renovation and revitalization, can also
create a completely new set of socioeconomic problems for displacees.
Some researchers have addressed the costs associated with the displacement of
original neighborhood residents in a gentrification process (Atkinson, 2000a; Kennedy
and Leonard, 2001). But typically, the negative social consequences of gentrification are
not the center of discussion of urban redevelopment literature. In the Western context,
there has been a growing interest focused on the displacement of the traditional poor that
occupied the urban cores and that have been displaced by gentrification. In China, the
discussion on the displaced from redevelopment remains scarce, and, in fact, is almost
completely absent from the urban redevelopment literature.
2.4. The gender dimensions of gentrification
There are two opposing arguments regarding the role of women in gentrification
processes. On the one hand, women are seen as ‘agents’ of gentrification in the growing

33

service economy, while on the other hand, women, and particularly women in poverty,
are also seen as ‘victims’ who suffer from displacement. While research has increasingly
recognized women as ‘agents’ of gentrification, the non-traditional aspect of women as
‘victims’ in gentrification has not yet received its due attention.
The initial interest in gender and gentrification can be traced back to the early
1980s (Markusen, 1981; Rose, 1984). However, researchers did not prioritize gender
relative to class in their conceptual accounts of gentrification until the early 1990s (Lees,
2000). Since then, many studies have documented gender as an important agent of
gentrification (Bondi, 1991; Warde, 1991). Women’s role as an agent can be explained
from two perspectives, one being socioeconomic and the other demographic.
It is argued that the increased participation of women (especially married women)
in the labor force stimulates gentrification (Ley, 1986; Rose, 1984; Short, 1989; Smith,
1987; Wekerle, 1984). As Wekerle (1984) pointed out, women were a major impetus for
the revitalization of North American cities. It was the dramatic increase in women’s labor
participation rate that created a new demand for urban housing. Ley (1986) conducted a
correlation analysis between gentrification and 35 explanation variables using data on
Canadian metropolitan areas between 1971 and 1981. By using simple correlations, a
gentrification index was found positively correlated with female participation rates in the
Census Metropolitan Areas labor force (1981) and the absolute change in the percentage
of female participation rates (1971-81).
In the example of Fairview Slopes in Vancouver, Mills (1988) found an extremely
high proportion (38%) of the female labor force held managerial, administrative,
professional, and technical occupations in the gentrified neighborhoods. More evidence

34

of relationships between economic change and women gentrifiers can be found in related
studies (Ley, 1986; Rose, 1989; Rose and Le Bourdais, 1986). As more women succeed
in obtaining well-paid jobs, and as they become ‘yuppies’ (Short, 1989), there was a
larger pool of gentrifiers, which consists of relatively affluent households of single
women, married, or cohabiting couples, corresponding to the improvements in women’s
position within segments of the labor market. Ginzberg (1979) suggested that dual-career
families have been a major impetus for gentrification and the revitalization of inner city
neighborhoods. In contrast, Smith (1987) found that in gentrified neighborhoods in New
York City, the increase in females in the neighborhoods disproportionately consists of
single women.
The role of women as agents of gentrification can also be interpreted from the
perspective of demographic change (Bondi, 1991). It is believed that the increase in the
female population seeking housing, especially young single women, is a variable that has
facilitated gentrification (Bondi, 1991). Due to the postponement of marriage and
childbearing, there has been an increase in the number of women living alone. Housing
demand increases have thus been evident simply due to the increased number of single
working women seeking a dwelling, and particularly in the urban core.
As reported by many attitudinal surveys, women prefer central residential
locations to the suburbs (Fava, 1985; Saegert, 1981; Wekerle, 1984). The improvement of
women in the paid labor force has additionally stimulated the demand of expensive
private housing in the inner city. Smith’s (1987) research on five gentrified
neighborhoods in New York City showed the importance of women in the gentrification
process. Except for two tracts showing gayification, where gay men have led and

35

dominated the gentrification process, all other twenty two tracts across all five gentrified
neighborhoods show an increasing percentage of female residents. In addition to the fact
that the female population in these tracts increased more rapidly than the male
population, the profile of women in the neighborhoods is also changing. There is a
disproportionate increase of young and single women who live alone or share
households. The percentage of residents in these gentrified neighborhoods who have
professional, managerial, and technical occupations has also increased.
However, researchers began to step back in the mid-1990s, arguing that gender
was only a part of social and occupational formation in explaining gentrification (Butler
and Hamnett, 1994; Lees, 2000; Lyons, 1996). Smith (1996) also criticized the emphasis
that some researchers placed on gender, not believing that women were the primary
agents driving gentrification. Studies on gentrification and gender tend to agree that class
formation is most essential in understanding the relationship between gender and
gentrification (Bondi, 1999; Butler, 1997).
Besides being an agent of gentrification, women are also among the ‘victims’ who
suffer most from gentrification. While labor force participation rates among women have
increased since the 1950s, a large proportion of female workers are concentrated in the
low paid jobs in the service economy (Beechey, 1986). As the labor market has become
more polarized, the well-being of those in professional and managerial occupations
counter-balance those at the opposite end of the occupation spectrum; the low-paid
service employment (Pahl, 1988).
While in some cases, single women took advantage of relative cheap properties
and contributed to the upgrading of inner-cities, as shown in the example of Montreal

36

(Rose, 1989; Rose and Le Bourdais, 1986), some women remain particularly vulnerable
to the displacement induced by gentrification, including the elderly, single-parents, and
female headed households (Holcomb, 1986; Morrow-Jones, 1986; Walker, 1987;
Winchester and White, 1988).
The link between gender and poverty has been observed worldwide. Diana Pearce
(1978) originally introduced the concept of ‘the feminization of poverty’ to describe the
phenomenon that female-headed households in the United States were much more likely
to experience poverty than were other types of family structures. Since then, many
studies around the world have consistently found a similar pattern (Broderick et al.,
2008). Women in poverty have been increasing, and as overrepresented among the poor,
women have likely confronted the greatest burden of the physical and social upgrading in
the process of gentrification (Goldberg and Kremen, 1990; McLanahan and Kelly, 1998;
Scott, 1984). Up until now, there has been very little research focusing on this alternative
aspect and interpretation of the role of women in gentrification. It is clear, however that
the role of women in gentrification is deeply divided. Women in different cities, or
different parts of a city, are likely involved in, or affected by, gentrification in different
ways.
2.5. Gentrification in the Chinese context
Gentrification is a global phenomenon (Smith, 2002b). Scholarly works on
gentrification multiplied in the past few decades, with the process being reported in many
urban centers across the globe (Atkinson and Bridge, 2005). The outcome of
gentrification processes has been especially dramatic in cities at the top of the urban
hierarch. In the United States, gentrification has been documented in: New York City

37

(Freeman and Braconi, 2004; Hackworth, 2002), Chicago (Betancur, 2002; Perez, 2002),
Philadelphia (Beauregard, 1990; Smith, 1979a), and Houston (Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and
Pigozzi, 2011). In Europe, it has been reported in London (Atkinson, 2000a; Butler,
2003; Lyons, 1996), Paris (Préteceille, 2007), Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmo
(Hedin et al., 2012). In Canada, it is evident in Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver (Ley,
1992; Hackworth and Rekers, 2005; Filion, 1991; Walks and Maaranen, 2008).
It has also become evident that gentrification is more diversified as it has moved
further down the urban hierarchy. Increasingly, research has examined the transferability
of the concept of gentrification from the Global North to the Global South (Lee, 2012). A
number of studies of gentrification in, for example, Cape Town (Garside, 1993),
Singapore (Wong, 2006), and Puebla (Jones and Varley, 1999) have emerged, which
point to a wide variation in manifestations and motivations. Many Chinese cities,
including Hong Kong, have experienced rapid physical upgrading in the past few
decades. Researchers have slowly started bringing in the theoretical framework of
gentrification to analyze these transformations, but these have been largely qualitative
observations or based on smaller scale of quantitative analysis in selected neighborhoods,
and not systematic quantitative studies (He, 2010; Ley and Teo, 2013; Wu, 2004).
It is worth noticing that Hong Kong is not just one of the large cities in China.
Due to political and socioeconomic reasons, Hong Kong is unique in many aspects. Hong
Kong has undergone tremendous socio-economic transformations in recent decades, as
many other global cities, but perhaps even in a more striking manner. The enormous
urban restructuring makes Hong Kong stand out as an interesting case for gentrification.
In this section, I will provide a summary of gentrification in Mainland China, followed by

38

a review focusing on Hong Kong.
2.5.1. Gentrification in Mainland China
Physical and social upgrading processes have been evident in China since the late
1970s. Commodification of the socialist tenancy rights, real estate development, and
other market-oriented reforms have turned Chinese inner cities–and especially the big
cities–into a hotspot of urban redevelopment (Leaf, 1995; Wu, 2004). There is a large
literature on urban redevelopment in China covering various topics, from studying urban
landscape changes to exploring the driving forces behind redevelopment (Yang and
Chang, 2007, Cheng, 2012; Zhu, 1999; 2002). But this literature hardly ever addresses
class conflict, displacement, and ‘social upgrading’ with a few exceptions.
Based on a household survey in Shanghai, Wu (2004) found that the displacement
of low-income residents, and extensive inherent negative social impacts, are associated
with housing redevelopment. Similarly in the case of Nanjing, Wu and He (2005) found
marginal populations in the inner city to suffer from the destruction of community
relations caused by redevelopment and displacement. By analyzing data from a survey in
two influential redevelopment projects in Shanghai, He and Wu (2007) found lowincome residents in old neighborhoods have been pushed out by people with higher
socioeconomic status.
Yang and Chang (2007) use Xintiandi in another example, showing that removal
and resettlement of original residents are major issues in China’s urban redevelopment.
He (2010), on the other hand, uses two cases of new-build gentrification in central
Shanghai to illustrate intensified inequalities in housing and socioeconomic prospects in
the metropolitan area by massive urban redevelopment. While urban redevelopment does

39

not necessary lead to class conflict and displacement, gentrification does. Gentrification,
by definition, always involves ‘social upgrading’, and hence displacement. A systematic
analysis of gentrification across a whole city, therefore, is still largely missing from the
discourse on urban development and redevelopment processes in China.
Similar to the Western experience, extensive housing demolitions and residential
relocation are evident in the recent urban redevelopment processes in China. Due to the
high population density in Chinese cities, demolishment and displacement usually
happens at a striking scale. In the case of Shanghai, it is reported that 820,458 households
have been relocated, and 41.88 million square meters of housing have been demolished
just between 1995 and 2005 (He, 2007).
This tremendous amount of residential displacement and housing demolishment
resulting from various urban redevelopment projects have become an elusive and
sensitive issue in China (Wu, 2004; Fang, 2000; Zhang, 2002). Despite its importance,
studies on the social consequences and class struggles of gentrification in China are
limited when compared with the extensive literature on the processes and mechanisms of
urban development and redevelopment.
Gentrification in China does occur in a very different context when compared to
gentrification in the West, although there are some similarities. The state has great
influence on the process in both the Chinese and Western contexts. Zhang and Fang
(2004) found a similarity between inner-city redevelopment in China since the late 1980s
and urban renewal in the US in the 1950s and 1960s. They found that both programs use
government authority and subsidies to make large-scale private or quasi-private
investment attractive in the name of ameliorating living conditions.

40

In the case of Shanghai, He (2007) suggests that the state has played a
fundamental role in facilitating the circulation of capital and assisting gentrification. She
concludes that the state is essential in three aspects of the gentrification process:
accommodating the demands of gentrifiers, channeling the inflows of capital and tackling
the problems of fragmented property rights (He, 2007). In addition, the importance of
public-private partnerships as a common approach to the problems of finance and
implementation in urban redevelopment schemes has been increasingly recognized (Fang,
2000; Fang and Zhang, 2003; Wu, 1999).
While gentrification is clearly visible in many Chinese cities, gentrification
research is far from thriving. Many studies have been centered on China’s urban
redevelopment, but the explicit use of the term ‘gentrification’ in the literature on urban
China did not exist until recently (Dowall, 1994; He, 2007; He and Wu, 2005; Leaf,
1995; Ren, 2008; Zhang, 2002; Zhang and Fang, 2004). The term gentrification has
emerged to describe not only the rehabilitation of old inner housing areas involving the
displacement of the working class by the middle class, but also housing redevelopments
and mixed-use consumption landscapes that have involved residential displacement (He,
2010).
However, gentrification is still viewed as a ‘new’ phenomenon in the Chinese
context. As He (2010) has argued, governments and some scholars substitute the term
gentrification with neutralized and unpoliticised terms, such as reorganization, urban
renewal, urban regeneration, and urban redevelopment, to describe an extensive urban
restructuring process, but to avoid the political implications of displacement.
‘Gentrification,’ ‘urban renewal,’ and ‘urban redevelopment’ are used interchangeable in

41

many cases.
In the West, there are some five decades of research on the impacts of inner-city
redevelopment and urban revival on residential displacement. In contrast, studies on
gentrification in China are scarce. This is a focus of research that has simply not been
evident in China. In addition, the role of gender in the process of physical and social
upgrading within Chinese cities has also been an understudied aspect of research on this
topic. As in the West, not much attention has been focused on the role of women in
gentrification processes.
2.5.2. Gentrification in Hong Kong
Gentrification in Hong Kong could be an expected phenomenon given the
transition of the economy, from an industrial-based economy to a specialized services
economy, and particularly given the scale of redevelopment in the city over the last three
decades. Similarities and differences are found when compared with both the Western
and the Mainland Chinese experiences, and this again can be expected given its unique
historical ties to both of these global regions. On the one hand, Hong Kong can be viewed
as an important case study of a major Asian urban center. Its unique history, political
structure, economic conditions, and local culture have given the city its unique urban
socio-economic and spatial structure.
Slum clearance schemes prior to the 1960s might be the earliest efforts in physical
and ‘social upgrading’. During the 1960s and 1970s, urban renewal projects in Hong
Kong were widely apparent. But the urban renewal efforts at this stage were no more than
programs of urban service provision and public works projects (Yeh, 1990). Integrated
and comprehensive renewal programs did not exist until the 1980s. Since then, urban

42

renewal has played an important role in the development and redevelopment of Hong
Kong.
Urban renewal initiatives in Hong Kong have been important not only in
addressing urban decay but also in stimulating economic restructuring and the local real
estate market (Chan and Lee, 2008; Li and Brown, 1980). In Hong Kong, most of the
urban renewal projects are initiated by the quasi-governmental agency of the Land
Development Corporation (LDC), which at the turn of the century had an interest in
redeveloping some 2,000 ageing or dilapidated buildings and improving 67 hectares of
old and run-down areas of Hong Kong (HPLB, 2001).
Despite the rapid and ongoing physical and ‘social upgrading’ processes that are
so visually apparent in Hong Kong, the term ‘gentrification’ is absent in the literature.
Instead, ‘urban redevelopment’ and ‘urban renewal’ are commonly used to refer to
physical and ‘social upgrading’ processes. Terms that are also used interchangeably to
refer to gentrification include ‘clearance of slums,’ ‘urban revitalization,’ ‘building
rehabilitation,’ and ‘preservation and conservation to improve the urban fabric’ (Chan
and Lee, 2008). Similar to Mainland China, class conflict and displacement are seldom
the focus of urban redevelopment studies in the existing literature on Hong Kong’s urban
redevelopment processes.
There is only one recent study that has used the explicit term of gentrification in
Hong Kong. In Ley and Teo (2013), the authors explore the transferability of the concept
of gentrification to the Hong Kong context. Through an analysis of English- and Chineselanguage newspapers, the publication finds that although urban redevelopment is a topic
that receives abundant coverage, gentrification is barely used in Hong Kong to describe

43

the pervasive processes of displacement. However, Ley and Teo note that the growing
inequality, especially since the housing bust after 1997, has increased the importance and
awareness of the concept of gentrification.

2

Drakakis-Smith may be the earliest vanguard who studied urban renewal in Hong
Kong. Drakakis-Smith (1976) provided a substantive analytical framework of Hong
Kong’s pilot renewal scheme and called for further research on this topic. Much interest
has been paid to the institutional structure of the urban redevelopment process in Hong
Kong. In Hong Kong, in order to cope with the urgent requirement of urban renewal, a
quasi-governmental agency called the Land Development Corporation (LDC) was set up
in 1988 (Ng, 1998). Replacing the LDC, the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) was
established in 1998, with a new operating mechanism, greater powers, and more initial
capital available for investment (Chan and Lee, 2008). Researchers have largely focused
on how these two agencies engaged in the process of urban redevelopment in the city
(Fong, 1985; Adams and Hastings, 2001), or which of the two institutions, whether the
LDC or the URA, have functioned as more effective institutions for property
development (Cuthbert and Dimitriou, 1992; Lai, 1993; Ng, 2000; Ng, 2002; Tang,
2002).
In addition to the quasi-governmental bodies, private developers are also major
parties actively involved in undertaking urban redevelopment in Hong Kong. Publicprivate partnerships have emerged as a prominent component of urban policy in Britain

2

It is worth noting that while the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997 had a substantial impact
on Hong Kong's real estate market, with significant declines in property values, the
financial crisis in 2008 had limited implications. The real estate market in Hong Kong
has continued on an upswing since 2008 and has not in fact declined like in the West.

44

and the United States since the 1980s (Barnekov, Boyle, and Rich, 1989; O'Toole and
Usher, 1992). In Hong Kong, there is a long history of urban entrepreneurship based on
public-private partnerships. Since first spearheaded by the Land Development Policy
Committee (LDPC) in 1984, the public-private partnership model has been utilized in
Hong Kong to carry-out comprehensive redevelopment and has been playing an
important role in urban capital reinvestment in Hong Kong (Jessop and Sum, 2000).
Although Hong Kong has a traditional philosophy of minimal government intervention, it
is believed that quasi-governmental bodies work closely with private developers to
enable profitable projects (Chan and Lee, 2008).
There is a rich literature discussing urban redevelopment in Hong Kong.
However, the majority of these studies have failed to mention class conflict,
displacement, and ‘social upgrading’ in these processes. As in the case of Mainland
China, there is clearly a need to bring the discussion of gentrification into the analysis of
urban redevelopment in Hong Kong.
It is believed that the majority of urban renewal projects in Hong Kong are driven
by the property market; ‘property led’ or ‘market led’ redevelopment initiatives (Ng,
2002; Tang, 2002). From this perspective, improving poor housing conditions for the
population is not necessarily the primary concern of the Hong Kong government in the
local urban renewal initiatives. Far more important is financial viability (Ng, 2002; Yeh,
1990). Despite institutional differences between Hong Kong and other western cities,
“the emphasis on capital sovereignty and free market competition” is one of the
important common features of urban policy initiatives focused on inner city
redevelopment (Tang and Tang, 1999, p. 33). Only a few studies, however, have

45

acknowledged the limitations of these types of physical and social upgrading processes
associated with this mode of redevelopment.
Ng (1998) pointed out that urban renewal in Hong Kong has been narrowly
understood as “the physical redevelopment of land with unexploited development
potential or land under obsolete uses” (Ng, 1998, p. 414). In her work, Ng also addresses
the importance of wider considerations, such as community interests and social equity.
Similarly, Tang (2008) argued that social development is missing from Hong Kong’s
urban redevelopment initiatives under the developer-led business government regime.
The narrow scope of Hong Kong’s urban redevelopment programs was also
explored by Yeh (1990). Yeh examined the different roles and problems of public and
private partnership in urban redevelopment in Hong-Kong before and after the formation
of the Land Development Corporation. Although admitting that public and private
partnership is an innovative approach to the problems of financing urban redevelopment
initiatives, he points out that it should not be accepted as the only approach. In his work,
Yeh supports the notion that the interests of low-income residents affected by urban
redevelopment should not be neglected (Yeh, 1990).
There is a growing body of literature criticizing urban renewal practices in Hong
Kong because of the absence of social concerns and the neglect of large segments of the
population who are negatively affected, which tend to be largely the poor (Chan and Lee,
2008). Ng (2002) points out that the general public has been excluded from planning
processes involving redevelopment. In addition, Lai (1993) questions whether the owners
of the houses receive fair compensation that is commensurate with the market value of
the property.

46

Some studies have also focused on how the residents’ quality of life has been
affected by urban redevelopment (Chan and Lee, 2008; Kam, Ng, and Ho, 2004; Ng et
al., 2004). Ng et al. (2004) developed a multi-faceted approach (Quality of Life) to
understand the housing situation of residents who are caught up in an urban renewal
process. One of the implications from a survey of 539 residents is that urban renewal, in
the form of pulling down buildings and dispersing residents from a familiar neighborhood
and community, may place residents in a difficult social dilemma (Ng et al., 2004). In the
process of urban redevelopment, residents are displaced and the existing social network
within their communities uprooted (Yeh, 1990). Even when relocating residents to
physically better housing, their quality of life can be reduced because of the tearing apart
of the community social networks (Ng, et al., 2004).
In similar spirit, based on interview data collected from 576 residents in six
districts in Hong Kong, Ng, Kam, and Pong (2005) revealed that urban renewal projects
uprooted existing neighborhoods and communities. It is suggested that more efforts
should be made to improve social capital in the neighborhood and community to which
the residents have relocated after displacement.
According to the central displacement theory, low-income households are
unevenly burdened with the costs of redevelopment, as most of the residents in the
redeveloped areas have low incomes and some are the most underprivileged in society
(Hartman, 1980; Keating, 1985). However, Susnik and Ganesan (1997) question whether
this hypothesis applies to Hong Kong. According to Susnik and Ganesan (1997), urban
renewal partially mitigates the negative aspects of residential displacement. They argue
that property development through redevelopment exploits under-utilized land in older

47

urban areas, and in doing so is able to supply upgraded office and housing opportunities.
While private-sector redevelopment induces the displacement of vulnerable innercity dwellers, Susnik and Gansen maintain that the local government led urban-renewal
program reduces the negative outcomes of this process. They contend that urban
redevelopment was favorable to over 55% of those displaced. However, this finding is
likely biased, as interviews with displaced households were excluded from the research
design. It is clear that urban redevelopment effects are not homogenous, but how
different outcomes are associated with different development processes is an issue that is
still debated. The social consequences of urban reinvestment within redevelopment
processes in Hong Kong are still under-studied and require further investigation.
Compared to other Chinese large cities, Hong Kong shares many similarities but
embraces even more differences. As one of the two special administrative regions, Hong
Kong has its own capitalist economic and political systems, while the rest of China still
emphasizes a more socialist, government planned system. With Chinese cities undergoing
extensive institutional changes with growing market transition, Hong Kong’s experiences
might be useful for reform in these other Chinese urban contexts.
As a city-state, Hong Kong enjoys autonomous powers. In the current context, it
is important to note that other major urban centers in China are experiencing a similar
transition from centralized to decentralized administrative and fiscal powers, as evident
with Shanghai and Beijing. Increasingly, the local state across Mainland China has
gained

more

decision-making

power

in

redevelopment processes.

48

local

investment,

development

and

In addition, both Hong Kong and other major Chinese cities have a dual land
tenure system. Land ownership is separate from land use rights. In Hong Kong, while the
central government owns all the lands, the local government of Hong Kong has the
powers to grant or lease the land to the public for ownership for a limited period of time
(leasehold land). Similar to Hong Kong, natural persons, legal persons, or other
organizations in cities across Mainland China can acquire land use rights from the local
government but not the ownership over the land itself. The transfer of land use rights
used to be free and infinite, in terms of time limit, in Mainland China. Leaseholds are
now paid for and have temporal limits, similar to the Hong Kong context.
In terms of the housing system, Hong Kong has a private, advanced house
commodification market paralleling its well-developed public housing regime. Cities
across Mainland China, in contrast, have a strong state or work unit allocation housing
system that has just begun to nominally change to a private housing commodification
system (He, 2007). In addition, in Hong Kong, public participation plays a stronger role
in decision making of planning, development and redevelopment when compared to cities
in Mainland China. Activism and resistance by activists groups has greatly affected the
urban (re)development policies in Hong Kong.
While Hong Kong is a unique, large city in China, it is clear that Hong Kong is
also moving toward having greater similarities with other major Chinese cities, a result of
both changes in Hong Kong and changes in the urban, Mainland China context. This shift
makes the study of gentrification in Hong Kong beneficial and important for gaining
insights into gentrification processes in the Mainland Chinese urban context. Hong Kong
represents a case with both western neoliberal and Chinese influences.

49

While each city is unique, and Hong Kong clearly distinguishes itself from other
major Chinese and Asian cities, it can also be perhaps said that Hong Kong does share
some commonalities. Specifically in a broader Asian context, Hong Kong, Singapore,
South Korea and Taiwan were called Asian dragons, given their rapid industrialization
between the 1960s and the 1990s. They are all export-oriented centers and have now
developed into advanced economies. With the emergence of a powerful middle class, and
marked social and economic inequalities, these Asian urban contexts all provide basis for
substantial potential gentrification.
Recently, some researchers have started to use the language of gentrification to
explore urban redevelopment processes in Asian cities. For example, Shin (2009)
explored property-based redevelopment and gentrification in Seoul, South Korea. Lum et
al. (2003) studied market-led urban redevelopment policies in Singapore. Wong (2006)
explored the role of waterfront housing redevelopment, revitalization and gentrification
in Singapore’s central city. Hsu and Hsu (2013) examined the transformative process of
urban redevelopment in Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan. Similarities and differences
can be found when comparing gentrification in these Asian cities with the Hong Kong
experience. It can be assumed that the distinct history and geography of place, and the
unique actors and reinvestment processes involved in the local redevelopment, shapes
each urban context very differently, but there are similarities.
First, in all these Asian urban contexts, there are local claims that these
redevelopment processes are a result of market forces. However, in all cases, state
involvement is extensive and government remains an important driver of redevelopment
in all these cities. As already discussed, while Hong Kong likes to market itself as a

50

laissez-faire city, the role of government in (re)development is substantial. Similarly,
according to Dobbs (2002), the heavy hand of the government is found in all phases of
Singapore’s urban development and renewal. Singapore, like Hong Kong, claims it is
guided by a laissez faire governance approach (Zhu, 1997), however, government
intervention and state-led development have been largely instrumental in shaping
Singapore’s urban landscape (Lum et al., 2003).
In Taipei, the first stage of gentrification, from the 1950s to the mid-1980s, was
characterized by a form of state-led urban renewal (Hsu and Hsu, 2013). South Korea had
also been known for its strong developmental state in the urban redevelopment process
(Shin, 2009). These Asian cities have all been characterized by rapid urban growth under
a strong developmental state structure (Amsden, 1989), and the state is evident and plays
an important role in local urban renewal, reinvestment and redevelopment.
While the state plays an important role, the private sector has also become
increasingly essential in (re)development. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, public–
private partnerships have become a prevalent organizing structure in urban policy
implementation in Hong Kong (Yeh, 1990). Similarly, the public-private partnership
model in Taiwan is gaining increasing importance (Hsu and Hsu, 2013). In Singapore, an
emphasis on the private sector has also become a common feature of recent urban policy
initiatives shaping inner city redevelopment (Lum et al., 2003). In recent years, the state
has been increasingly relying on private sector investment decisions to trigger
reinvestment and physical redevelopment (Lum et al., 2003). In fact, this seems to be an
emerging common trend throughout Asia and the West.

51

Another distinct characteristic of gentrification in Asian cities is the new
landscape of high-rise redevelopment emerging as an invariable outcome. Renovation
and refurbishment in the Asian context, the original Ruth Glass definition of
gentrification, is not a common reinvestment and redevelopment typology. Instead,
demolishment and rebuilding of high density high-rises is the preferred and more evident
redevelopment strategy.
As suggested by Shin (2009), wholesale redevelopment had been a dominant
approach to urban renewal in South Korea, leading to redevelopment-induced
gentrification. Displacement is an inevitable outcome of these processes but often
overlooked. Based on the experience of redevelopment in Nangok, Shin (2009) suggests
that urban (re)development programs need to be carefully designed so that the local poor
also benefit.
In Taiwan, neighborhood change and the eviction of low-income residents has
occurred in varied ways during the 20th century, from the demolition of entire
neighborhoods as part of large scale revitalization initiatives, to the teardowns of
individual buildings. However, the dimension of social exclusion and displacement,
similar to other Asian contexts, receives little attention (Hsu and Hsu, 2013).
There is a call to “decolonize the gentrification literature away from EuroAmerican perspectives and to pay much more attention to gentrification in the Global
South” (Lees, 2012, p164). There are distinctive regional causes and effects creating a
hybrid landscape of east and west (Ley and Teo, 2013). However, while there is
considerable literature on redevelopment in an Asian context, gentrification—the
combined impact of redevelopment and displacement—is under-represented in the

52

literature and completely absent in any systematic quantitative analysis. As Ley and Teo
(2013, p 8) recently argue in the context of Hong Kong:
But in all of this valuable scholarship, the naming of gentrification is rarely
found. One local housing expert told us there has been ‘no serious research’ on
gentrification in Hong Kong.

From looking at academic literature and media coverage, Ley and Teo go
maintain that what is taking place in Hong Kong is legitimately gentrification, as
understood in the West. The anecdotal evidence leads them to conclude that displacement
is taking place, but no research has systematically examined displacement. This research
on gentrification in Hong Kong not only provides a missing piece in the global
gentrification literature, but also provides strong evidence of displacement, and hence is a
stepping stone toward a transition to putative gentrification of cities in other Asian urban
contexts.
2.6. Conclusion
Gentrification, being defined by the combination of, one, capital reinvestment in
the urban built environment, and two, the displacement of the original residents that have
traditionally occupied these neighborhoods by residents of a higher class status, has been
recognized as an upgrading process occurring in Western cities since the mid-19

th

century. The term gentrification was coined in 1964 by Ruth Glass, and since then the
topic has been discussed widely within urban studies. The early discussions on the topic
of gentrification have largely concentrated on arguments for and against explanations of
the process, from the production and the consumption perspectives. We now generally
agree that gentrification is driven by both demand and supply side forces.

53

Another major discussion within the gentrification literature focuses on how to
define this process. Although no agreement has been reached on what the process entails,
increasingly research has realized the diverse nature of gentrification and has suggested a
broader definition of the concept. Various physical and social upgrading processes have
been embraced under the broader definition of gentrification. Different processes involve
different agents and result in different physical and ‘social upgrading’ outcomes.
While each of these processes has its own distinct characteristics, the two
common traits that tie gentrification together, as noted earlier, are capital reinvestment
and displacement. Again, all forms of gentrification involve capital reinvestment in the
urban built environment. Second, coupled with physical upgrading of the built form,
there are extensive social changes in the make-up of the neighborhoods experiencing
gentrification. These social changes generally involve the replacement of poorer residents
with wealthier income groups.
Divergent views exist in terms of how gentrification affects neighborhoods and
the people residing there. While some people view gentrification positively, others view
gentrification as harmful, given that gentrification inadvertently or advertently displaces
many of the original residents from the gentrified neighborhoods. However, these
negative social consequences of gentrification are not at the center of discussion in
publications on redevelopment or urban change, and especially in China.
Another under studied aspect of gentrification is gender. Women in different
cities, or different parts of a city, are involved in or affected by gentrification in different
ways. The role of women in gentrification is deeply divided. Given the increasing
socioeconomic status of women and their changing demographic characteristics, women

54

can be viewed as the agents in the growing service economy that are driving
gentrification. However, women can also be the ‘victims’ who suffer most from
gentrification due to the ‘feminization of poverty,’ which is a ubiquitous global
phenomenon. Women, being overrepresented among the poor, have likely confronted the
greatest burden of physical and ‘social’ upgrading processes. Yet, this aspect of women,
as ‘victims’ of gentrification, has not yet received its due attention, and especially in
China.
Although physical and ‘social’ upgrading processes have been evident in China,
studies on gentrification in China are still scarce. There is a large literature on urban
redevelopment in China covering various topics. But this literature hardly ever addresses
class conflict, displacement, and ‘social upgrading,’ which are important elements of
gentrification. There is a call for more systematic research on the impacts of urban
redevelopment and urban revival on residential displacement in China (Wu, 2004; Ley
and Teo, 2013).

55

Chapter 3 The research area: Hong Kong
This chapter provides a brief introduction into Hong Kong’s history and its
development. It explores how Hong Kong has shifted from an industrial-based economy
to a service-based economy. The chapter then focuses on exploring different
redevelopment initiatives, projects, and policies that have facilitated the physical and
social upgrading of Hong Kong. Variables include the actors involved in the urban
reinvestment and displacement process and the tools used in the redevelopment of the
city. It explores how individual actors and agencies in both the public and the private
sectors are engaged in urban reinvestment that facilitate gentrification.
3.1. Location and brief introduction
Hong Kong (officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, HKSAR)
is one of the two special administrative regions of the People’s Republic of China. It is
situated in eastern Asia, at the southeastern tip of Guangdong Province in China. It
consists of three parts: Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories (Figure 31). Hong Kong covers an area of about 426 square miles (1,104 square kilometers).
However, according to the latest land utilization report, only about 22% of the territory is
urban or built-up land due to the hilly and mountainous landscape (Table 3-1). Although
the New Territories and islands on the adjoining mainland take up almost 90% of the
area, the majority of the urban or built-up land is on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon.
Hong Kong Island and Kowloon are generally considered the urban core. Dense urban
areas are mostly located along Victoria Harbor, at the northern tip of Hong Kong Island
and southern tip of the Kowloon Peninsula. The central business district (CBD) is located

56

in Central (also called Chong Wan in Chinese).

Figure 3- 1 Hong Kong and Vicinity
Source: www.worldstatesmen.org
Table 3- 1 Land Utilization in Hong Kong, 2011
Land Utilization class in Hong Kong, 2011
Approximate Percentage of the
area (sq.km)
total area (%)
Residential
Private residential (i)
25
2.26
Public residential (ii)
16
1.44
Rural settlement (iii)
35
3.16
Commercial
0.36
Commercial/Business and office
4
Industrial
Industrial land
7
0.63

57

Table 3-1 (Cont’d)
Industrial estates
Warehouse and open storage
Institution/Open Space
Government, institution and community facilities
Open space (iv)
Transportation
Roads
Railways
Airport

3
16

0.27
1.44

25
25

2.26
2.26

40
3
13

3.61
0.27
1.17

Other Urban or Built-up Land
0.72
Cemeteries and crematoriums
8
Utilities
7
0.63
Vacant development land/Construction in
16
progress
1.44
Others
22
1.99
Agriculture
Agricultural land
51
4.60
Fish ponds/Gei wais
17
1.53
Woodland/Shrubland/Grassland/Wetland
Woodland
249
22.47
Shrubland
293
26.44
Grassland
191
17.24
Mangrove and swamp (v)
5
0.45
Barren Land
Badland
2
0.18
Quarries
1
0.09
Rocky shore
4
0.36
Water Bodies
Reservoirs
25
2.26
Streams and nullahs
5
0.45
100.00
Total
1108
Note: The above land usage figures are as of 2011 and have been updated with satellite
images dated November 2011, in-house survey information up to the end 2011 and other
relevant information from various government departments.
Source: Hong Kong Lands Department, 2011
The transportation facilities are also concentrated in the urban cores of Hong Kong

58

Island and Kowloon. The Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is the primary form of
transportation in Hong Kong. There are all together ten lines in the MTR system, with a
total of 83 railway stations and 68 light rail stops. There are nine roads classified as
highways in Hong Kong, which make up a total of 1,138 miles (1,831 kilometers).
There are no formal definitions for cities and towns in Hong Kong. Instead, it is
subdivided into 18 council districts for administrative purposes. Each district is
represented by a District Council that advises the Government of Hong Kong on local
matters, such as public facilities, community programs, cultural activities and
environmental improvements. The 18 council districts are (Figure 3-2): 1. Central and
Western; 2. Wan Chai; 3. Eastern; 4. Southern; 5. Yau Tsim Mong; 6. Kowloon City; 7.
Sham Shui Po; 8. Kwun Tong; 9. Wong Tai Sin; 10. Tsuen Wan; 11. Kwai Tsing; 12.
Tuen Mun; 13. Yuen Long; 14. North; 15. Tai Po; 16. Sha Tin; 17. Sai Kung; 18. Islands.

59

Figure 3- 2 Administrative Map of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

60

Hong Kong is certainly among the most distinctive of the world’s major cities.
Topography, history, cultural attitudes, political and economic circumstances have all
jointly determined its development pattern and shape its current status (Ho, 1992). Hong
Kong was a crown colony of the United Kingdom from 1841 until the transfer of its
sovereignty to China in 1997. Hong Kong is now governed as a special administrative
3

region of China under the rule of “One country, two systems.” Hong Kong is China’s
global connection to the rest of the world (Hamilton, 1999). It can be best described as a
foundation that began with China, and was then aligned with the West for much of the
20

th

century under constructive British colonialism. The formation of Hong Kong as a

city reflecting both Eastern and Western experiences can potentially shed light on the
broader scale of restructuring of other Chinese cities in the global economy.
Hong Kong is world-renowned for its extreme scales of intensification, which are
reflected in some of the highest population and employment densities in the world. With
a total area of about 426 square miles (1,104 square kilometers), Hong Kong has
2

6,864,346 residents (CSD, 2006). At 16,176 people/mile

2

(6,218 people/km ) on

average, Hong Kong’s population density is high by international standards. However,
this average does not, in fact, reflect accurately on the degree of population concentration
and intensification in Hong Kong. The population in Hong Kong is unevenly distributed,
with two thirds of the population living within a 6.2 mile (10 kilometer) radius. In an
2

extreme case, Kowloon accommodates an astonishing 112,435 people/mile (43,220

3

“One Country, Two Systems” refers to the constitutional principle for the reunification
of China. While regions such as Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan retain their
own capitalist economic and political systems, the rest of China uses the socialist system.

61

2

people/km ) (CSD, 2006). Being a highly dense city, space and housing stock is
extremely important in Hong Kong.
3.2. Urban development in Hong Kong
3.2.1. The development during colonial period: before 1980
Hong Kong was a colony for more than a hundred years. However, Hong Kong
had prospered, rather than been devastated by colonialism, in contradiction to the
experience of most colonies. Hong Kong served as a colony when Hong Kong Island was
ceded to Britain in 1841. In addition, Stonecutters Island and Kowloon were annexed in
1860, and the New Territories were leased from China in 1898 for 99 years. Where
nothing previously existed, a thriving economy was created in the face of remarkable
adversity (Dimitriou and Cook, 1998).
Governed by the British Empire, Hong Kong was declared a free port to serve as
an entrepôt. From this period until the end of World War I in 1918, Hong Kong
experienced steady economic growth and administrative development, surviving on the
basis of increasing commerce and trade with all parts of the world. The population kept
increasing and the provisions for public housing, health, education, and limited
democratic rights in Hong Kong were claimed to represent pinnacles of achievement
(Dimitriou and Cook, 1998). Industry burgeoned in this period, but the revival soon
ended when Hong Kong was overrun by the Japanese during World War II in 1941. Hong
Kong was described as a run-down, war-damaged, pre-industrial society with no evident
future (Youngson, 1982). The population of the city declined from 1.6 million before the

62

invasion to about 600,000 by the end of the war in 1945.

4

Hong Kong recovered quickly after the end of the war, which also symbolized a
transition from a mercantile to an industrial economy. After 1950, when much of its
entrepôt trade with China was halted because of U.N. and U.S. embargoes, Hong Kong
began to industrialize. Overcoming such handicaps as scarcity of minerals, power
sources, usable land, and freshwater, and utilizing its abundant supply of cheap labor,
Hong Kong became a leading light-manufacturing center (Szczepanik, 1958; Koo, 1968).
The textile and plastic industries expanded quickly during the early stage of economic
development. The electronics and electrical industries started to grow in the 1960s. Since
the early 1970s, manufacturing industries progressively diversified. There was a shift
from labor-intensive and simple products to more technology-intensive and sophisticated
products. Although manufacturing still remained important to its economy in the late
1970s, Hong Kong was transforming into a major financial center of the region (Chen,
1984).
Living standards also rose steadily with industrial growth. The construction of
Shek Kip Mei Estate in 1953 marked the beginning of the public housing estate program,
which was then to become the second largest in the world in proportion to its population
(Yeung and Wong, 2003). Hong Kong’s public housing program accommodated at its
peak more than 50% of its population. During the late 1970s, the urban spatial structure
in Hong Kong reached levels of intensification never previously encountered elsewhere
in the world. It was at this point that construction of the new towns on the periphery of
the metropolitan area and the further urbanization of the New Territories began. In
4

The New York Times. Thousands March in Anti-Japan Protest in Hong Kong by Keith
Bradsher. Retrieved on 2012-09-04.
63

addition, to keep pace with the development, the government placed a strong emphasis on
improving and expanding infrastructure during this period. As a result, Hong Kong has
been transformed into a modern city with efficient road and rail links, and first-class port
and airport facilities (Bell, Amelung et al., 1997; MacPherson, 1997; Yeh, 1997;
Dimitriou and Cook, 1998).
3.2.2. Urban development in transition: from 1980 to 1997
Hong Kong entered a period of transition by the signing of the Sino-British Joint
Declaration in 1984. This period is a most remarkable one for Hong Kong from the
viewpoints of economic development, and specifically, the city’s transformation into a
specialized-services economy. The most significant economic restructuring in Hong
Kong occurred during this period, resulting in a marked decline in its manufacturing
sector, combined with the rapid growth of its service sector. Taking advantage of the low
land and labor costs, many local industrialists began to set up branch plants or
subcontract-out into Mainland China, and especially the Pearl River Delta region (PRD)
(Cuthbert, 1995).
This relationship between Hong Kong and China has been characterized by the
Chinese as “qianpu houchang” (shops in the front and factories behind). Hong Kong is
the “shop,” while China (in this case the PRD) is the “factory” in the back. This synergy
facilitated by China’s cheap labor and Hong Kong’s know-how and capital was the main
factor behind China's spectacular export drive.
By the mid-1990s, almost 25,000 Hong Kong factories, mostly in textiles,
clothing, toys and consumer electronics moved to Mainland China to exploit low labor
and rent costs (Jessop, 2000). But Hong Kong industries that are outward processing in

64

the PRD are still using Hong Kong as a base for research, marketing and distribution.
Hong Kong also has an efficient banking system to handle letters of credit for China.
Many international firms are also using Hong Kong as a stepping stone for doing
business with China, making use of local expertise and professional services. China,
especially areas in the PRD, have become increasingly important to the economic
development of Hong Kong (Ho, 1992; So and Kwok, 1995).
By 1984, problems in Hong Kong—due to population and economic growth—had
become so demanding that the government formulated the Territorial Development
Strategy (TDS) as its foremost strategic planning process. This was followed by subregional studies which recommended further growth areas for urban expansion (Yeh,
1997). The Port and Airport Development Strategy (PADS) was another major phase of
the process during this period, which is currently reshaping the territory’s land use and
infrastructure.
With the adoption of PADS, the Hong Kong government set in motion its strategy
for the relocation of the city’s airport from Kai Tak to Chek Lap Kok, the expansion of
the world’s largest container terminal and a number of associated large infrastructure
projects (Dimitriou and Cook, 1998). In addition, the Land Development Corporation
(LDC) was established under the Land Development Corporation Ordinance of 1987 in
order to facilitate the seemingly intractable problems of redevelopment in the city
(Dimitriou and Cook, 1998).
3.2.3. Postcolonial development: from 1997 to present
Hong Kong entered a new phase of development with its unification with China
in 1997. Although competition between Hong Kong and cities like Shanghai and

65

Guangzhou persist, despite Hong Kong’s unification with China, the relationship between
Hong Kong and China, and especially the PRD, has changed (Lo, 1997). As China
becomes more open to the world, Hong Kong’s former intermediary role has been greatly
diminished. The partnership between Hong Kong and the PRD has transformed Hong
Kong’s industrial and employment structure from one focused on manufacturing to one
specializing in producer services, resulting in a new division of labor.
In addition, an information economy is also emerging in Hong Kong, which
brings about a multi-nucleation trend for the professional services sector. Hong Kong is
now a first-tier global city in the world economy. Hong Kong is an important center for
international finance and trade, with the greatest concentration of corporate headquarters
in the Asia-Pacific region (GovHK, 2011). Hong Kong is the third largest foreign
exchange market in Asia and the sixth largest in the world (HKTDC, 2011). Hong Kong
is the one of the wealthiest urban centers in the People’s Republic of China and the
largest venture capital center in Asia (GovHK, 2011). As a global center of banking,
business, finance, and information, Hong Kong is a significant node in the regional and
global economy and is entrenched as a first-tier global city (Skeldon, 1997).
The integration of Hong Kong into China impacts economic linkages as well as
the social dimensions of the city’s development and growth. The wider and stronger
integration with Mainland China has fundamentally transformed Hong Kong. With
regard to urban redevelopment, for example, new immigrants from Mainland China could
be an important pool of gentrifiers or be the displaced. Since the handover of Hong Kong
back to Chinese rule in 1997, an increasing numbers of immigrants from Mainland China
have been moving into Hong Kong.

66

Some are dependents (majority female) of Hong Kong residents, who generally
do not have an education and who are non-working. Others are of higher levels of
education who are admitted to Hong Kong under the Admission Scheme for Mainland
Talents and Professionals (2003). By the end of 2007, 20,230 people, as part of the
Mainland talent and professionals, were admitted under this program.
In addition, new immigrants might also bring in capital when they move into
Hong Kong. Increasingly, entrepreneurs have been moving into Hong Kong under the
Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, which was implemented in 2003. In total, they have
brought in US$16.74 billion (HK$129.82 billion) by the end of 2012 (The Information
Services Department, 2013). It is reported that the property market price in some
neighborhoods has increased due to rich Mainland Chinese immigrants buying flats in
Hong Kong (Huanqui, 2010).
The more intensified integration with Mainland China further facilitated Hong
Kong’s transition from an industrial toward a diversified economy, with an increased
emphasis on services. At the same time, decentralization and polarization is a distinct
trend that has been evident in Hong Kong during this period. Changes have taken place in
the spatial distribution of the socioeconomic landscape in Hong Kong, and particularly
social polarization following the 1997 sovereignty change.
According to Lo (2005), it was found that the underlying determinants of social
polarization were education, ethnicity, age, occupation, housing, and household size
characteristics, with education being the most important. This reflected a new division of
labor that has created occupational polarization and income inequality after the political
changeover.

67

3.3. Economic restructuring in Hong Kong
Hong Kong has experienced tremendous urban and economic development in
recent decades. Like many other global cities, Hong Kong has experienced a rapid and
extensive decline in secondary production, while experiencing an expansion in its service
sector (Table 3-2). The contribution made by manufacturing to Hong Kong’s GDP has
dropped accordingly, from 23.6% in 1980 to just 2.5% in 2007. In contrast, the
contribution made by services to Hong Kong’s GDP has risen from 67.3% to 92.3% over
the same period (GovHK, 2011).
Hong Kong has transformed itself from an industrialized city into a center of
service activities. This has all also been accompanied by increasing social polarization
(Chiu and Lui, 2009). This shift in the local economy from manufacturing to services,
based on the work of David Ley and others, makes Hong Kong an ideal case study for
exploring gentrification.
Table 3- 2 Services and Manufacturing Sector’s Share in GDP, 1980-2007
Year
Services sector
1980
67.3
1985
69.5
1990
74.4
1995
83.7
2000
85.6
2007
92.3
Note: GDP is measured at current prices

Manufacturing sector
23.6
22.0
17.5
8.3
5.4
2.5

Source: Yang (2006), Compiled from HKCSD (1990, 2003, 2004, 2008).
In terms of employment by industry, as of 2006, wholesale, retail and
import/export trades, restaurants and hotels became the largest sector in Hong Kong, with
a share of 27.2% of the local employment. Community, social and personal services was
the second largest sector, employing nearly 26.9% of the working population. The

68

proportion of the working population in the Financing, Insurance, Real Estate and
Business Services sector is now 17.0%, making it the third largest employment sector in
Hong Kong.
Since the marked reduction in the numbers employed in manufacturing, the share
of the population in this economic sector was less than 10% of Hong Kong’s employment
in 2006 (Table 3-3). As demonstrated by these data sets, Hong Kong is actually a
deindustrializing, as the city’s labor force moves towards a service-based economy, a
pattern that it shares with many other global cities.
Table 3- 3 Working Population by Industry in 2006
Industry

Percentage (%)

Manufacturing
9.7
Construction
6.8
Wholesale, retail, repair, hotels and restaurants
27.2
Transport, storage and communications
11.6
Financial intermediation, real estate, renting and business
17.0
activities
Public admin., other community, social & personal services
26.9
Others
0.8
Note: “others” include such industries as “Agriculture and fishing”, “Mining and
quarrying”, “Electricity, gas and water” and industrial activities inadequately described
or unclassifiable.
Source: Census 2006, Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region
Hong Kong, however, is at a different stage of development when compared to
other major cities in China. Hong Kong’s total GDP in manufacturing was US$1.11
billion in 1970, while Shanghai was at only US$43 million and Beijing at US$110
5

million during that year. Hong Kong’s value of GDP output in manufacturing reached
5

Data compiled from United Nations conference on trade and development (UNCTAD)
and China Yearly Provincial Macro-economy Statistics.

69

its peak in 1997 (US$23.34 billion) and declined afterwards. By 2009, total industrial
GDP in Hong Kong had declined to US$16.40 billion. In contrast, industrial GDP in
Shanghai and Beijing have continued to consistently increase since 1970, being at
US$10.24 billion and US$9.54 billion respectively by 2009.
In addition, while manufacturing has been consistently on a decline in Hong Kong
since the 1990s, certain types of industries have been retained; the film entertainment
industry being one example. Hong Kong has one of the largest and most dynamic film
entertainment industries in the world. On a per capita production basis, the film
entertainment industry in Hong Kong is ranked first in Asia.
3.4. Urban redevelopment initiatives and policies in Hong Kong
Being a wealthy global city, major development projects can be seen everywhere
in Hong Kong. At present, Hong Kong has one of the world’s most impressive skylines,
with a total of 7,681 skyscrapers. Dense commercial skyscrapers, between Central and
Causeway Bay, lining the coast of Victoria Harbor are considered one of Hong Kong’s
most famous tourist attraction and have been ranked the best skyline in the world
(Gramsbergen and Kazmierczak, 2012). Despite rapid urban development, and its wellknown skyline, urban decay has been and continues to be a significant problem in Hong
Kong. There are many dilapidated buildings in the older districts of Hong Kong Island
and Kowloon, structures built during the 1960s, and they include neighborhoods in Wan
Chai and Mong Kok (Yeh, 1990). According to the government’s Urban Renewal
Strategy unveiled in 2001, there are about 9,300 private buildings in the Metro Area
which are 30 years old or more. In 10 years time, the number of buildings that will be
over 30 years old will increase by 50% (Figure 3-3).

70

Figure 3- 3 Projection of No. of Buildings aged 30 Years and above in the Metro Area
(1998 - 2016)
Source: Urban Renewal Strategy, Hong Kong Urban Renewal Authority
These old urban districts, with dilapidated buildings, are viewed as problematic
under the new vision of Hong Kong. They were identified as “pockets of decay,”
comprising of physically deteriorated buildings, excessively high densities, insufficient
basic services and public facilities, inadequate mass public transport, and highwaygenerated noise and air pollution. Yet these “pockets of decay” occupy favorable
locations in the inner city. For many investors in the city, these older neighborhoods
could be turned into positive forces of development through their demolition and capital
reinvestment (Tang, 2008).
With rapid urban deterioration and considerable public concern about the pace of
urban renewal, the government has decided to redevelop some 2,000 aging or dilapidated
buildings and improve 165.6 acres of old and run-down urban areas. This plan is part of
their 20-year urban renewal program (Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau, 2001).

71

Those pockets of decay are targeted as ideal urban redevelopment sites. As the problem
of aging buildings is most serious in older high density urban districts, such as Hong
Kong Island and Kowloon Peninsula, urban redevelopment projects will likely to
concentrate in these parts of the city (Figure 3-4).

Figure 3-4 Distribution of Urban Redevelopment Sites
Source: Hong Kong Urban Renewal Authority
Although Hong Kong likes to market itself as a model of laissez-faire governance,
the state is extensively involved in driving redevelopment and gentrification. The first
slum clearance project in Hong Kong was initiated by the state as early as 1884.
However, there was little in the form of government intervention that was evident in
urban renewal until the 1960s. It is suggested that unlike the heavy commitment of
western governments into urban redevelopment during the mid-20

th

century, the

government of Hong Kong during these years has played a marginal role in urban
revitalization (Ng, 2002).
Since the 1960s, a number of small-scale urban redevelopment schemes have
been tried by the government to redevelop and improve the living environment, but with

72

limited impact and slow progress (Yeh, 1990). Recently, the state has been much more
active in fostering capital reinvestment in Hong Kong’s built environment. For example,
the state has set up statutory body to initiate and facilitate urban redevelopment. In Hong
Kong, the state was involved in setting up the Land Development Corporation (LDC), an
independent statutory body created in 1988, to carry out redevelopment through joint
ventures with private developers (Ng, 2002). The state was also responsible for the
creation of the Urban Renewal Authority (URA).
More specifically, three important roles of the state can be identified in the
process of gentrification. The first important role of the state is to meet the housing
demands of gentrifiers. As Hong Kong is a land hungry city, due to its rapid population
growth, to provide sufficient housing is always a challenge. The state is active in setting
up organizations and policy to accommodate the demands of gentrifiers, including
initiating large-scale housing redevelopment projects in the inner city.
The second role of the state is to capitalize the redevelopment project, both
directly and indirectly. In some case, the state enhances the viability of the housing
redevelopment by the following three financial or related means: providing loans or even
direct financial subsidies, the waiver of land premiums for redevelopment sites, and the
waiver of land premiums for rehousing sites. Both the LDC and the URA have received
finances from the state. For example, once established, the URA had received US$1.3
billion (HK$10 billion) from the Hong Kong government. It also received waivers of land
premiums for redevelopment sites and rehousing sites. In Hong Kong, all land is owned
by the government. A premium is charged for land transactions under this land tenure
system. A premium charge is a major cost in the redevelopment process.

73

The third role of the state is to eliminate obstacles in development associated with
fragmented property rights. The state facilitated capital reinvestment through property
development by passing preferential policies and more flexible redevelopment options for
dealing with fragmented property rights. In Hong Kong, it is common that multi-story
buildings have multiple ownership of the structure. In some cases, each unit in a building
is owned by a separate owner and lots are owned by groups of individuals or companies
(Yeh, 1990). It is necessary to acquire all the units before the building can be demolished
or redeveloped. Considerable time and effort is spent on lengthy negotiations in order to
secure a sufficient number of small lots for assembly into a larger site suitable for a largescale redevelopment. Few private developers have the necessary skill or patience to
gradually assemble all titles on a specific site. Thus, the state acts as an intermediary to
overcome the hurdle of fragmented property rights and initiate the redevelopment.

6

The involvement of the state in the process of gentrification can be explained in a
“three-pronged” approach that the state adopted to facilitate redevelopment. The state can
initiate public sector redevelopment projects, it can promote property management and
building rehabilitation, and it can encourage more private sector involvement in the
redevelopment process. The URA was set up as a dedicated agency to deal with the first
two ‘prongs’ through a holistic ‘4R’ approach, namely redeveloping dilapidated
buildings, rehabilitating poorly maintained buildings, revitalizing the socio-economic
fabric of older districts and preserving buildings with architectural or historical
significance (Lau, 2005).
For the third prong, the Land (Compulsory Sale for Redevelopment) Ordinance
6

The URA can apply for government resumption under the Land Resumption Ordinance
to resume the property interests in a redevelopment.
74

(LCSRO) was enacted in 1998 to accelerate urban renewal by overcoming difficulties
encountered by the private sector in assembling land, including in the case of defective
titles and untraceable owners (Hui et al., 2008). Under the LCRSO, any person who owns
not less than 90% of the total undivided shares of a lot may apply to the Lands Tribunal
for an order of compulsory sale of the whole lot. In the case of a compulsory sale, the
original residents lose the power of negotiation. In 2006, a revision was made to lower
the application threshold under certain circumstances to further facilitate redevelopment
(HKIS, 2011).
While most redevelopment schemes are proposed by the state, private developers
are the principal investors in redevelopment projects in Hong Kong. In addition, there is a
clear preference for high-end properties targeting upper income groups rather than the
original low-income residents, even though most redevelopment projects are launched in
the name of the public interest (Ng, 2002). The redeveloped inner city has seen sharply
increased housing prices, which are hardly affordable for average households. This
research will show that low-income residents are increasingly being concentrated in new
towns or old dilapidated urban areas, while Hong Kong Island, in particular, is
experiencing extensive gentrification.
Civic engagement in Hong Kong is generally considered to be progressive (Lee et
al., 2013). While the public has limited power in influencing government policies in
China, and while civil liberties are severely repressed, social groups in Hong Kong do
show an ability to influence local policy (Lee et al., 2013).

The changes to the

redevelopment plans for Wan Chai Market and Graham Street are two examples showing
the importance of strong civic engagement practices in Hong Kong in shaping local

75

policy.
In 2004, the URA announced their plan to demolish Wan Chai Market and
redevelop the site into a 42-story residential building. The public and local civic groups
successfully pressured the URA to work with the developer and find an alternative plan
to the proposal of simply destroying the market. Eventually, a preservation plan for the
site was developed, with major components of the building housing the market being
preserved (Development Bureau and URA, 2008).
Similarly, the redevelopment plan for Graham Street in Central was changed as a
result of the strong opposition from local civic groups (Project Conservation Advisory
Panel, 2007). The URA planned to construct four high-rise buildings and turn the 160year old Graham Street into an ‘Old shop Street,’ with minimum preservation of the
original site (URA, 2007). After public opposition and related public consultations, the
street market was largely maintained, with the original characteristics of the market being
physically preserved (URA, 2008).
There are several issues in the process of redevelopment in Hong Kong that need
further attention. The preservation of historical buildings is an essential but neglected
issue in Hong Kong. In the gentrification literature, it is argued that the appreciation of
the history of the building is one of the major attractions of renovating deteriorating
housing (Ley, 1980; Zukin, 1982). However, gentrification and/or redevelopment usually
involves the complete demolition and rebuilding in Hong Kong, which leads to the loss
of building character that make up parts of the Hong Kong cultural identity (Ko, 2008).
Hong Kong is still in its beginning stage of preservation practices when compared to a
longer history and more systematic institutional infrastructure in western cities in terms

76

of historical preservation (To, 2012). Old houses and modern mansions exist side by side,
creating an interesting contrast. But soon only modern buildings may remain, given the
scale of redevelopment in Hong Kong.
Residents complain that the Hong Kong government does not evaluate how a
project will shatter community relations or impact the local economy (Ng, 2002). Instead
of preservation and revitalization, the government tears-down historical buildings of
architectural value whenever redevelopment takes place. It is said that one reason the
government encourages demolition is that the restoration fee for refurbishment would be
too high (Lai, 2012). The social cost of demolishment, however, is completely left out.
The campaign to save Lee Tung Street had highlighted the problems of redevelopment
and its impact on the social network and character of old areas of Hong Kong (Chau,
2008).
In the process of redevelopment, the government claims that it will help
rejuvenate the old Hong Kong districts, while improving the living conditions of the
residents. But in many preservation cases, only the shells of old buildings are preserved,
while original residents are displaced. The interest of the low-income groups is sacrificed
to facilitate property development.
Displaced residents and businesses denounce the Urban Renewal Authority for
destroying their livelihoods, claiming that the compensation offered is totally insufficient
for them to resettle in other parts of the city or restart their businesses due to the high
rents demanded elsewhere (Lai, 1993; Kam et al., 2004; Ng et al., 2004). People do not
see redevelopment as improving the livelihoods of small shop-owners and affected
lower-income tenants who originally occupied these neighborhoods. Rather, there is a

77

sense that these projects allow big property developers to reap huge profits at the expense
of lower-income groups in the city.
Compared to the US context, Hong Kong’s gentrification has a different timeline
and is driven by a different set of drivers. Government-led “urban renewal” efforts started
in the 1960s, but were introduced slowly. Also, different from the heavy western
commitment by governments into urban redevelopment, the Hong Kong government
focused more on environmental quality improvements, like provision of open space (Ng,
2002). There was only one redevelopment project initiated by the Hong Kong
government that led to the displacement of the original residents during this period
(Sheung Wan Redevelopment Scheme) (Drakakis-Smith, 1976).
In Hong Kong, it was during the 1980s that government-led redevelopment efforts
started to expand, mainly evident after the establishment of the Land Development
Corporation (LDC) and the creation of the Urban Renewal Authority (URA), which
carried out joint redevelopment ventures with private developers (Ng, 2002). During the
1980s, however, these projects were mainly focused on the urban core. Since the 1980s,
pubic involvement in redevelopment has been accelerated and the private sector has been
increasingly involved in redevelopment efforts, and particularly evident among a small,
select group of large development firms.
The private sector is now an active driving force in Hong Kong’s gentrification.
In addition to the joint ventures with the public sector in the urban core, Hong Kong’s
private sector is also responsible for the rapid transformation, built and social class
transformations, in the New Territory. Urban redevelopment processes have been
st

diffused across the city and have also been accelerated into the 21 century. While the

78

majority of the attention in the existing literature on redevelopment in Hong Kong has
been focused on government-led reinvestment, the impact of the private sector, especially
large development corporations, has been generally overlooked.
Private developers, and particularly the four largest firms—Cheung Kong
(Holdings) Limited (Li Ka Shing Group), Henderson Land Development Company
Limited (Lee ShauKee Group), Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited (Kwok Family Group),
and New World Development Limited (Cheun Yu-tung Group)—have extensively
benefited both from the URA-initiated redevelopment efforts and the strictly private
redevelopment projects. While numerous cases—and extensive anecdotal evidence of
intimidation, manipulation marketing, and threats and intimidation tactics by private
developers exist to displace homeowners or tenants during land acquisition–criticism
against the oligopoly of these developers has been absent (Ley and Teo, 2013).
It is also worth recognizing that the small scale, old housing restoration carried
out by individuals is not a major form of reinvestment in Hong Kong. Comprehensive
neighborhood redevelopment projects that are pursued by large corporate developers and
actively supported by government are the more common reinvestment process in Hong
Kong.
3.5. Conclusion
Hong Kong is not just another case of large city in China. Hong Kong, a city
which is a blend of East and West, is without doubt unique in many aspects. Hong Kong
can be best described as a foundation that began with China, and then leaned West for
th

much of the 20 century under constructive British colonialism. Hong Kong shares many
similarities with other Chinese large cities, but it embraces even more differences.

79

Since the late 20

th

century, Hong Kong has undergone a tremendous socio-

economic transformation, facilitated by the rise of the specialized services economy. This
restructuring makes Hong Kong an interesting case study for gentrification research.
While redevelopment is extensive throughout Hong Kong, studies on gentrification are
notably under-represented. A systematic analysis of gentrification in Hong Kong, and the
different outcomes associated with diverse urban redevelopment processes, clearly
requires a more comprehensive investigation. The following chapter will begin this
analysis, with the quantitative component of the research, which will explore areas of
Hong Kong that are experiencing similar scales of physical and social upgrading.

80

Chapter 4 Quantitative Analysis
Accompanying Hong Kong’s shift from an industrial to a specialized services and
high-tech economy in the late 20

th

century, there has been a notable drive for urban

redevelopment that has fundamentally altered the physical and social characteristics of
Hong Kong’s neighborhoods. In this chapter the physical and social changes taking place
in Hong Kong are examined. The chapter also carries out quantitative analyses that
explore areas throughout Hong Kong that are experiencing similar scales of physical and
social upgrading.
After introducing the data selection and data processing, this chapter provides
quantitative analyses into the demographic, socioeconomic, and housing transformations
in Hong Kong between the years 1986 and 2006. With the assistance of ArcGIS, a set of
maps showing the spatial changes in population, socioeconomics, and housing
characteristics is produced. Then, a principal component analysis is performed on census
data followed by a K-means clustering process to group together TPUs experiencing
similar characteristics of change. This process enables me to determine the areas within
Hong Kong that are experiencing similar scales of physical and social upgrading,
regardless of the class composition of the neighborhoods.
4.1. Data selection
The major data source for this research is the Hong Kong census data. Census data
are collected from the Census and Statistics Department. All data are from the Hong
Kong 1986 by-census and 2006 by-census. The entire 1986 dataset was collected from
the census books and manually entered into a spreadsheet for analysis. The data from the
81

2006 census was downloaded from the Hong Kong Census website. A few variables that
are not published were purchased from the Census and Statistics Department. Census
maps are collected from the Planning Department, the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region. Census maps from 1986 are only available in hard copy while census maps from
2006 are available in digital format.
For those figures of individual variables which were suppressed to ensure data
confidentiality, I treat them as missing data and leave them blank. Also, figures of
relevant individual items that are merged with other item(s) for presentation in some
tables, where necessary, will be indicated. As the data suffer from certain differentials,
particular to geographic delineation from 1986 to 2006, an agglomerated system of TPUs
will be used to identify attribute differentials over space to make the data comparable
between 1986 and 2006. More details on this process will be discussed in the next section
of this chapter.
As already noted, the analysis in this chapter will cover changes from census year
1986 to census year 2006. The earliest census data in Hong Kong can be traced back to
the 1960s, but only a few variables were collected at that time. Census data from 1986
onward are more standardized. The 2006 by-census was the latest census available at the
7

beginning of this research. A weakness of this data analysis is its incapability to capture
the recent dramatic changes in some of Hong Kong’s neighborhoods, which have been
extensive since 2007. In fact, it was the dramatic changes that Wan Chai had experienced
over the past half decade that inspired my initial interest in this topic. However,
7

Summary finding of 2011 census data are released on April, 2012. However, detailed
st

results of the 2011 Population Census at TPU lever is are not available as of April, 1 ,
2012.
82

qualitative analysis and visual assessment using photographs will allow for a more
comprehensive understanding of the recent physical and social upgrading observed in
many of the neighborhoods in Hong Kong.
Different variables have been used by different researchers to explore gentrification.
Below is a table summarizing some of the major variables used in the gentrification
literature (Table 4-1). Different researchers have chosen different variables depending on
the nature of the research questions, the characteristics of the research area, and the
availability of the data. It should be noted that while median housing value is one of the
most frequently used variables in the analysis of gentrification, housing value is not
available in the Hong Kong Census. However, median gross rents are available and are
used in the analysis as a proxy to housing values.
Table 4- 1 Major variables used in the gentrification literature
Variables used
Major citation
total population
Hammel and Wyly, 1996; Heidkamp and Lucas, 2006;
Ley, 1986; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi,
Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Schuler, Kent, and Monroe,
1992; Wyly and Hammel, 1998
population by sex

Lyons, 1996

population by age

Atkinson, 2000a; Ley, 1986, 1992; Podagrosi and
Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011;
Schuler, Kent, and Monroe, 1992

marriage status

Ley, 1992

educational attainment

Atkinson, 2000a; Danyluk and Ley, 2007; Hammel and
Wyly, 1996; Heidkamp and Lucas, 2006; Ley, Tutchener,
and Cunningham, 2002; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008;
Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Schuler, Kent,
and Monroe, 1992; Wyly and Hammel, 1998

working population by
industry

Ley, 1992

83

Table 4-1 (Cont’d)
working population by
occupation

Atkinson, 2000a; Danyluk and Ley, 2007; Hammel and
Wyly, 1996; Hamnett and Williams, 1980; Ley, Tutchener,
and Cunningham, 2002; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008;
Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Wyly and
Hammel, 1998

household income

Bourne, 1993; Hammel and Wyly, 1996; Heidkamp and
Lucas, 2006; Ley, 1986, 1992; Ley, et al., 2002; Podagrosi
and Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi,
2011; Schuler, Kent, and Monroe, 1992; Wyly and
Hammel, 1998

gross rent

Hammel and Wyly, 1996; Ley, 1986, 1992; Podagrosi and
Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011;
Schuler, Kent, and Monroe, 1992; Wyly and Hammel,
1998

personal income for main
employment

Ley, 1986, 1992

total number of households

Ley, 1992; Podagrosi and Vojnovic, 2008; Podagrosi,
Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011

total number of housing
units

Ley, 1992; Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011;
Schuler, Kent, and Monroe, 1992

domestic households by
tenure of accommodation
(owner-occupier/renteroccupier)

Atkinson, 2000a; Heidkamp and Lucas, 2006; Ley, 1986,
1992; Podagrosi, Vojnovic, and Pigozzi, 2011; Schuler,
Kent, and Monroe, 1992; Wyly and Hammel, 1998

household size

Ley, 1992; Ley, Tutchener, and Cunningham, 2002

In this research, data selection is guided by the existing literature and also by
Hong Kong’s unique characteristics and data availability. All variables listed in the above
table are included in this research. Because in Hong Kong, some fifty percent of the
population lives in public housing (either subsidized rental or under the subsidized
ownership program), variables reflecting the domestic households by type of quarters and

84

accommodations (public/private housing) were also included in the analyses. Moreover,
in order to reflect on the intensification of housing demand, domestic households in
housing units and occupants in housing units were also included in the analyses. In
addition, in order to explore the women’s role in gentrification, I included female headed
households as well as never married female and never married male households in the
quantitative analyses.
In addition to the above variables, there are some variables that are commonly
used in the gentrification literature but were not included in this research due to data
availability. For example, median housing values is one of the most frequently used
variables. However, housing values at the TPU level are not available in Hong Kong. The
physical condition of the housing units (plumbing facilities, year built) is also not
available at the TPU level in Hong Kong.
In total, I have collected 55 variables on socio-economic and physical
characteristics. The following table (Table 4-2) provides a detailed description of the
variables. These variables are used in the principal component analysis. It should be
noted that some of the variables within the census dataset have changed over time.
Details about the definition of those variables and their changes over time are listed and
discussed in the Notes (Appendix). Detailed description of how these selected variables
are related to gentrification will be discussed in the subsequent section of the chapter.
Table 4- 2 Description of the variables
Description
Population Variables (13)
% change in total population
Change of Median age between 2006 and 1986
% change in population 15 years old and over
% change in population 0-24 years old

85

Name
PPOP
CMAGE
PAGE15
PAGE024

Table 4-2 (Cont’d)
% change in population 25 to 54 years old
PAGE2554
% change in population 55years old and over
PAGE55
% change in male
PMALE
% change in female
PFEMALE
% of change of never-married male
PNMALE
Change in the % of never-married male
CNMMALE
% of change of never-married female
PNMFEMALE
Change in the % of never-married female
CNMFEMALE
% change in the number of households
PHSH
Socioeconomic Variables (25)
% change of population aged 15 and over having upper secondary
PSECONDARY
education
Change in the % of TPU that have secondary education
CSECONDARY
% change of population aged 15 and over having post-secondary - Degree PDEGREE
course
Change in the % of TPU that have post-secondary - Degree course
CDEGREE
Change in % of HH that are Female-Headed
CFHEADED
% change in Female-Headed Households
PFHEADED
% change in Median Gross Rent—Adjusted
PRENT
% change in Median Household income—Adjusted
PHSHINCOME
% change in personal income for main employment—Adjusted
PEMPINCOME
% change in Employed civilian population 16 years and over: total
PEMPLOYED
% change in Professional
PRROF
Change in the % of TPU in professional
CPROF
% change in craft and related workers
PCRAFT
Change in the % of TPU craft and related workers
CCRAFT
% change in clerical and related workers
PCLERICAL
Change in the % of TPU in clerical and related workers
CCLERICAL
% change in in administrative and managerial workers
PADMIN
Change in the % of TPU in administrative and managerial workers
CADMIN
% change in manufacturing
PMANUF
Change in the % of TPU in manufacturing
CMANUF
% change in FIRE (financing, insurance, real estate & business services) PFIRE
Change in the % of TPU in FIRE
CFIRE
% change in WRIR (Wholesale, retail & import/export trades, restaurants PWRIR
& hotels )

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Table 4-2 (Cont’d)
Change in the % of TPU in WRIR
% change in traditional sectors (agriculture and fishing, mining and
quarrying, manufacturing, and unclassifiable)
Housing Variables (17)
% change in total housing units
% change in owner-occupied housing units
Change in the % of owner-occupied housing units
% change in renter-occupied housing units
Change in the % of renter-occupied housing unit
% change in subsided public housing
Change in the % of household live in subsided public housing
% change in private housing
Change in the % of household live in private housing
% of change in TPU with more than 2 households in one housing units
Change in the % TPU with more than 2 households in housing units
% of change in TPU with more than 6 occupants in housing units (6 and
over)
Change in the % of TPU with more than 6 occupants in housing units (6
and over)
% of change in household size with 1 or 2
Change in the % of TPU with household size 1 or 2
% of change in TPU with one person family
Change in the % of TPU with one person family

PTRADTIONAL

PHOUSING
POWNER
COWNER
PRENTER
CRENTER
PPUBLIC
CPUBLIC
PPRIVATE
CPRIVATE
P2PLUSHSH
C2PLUSHSH
POCCUP6PLUS
COCCUP6PLUS
PSIZE1OR2
CSIZE1OR2
PPERSON1
CPERSON1

4.2. Normalizing boundaries and data processing
Although census data in many places have been published for some decades,
boundaries of census tracks have changed over time. This seemingly trivial problem of
changes in boundaries has seriously held back the use of the data in analysis (Gregory
and Ell, 2005). Changes in the boundaries significantly impact how changes in a
population over time should be studied, accounted for, and standardized for comparison
purposes. However, normalization is not conventionally done in the existing literature in

87

China, including Hong Kong. Only a few studies have acknowledged the boundary
changes issues in temporal analysis. Yet, seldom have satisfactory solutions been
provided.
In order to compare changes in the data, geographic changes on top of
demographic changes need to be dealt with. The traditional response to the boundary
changes problem is to aggregate the data onto a set of units that are presumed not to have
changed over time (Gregory and Ell, 2005). However, this is undesirable in many cases
as aggregation leads to a loss of statistical details and the modifiable areal unit problem
(Openshaw and Taylor, 1979). As the Geographical Information System (GIS) is a
powerful tool in handling spatially referenced information, it is now widely used in
interpolating data from one set of spatial units onto another.
Many methodologies have been developed to reallocate data in an attempt to
resolve boundary change issues (Gregory and Ell, 2005). The areal weighting
interpolation method is one of the most widely use methods in redistributing a variable
from a set of source zones onto a set of target zones (Markoff and Shapiro, 1973).
However, it inevitably introduces errors as it is based on the assumption of the
homogeneous distribution of the variable. Obviously, the assumption is not always true.
A variety of more complex techniques thus have been developed in order to
loosen the assumption, which includes asymmetric techniques (Monmonier and Schnell,
1988) and the use of control zones (Goodchild, Anselin, and Deichmann, 1993; Langford,
Maguire, and Unwin, 1991). However, it has been found that a more complex method
does not necessary lead to a more accurate result (Gregory, 2002). As Sadahiro (2000)
stated, the accuracy of the intelligent methods depends critically on the ancillary data

88

used and a poor choice of ancillary data may actually lead to intelligent methods giving
poorer results than simple ones. Given the availability of ancillary data, the cost, and the
processing time, the areal weighting interpolation method is still one of the best solutions
for normalizing boundary issues. In my dissertation, I use the areal weighting
interpolation method to normalize boundaries. Other areal interpolation methods can be
attempted in future research projects.
In my research, figures are compiled for all Tertiary Planning Unit Groups (TPUs)
in the territory of Hong Kong (the Marine is not included). The TPU in Hong Kong is a
similar concept to the Census Tract in the US context. However, given the high
population density in Hong Kong, TPUs contain a larger population than the census tracts
even though they are similar in size (spatial area). Each of the TPUs is identified by a
unique three-digit number. The boundaries of the TPU are demarcated by the Planning
Department of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
In 2006, for town planning purposes, the whole territory of Hong Kong was
divided into 287 Tertiary Planning Units. But to ensure confidentiality of data relating to
individual person, household, or quarters, each TPU with less than 1,000 persons is
merged with adjacent TPU(s) for tabulation. In total there are 203 observational units
(called Small Tertiary Planning Unit Groups, STPUG). A map of the TPUs is attached in
the appendix.
However, the Planning Department in Hong Kong is constantly redrawing TPU
boundaries. Changes in TPU boundaries from 1986 to 2006 significantly impact how
changes in a population over time should be accounted for, studied, and standardized for
comparison purposes. In order to compare changes in the data, boundaries need to be

89

normalized. This is a difficult task when using Hong Kong data, because unlike in the
U.S. context–where the Census Bureau provides Census Tract Relationship files to
standardize the tracts–no such process is offered by the Hong Kong Planning Department.
In Hong Kong, as a result of land reclamation and other variables, the number of
TPUs expanded from 247 in 1986 to 287 in 2006, a 16.2% increase. In addition,
modifications in TPU boundaries are not always clear cut. Merging, splitting, and
merging/splitting into new parts are three examples of how TPUs change (Figure 4-1). In
Hong Kong’s case, the changing boundaries are complicated and not always that straight
forward.

Merge

Split

Merge/Split

Figure 4- 1 Example of boundary changes
Note: TPUs are hypothetical for use in diagram and explanation.
In the US context, Census Tract relationship files are provided by the Census
Bureau as a tool to help data users universally compare the census tracts data within
different years. However, equivalent relationship files are not available in Hong Kong,
which adds a challenge to this research. In order to make data comparable across
different time periods, TPU boundaries will be normalized. In this research, I adjust 1986
TPU boundaries and data to 2006 TPU boundaries using the areal weighting interpolation
method. 2006 TPU boundaries are taken as the target zones and 1986 TPU boundaries are
the source zones.
The 2006 TPU map is provided by the Hong Kong Planning Department in a
digital format. However, the 1986 TPU map is only available in hard copy. The 1986
90

map has been digitized and geo-referenced before an overlay analysis was conducted.
Then 1986 TPU boundaries are adjusted to the 2006 TPU boundary based on areal
weighting schemes.
The following figure (Figure 4-2) shows how 1986 data are normalized to 2006
geographic boundaries.
B
A

B

A
C

1986

2006

A’
S1

S2

B’

S4

S3

C’

S5

1986(normalized)

Figure 4- 2 Illustration of normalization process
In this case, TPU A and B in 1986 are split/merged into TPU A, B, and C in 2006.
I use A(2006) to represent 2006 data for TPU A, B(2006) for TPU B, C(2006) for TPU C,
A’(1986) for normalized data for TPU A, B’(1986) for normalized data for TPU B,
C’(1986) for normalized data for TPU C. S stands for the respective area for each TPU.
A’(1986)=A(1986)*[S1/(S1+S2+S3)]
B’(1986)= A(1986)*[S2/(S1+S2+S3)]+ B(1986)*[S4/(S4+S5)]
C’(1986)= A(1986)*[S3/(S1+S2+S3)]+ B(1986)*[S5/(S4+S5)]
This method presents a more accurate and comprehensive method to statistically
compare 1986 data with 2006 data. This could now be applied to the study of other
variables that require standardization between these two decades. However, this process
is not error free and many restrictions have been applied. The issue of changing
geographic boundaries over time is still a challenge for researchers to contend with. It is
worth noticing, in order to distinguish redevelopment from new development or
suburbanization, the building area is used instead of the total territorial area in calculating

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the areal weighting.
4.3. Changes occurring in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006
In this section, a set of maps showing Hong Kong’s neighborhood changes from
1986 to 2006 and maps illustrating Hong Kong’s current condition in the year 2006 will
be used to visualize the neighborhood transformation over these two decades. Data
showing changes, and the associated maps, are used to illustrate the spatial pattern of
physical and social upgrading.
In the case of manufacturing employment, for instance, the map showing the
change in the percentage of manufacturing employment is reflective of an increase or
decrease in the manufacturing employment in Hong Kong’s TPUs. The maps illustrating
manufacturing employment in 2006 will capture the actual current spatial pattern of
manufacturing. The combination of these two streams of data will provide a
comprehensive picture of neighborhood changes, in terms of population, socioeconomic,
and housing characteristics in Hong Kong. It is worth noticing that the waterfront in Yau
Ma Tei (TPU251-254) is excluded from the maps since these are new developments and
no data was reported in 1986. All maps use natural breaks for classification, with minor
editing to show clear increases or decreases.
From 1986 to 2006, the population in the major urban cores of the city either
decreased or experienced a minor increase, while suburban and some remote areas
experienced a substantial population increase (Figure 4-3). In particular, there were some
extreme cases of population increase observed in certain new towns in the New Territory.
The largest increase rate in the total population is found in Tseung Kwan O new town,
which was mainly built on reclaimed land where the Tiu Keng Leng resettlement areas

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used to be located. Once a remote and underdeveloped area, Tseung Kwan O is now a
concentration point of high-rise housing estates and shopping malls. Other areas of Hong
Kong experiencing rapid population growth include Tin Shui Wai, neighborhoods near
Chek Lap Kok airport and Disneyland on Lantau Island, and Tai Po New Town.

Figure 4- 3 Map of percentage change in total population in Hong Kong, 1986-2006
As a general trend, the female population has increased substantially from 1986 to
2006. Women made up 52.3% of the total population in 2006. Areas with rapid
population growth have also experienced a substantial increase in the female population.
In general, urban cores have a higher percentage of females than suburbs and remote
areas, and they also tend to have the least amount of increase or decrease in the female
population. The increase in the never-married population is also evident, with a more

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significant increase in never-married females. Never-married females are concentrated in
neighborhoods in the more developed urban areas, while never-married males are more
spread out throughout the city. The highest percentage of never-married females is found
in the old urban neighborhoods on Hong Kong Island.
Almost all TPUs in Hong Kong show an increase in the percentage of the TPU
households that are female-headed (Figure 4-4). However, it is important to recognize
that only one head of household was allowed to be recorded in the 1986 census while
more than one head of household was allowed to be recorded in the 2006 census. The
increase in female-headed households can thus be attributed to the increase in solo
female-headed households and dual-headed households. As of 2006, 15.48% of the total
households reported to have more than one head of household. Northeast of Hong Kong
Island and eastern Kowloon have the highest percentage of female-headed households.

94

Figure 4- 4 Map of percentage of change in female headed household in Hong Kong,
1986-2006
Educational attainment has also increased substantially in Hong Kong over these
twenty years. A lower level of education attainment is evident in the more remote areas
of Hong Kong, while higher levels of educational attainment are concentrated in the
urban core. The highest percentage of secondary education is found in the New Territory
while the highest percentage of degree education is found on Hong Kong Island (Figure
4-5).

95

Figure 4- 5 Map of percentage change in degree education in Hong Kong, 1986-2006
From 1986 to 2006, almost all TPUs in Hong Kong have experienced an increase
in household income, income from major employment and rent. The highest percentage
of increase in household income is evident in the New Territory, and this might be
expected given that the New Territory had very low household income levels in 1986.
However, as of 2006, the median household income is still much lower in the New
Territory than in the urban core of Hong Kong Island.
There are a few pockets of poverty that are also found in the urban core, for
example Sham Shui Po and Kwun Tong in Kowloon. In terms of income from major
employment, the lowest levels—and hence the highest poverty concentration—is found
in neighborhoods that are distant from the CBD. The lowest employment income is found

96

in the northern part of the New Territory as well as the few pockets of poverty in the
urban core (Figure 4-6).

Figure 4- 6 Map of percentage change in household income in Hong Kong, 1986-2006
The percentage of change in rent displays a slightly sporadic pattern (Figure 4-7).
Neighborhoods around the urban core have experienced the highest percentage of
increase in rent. Urban areas of Hong Kong tend to maintain higher rents than the suburbs
and the more remote areas of the city. But it is worth noticing that low rent is also found
in some TPUs in the urban cores, and especially those with a high concentration of public
housing.

97

Figure 4- 7 Map of percentage change in rent in Hong Kong, 1986-2006
Given the backdrop of Hong Kong’s economic restructuring in the recent decades,
there is a clear increase in employment in the service economy and a decrease in
manufacturing (Figure 4-8). Multiple urban concentration nodes within the city’s urban
core and surrounding areas have experienced a dramatic decrease in the population
employed in manufacturing. As of 2006, manufacturing is mainly concentrated in
suburban and exurban TPUs. In contrast, employment in the service economy—such as
Financing, Insurance, Real Estate & Business Services—has increased dramatically all
throughout Hong Kong.
There is also an overall increase in higher-end occupations throughout the city.
However, a high percentage of professional occupations and managerial and

98

administrative occupations are found clustered in TPUs near the urban core (Figure 4-9).
There is also an overall increase in lower-end occupations, such as clerical and related
occupations. In addition, there is a de-concentration pattern of these occupations, with a
clear increase evident in Hong Kong’s suburbs. The number of craft and related workers
has decreased substantially across the past twenty years, with those remaining currently
being concentrated in suburban and exurban TPUs.

Figure 4- 8 Map of percentage change in manufacturing in Hong Kong, 1986-2006

99

Figure 4- 9 Map of percentage change in professional occupation in Hong Kong, 19862006
The increase in housing shows a decentralization trend from 1986 to 2006 (Figure
4-10). Generally speaking, the increase in owner-occupied housing units is substantial
and more widely distributed, while public housing tends to be concentrated in certain
TPUs that are distant from the major urban core. In addition, shared housing units have
become less common in Hong Kong. However, a cluster of a higher percentage of shared
housing units can still be observed around the urban core. At the same time, there is an
increase of smaller sized households. Neighborhoods in the urban core tend to have a
higher percentage of households with 1 or 2 families.

100

Figure 4- 10 Map of percentage change in housing units in Hong Kong, 1986-2006
4.4. Principal Component Analysis and Clustering
Diversified processes of gentrification have produced a complex set of outcomes
in Hong Kong’s neighborhoods. Different parts of the city are transformed by different
processes of gentrification. In order to thoroughly account for the changes that have taken
place in Hong Kong, a complex set of variables covering population, socioeconomic and
housing characteristics are used in the quantitative analysis. Original variables are
converted into their respective ‘percentage change’ or ‘change of percentage’ variables.
‘Percentage change’ variables are calculated as the difference of the 1986 value
from the 2006 value, and this difference is divided by the 1986 value. This conversion
enables me to capture the actual value of change in a comparative way. However, this
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conversion magnifies the scale of change if the 1986 value is small. ‘Change of
percentage’ variables are calculated as the difference of the percentage of the 1986 value
in its sub-category from the percentage of the 2006 value in its sub-category. This
conversion enables me to capture the structural change of certain variables. In total, 55
variables for assessing physical and social change are used in this analysis (Table 4-2).
Developing upon methods presented in Podagrosi et al. (2011), a principal
component analysis (PCA) is performed on census data in order to reduce the 55
variables into a smaller number of generalized components that underlie the demographic,
socio-economic and housing dynamics in Hong Kong. The PCA is followed by a Kmeans clustering process to group together TPUs experiencing similar characteristics of
change. This quantitative analysis—focused on population, socioeconomic and housing
characteristics—enables me to determine the areas within Hong Kong that are
experiencing similar scales of upgrading, with the interest in this analysis being to
capture social upgrading, regardless of the class composition. Given that my goal is to
reveal the diversity of gentrification, a modified version of the method proposed by
Podagrosi et al. (2011) was used to identify different typologies of gentrification. The
quantitative analysis is performed using SAS.
PCA and K-means clustering. The PCA can be used for data reduction or
summarization. In order to reduce the massive amounts of data, to fix the multicolinearity
problem of the dataset and to detect structure in the dataset, I utilized a PCA in the
analysis. Fifty-five variables are included in the PCA process, as shown in Table 4-2. In
the PCA, several criterions are used in determining the number of significant components
to extract. These criterions include: (1) to extract dimensions whose eigenvalues are

102

greater than 1.000; (2) to extract dimensions that account for at least 5% of the variance;
(3) to extract dimensions where there is an obvious discontinuity in the scree plot; (4) to
extract dimensions that have variables with large loadings; (5) to extract dimensions
8

indicated by adding a random variable; and (6) to extract dimensions that can explain
the on-ground outcomes.
The factor scores from the PCA are then used in the K-means clustering
process. The Cubic Clustering Criterion (CCC) is used to estimate the number of clusters
when using k-means clustering. It is based on minimizing the within-cluster sum of
squares. The computation and application of CCC is well documented in the SAS
technical Report A-108. I used the CCC to inform how many groups to extract.
Detecting outlying observations. Outlying observations are defined as observation
points that “appear” to be inconsistent with other observations in the data set (Barnett and
Lewis, 1985). Outliers can provide useful information about the process. At the same
time, outliers can also be problematic, as the influence of outliers can lead to biased or
mistaken conclusions. It is essential to detect outliers. There is a large literature
discussing various approaches to detecting and handling outliers. For example, Iglewicz
and Hoaglin (1993) provide a comprehensive text on how to detect and handle outliers.
However, there is no general rule, or rule of thumb, for dealing with outliers. It depends
on the nature of the research question and its application.
Given that my goal is to group together TPUs that have experienced similar scales
of change, outliers are excluded from for further analysis. I conducted an initial run of the

8

If the random variable have large loading on the dimension #7, it suggests that
dimension #7 and beyond are random noise. However, it does not guarantee that the first
six dimensions are meaningful.
103

PCA and the K-means clustering. Outliers were identified by the plot (those far away
from others) and the grouping. Given that I am most interested in TPUs that are grouped
with other TPUs that are potentially showing characteristics of gentrification, outliers are
excluded in the cluster process. Eight TPUs are excluded. The nature of these excluded
TPUs will be discussed in the next section of the chapter.
Setting initial seeds. Given its efficiency and simplicity in clustering large data
sets, K-means is one of the most popular partitional clustering techniques (Forgy, 1965;
MacQueen, 1967; Lloyd, 1982, Wu et al., 2008). However, it does have a major
limitation on its application. It is sensitive to the initial centroids or seeds (Pavan et al.,
2012). Therefore, selecting a good set of initial seeds is very important. There are many
ways to set initial seeds. If no initial seeds are specified, the default setting is randomness
in choosing initial points.
The reliance on random seed values to search for the best possible clusters is
considered to be the major shortcoming of the K-means cluster method (Datta and Datta,
2003). Many seed selection algorithms have been introduced to select good initial centers
in different studies (Bradley and Fayyad, 1998). Yet, the problems of nondeterministic
and inefficiency are found in almost all algorithms. In different independent runs using
different initial seeds, different results are produced (Pavan et al., 2012). No single
algorithm can claim to be the best method.
In the clustering process, instead of using randomly-select initial seeds, predefined initial seeds based on the status of the initial year (1986) are used. Based on the
socioeconomic variables of different TPUs in 1986, a cluster pattern reflecting the 1986
status is generated. Then, clustering on the changes variables produces a pattern of how

104

neighborhoods change from 1986 to 2006. This approach reveals further diversity of
gentrification among the clusters, which would allow me to identify groupings in Hong
Kong that have experienced different physical and ‘social’ upgrading typologies.
The way the initial seeds are defined is based on the nature of the research
questions. Given that the main research objective is to reveal the diversity of
gentrification that has developed between the years 1986 and 2006, the 1986 data are
used to set up the initial pattern. This is a new method for utilizing the PCA and cluster
analyses in the gentrification literature. The existing research, which itself is limited, has
not utilized the quantitative analysis to find different typologies of gentrification. This is
an approach that allows for diverse upgrading processes to be actually captured using the
quantitative analysis.
There is already literature discussing the appropriateness of using initial year data
and changes to evaluate the existing status (Rogosa, 1995; Rogosa and Willett, 1985).
Longitudinal data are used in many studies and it is generally agreed that the initial year
status is important to be included in the analyses (Rogosa, 1995; Rogosa and Willett,
1985). As discussed in Bonate (2000), pretest and protest data are often used in social
sciences research, and have been extensively utilized in psychological experimental
design. In this approach, pretest data and change scores are used to evaluate the protest of
individuals.
In my case, the initial year status of each TPU is evaluated based on the
socioeconomic variables of 1986. Clustered on the changes of these variables between
1986 and 2006, a pattern of neighborhood change in Hong Kong is revealed. It evaluates
how each TPU in Hong Kong has changed corresponding to the specific urban

105

development and redevelopment processes in that TPU. A poor neighborhood can be
upgraded to a middle income neighborhood. A middle income neighborhood can be
upgraded to a high income neighborhood. While the scale of change might be similar,
they reflect a different typology of neighborhood change. Utilizing a cluster process with
initial seeds settings allows me to reveal the existence of diversity in upgrading processes
using the quantitative analysis itself. It should be noticed that the PCA and cluster
analysis is specifically on socio-economic and demographic census variables; in other
words, social upgrading variables. Capital reinvestment is not shown in the quantitative
analysis.
4.5. Quantitative results
In the PCA, nine dimensions were extracted, accounting for 83.6% of the total
variance. Results from the PCA with varimax rotation are listed in the Appendix. With
varimax rotation, loadings are maximized to [-1, 1] and the interpretation of dimensions
are made clear. After rotation, 25 out of 55 variables have a large loading on dimension
#1. They explain 44.1% of the total variance. Seven variables have a large loading on
dimension #2 and account for 7.9% of the total variance explained. Five variables have a
large loading on dimension #3 and account for 6.5% of the total variance. Four variables
have a large loading on dimension #4 and account for 5.2% of the total variance. Two
variables have a large loading on dimension #5 and account for 5.0% of the total variance.
Three variables have a large loading on dimension #6 and account for 4.5% of the total
variance explained. Four variables have a large loading on dimension #7 and account for
3.9% of total variance explained. For dimensions #8 and #9, there are two and three
variables that have the largest loading, accounting for 3.3% and 3.2% of total variance.

106

For easier visual interpretation, a list of the variables is created showing their positive or
negative loadings for each dimension (Table 4-3).
Table 4- 3 Positive and negative loading for each dimension
Positive

Negative
Dimension 1

PFHEADED
PHSH

0.997

PAGE2554

0.993

0.997 PSECONDA
RY
0.997 PMANUF

0.992

PPOP

0.997

0.988

PMALE

0.996

POCCUP6P
LUS
PRENTER

PEMPLOYE
D
PWRIR

0.996

PCRAFT

0.988

0.996

0.984

PNMMALE

0.996

0.983

PAGE024

0.995

PCLERICA
L
PNMFEMA
LE
PAGE55

PHOUSING

0.995

PPERSON1

0.965

PTRADTIO
NAL
PFEMALE

0.995

POWNER

0.761

0.994

PFIRE

0.727

PSIZE1OR2

0.994

PAGE15

0.992

0.988

0.981

Dimension 2
CCRAFT

0.875

CMANUF

0.832

COCCUP6P
LUS

0.654

CFIRE

-0.407

CPROF

-0.728

CSECON
DARY

-0.547

PEMPINC
OME

-0.776

Dimension 3
CADMIN

0.829

PRENT

0.645

CDEGREE

0.810

PHSHINCO
ME

0.582

CPRIVATE

0.747
Dimension 4

107

Table 4-3 (Cont’d)
PADMIN

0.798 PDEGREE

PPROF

0.433

CMAGE

-0.526

0.710
Dimension 5

CSIZE1OR
2

0.889

CPERSON
1

0.838
Dimension 6

CWRIR

0.692 CCLERICAL

0.583

CFHEAD
ED

-0.639

Dimension 7
CRENTER

0.745

CPUBLIC

0.529

PPUBLIC

0.495

COWNE
R

-0.837

Dimension 8
CNMFEMA
LE

0.780 CNMMAL
E

0.771
Dimension 9

C2PLUSHSH

0.635 PPRIVATE

P2PLUSHSH

0.591

0.403

Based on the rotation results, the nine dimensions are interpreted below. This
interpretation of the dimensions is assisted by the mapping of factor scores from the PCA.
The first dimension portrays the turnover in housing stock and residents. Variables that
are positively correlated with dimension #1 reflect the development stage of the location
in terms of population change. In the map, the dark color represents a dramatic increase
in the population and the light color represents a more stable population stage. The
majority of the TPUs are in a stable stage, while a few TPUs in the new Territory have
experienced a dramatic increase in population from 1986 to 2006 (Figure 4-11).

108

Figure 4- 11 Map of factor score dimension 1
Tseung Kwan O new town has the highest score for dimension 1. In the early
1980s, this area was only sparsely-populated. Given the aggressive new town
development policy, Tseung Kwan O is now densely-populated, being heavily
concentrated with high-rise developments . Tin Shui Wai is another new town that went
through major population increases over this twenty year period. Other areas with rapid
growth include neighborhoods near Tai Po new town, Sheung Shui new town, Tuen Mun
new town, Chek Lap Kok airport and Disneyland on the Lantau Island, and areas along
the branch line of the East Rail Line (Ma On Shan Line). Central in Hong Kong Island
also has a high score for dimension 1, given its land reclamation and growth over the
twenty years. Another area on Hong Kong Island that shows major growth is Heng Fa

109

Chuen, a large scale private residential project that began to be constructed in the late
1970s.
The second dimension depicts the economic restructure, which is often associated
with the transformation of global cities into specialized service economies.
Accompanying the growth of the service economy, the traditional sector—such as craft
and manufacturing—decreases in importance while higher-end employment increases in
relevance. Employment in the services sector is associated, in part, with higher
employment income, higher levels of professional occupation, and higher levels of
education attainment.
The dark color represents an enhancement in the traditional sector economic
activity while the light color represents a rapid increase in service sector activity (Figure
4-12). The greatest increases of service economy are found in the New Territories and
Kowloon. It is evident that despite the rise of the service economy, there are TPUs in
Hong Kong that have actually experienced an increase in tradition economic sector
activity.

110

Figure 4- 12 Map of factor score dimension 2
The third dimension shows a social upgrading of individuals who primarily live in
private housing. This social upgrading is generally associated with gentrification. The
darker colors represent an increase in social upgrading and a growth in private dwelling
ownership (Figure 4-13). Heng Fa Chuen and Laguna city have the highest score for the
third dimension. As mentioned before, Heng Fa Chuen, consisting of 48 residential
blocks, is a large scale private development in eastern Hong Kong Island. Laguna City is
another large scale private development project. Laguna City is located in eastern
Kowloon, and consists of 38 towers.

111

Figure 4- 13 Map of factor score dimension 3
The fourth dimension depicts an increase in higher-order occupations, such as
young professionals and managers. The darker the color, the higher the increase rate of
young, upper-occupation professionals (Figure 4-14). Given that the remote Hong Kong
areas had very few residents with upper-end occupations, the increase rate of this class in
these areas is dramatic. Overall, however, Hong Kong Island realized the greatest
absolute concentration increases among the higher-order occupations.

112

Figure 4- 14 Map of factor score dimension 4
The fifth dimension reveals change in family structure, and particularly the
increase in smaller size households and families per household. There is an increase of
smaller households, either one person family households or two young married couples
with no children households. This demographic trend leads to an increase in housing
demand, which is a motivating factor of urban redevelopment. With the postponement of
marriage and childbearing, the median age also increases. The dark color represents the
growth of smaller households while the light color indicates traditional nuclear family
households (Figure 4-15). The further outlying areas tend to have a larger household size
when compared to the urban cores. There is a trend toward an increase in smaller
households in Hong Kong’s traditional urban center.

113

Figure 4- 15 Map of factor score dimension 5
The sixth dimension depicts the rise of the service economy, and particularly the
lower end of the occupation and employment structure within the service economy. With
the rise of the service economy, a polarization in occupations has become evident. There
has been an increase among those employed in the higher-order occupations of the
service economy, while at the same time, there has also been an increase among those
employed in the lower-order occupations, including clerical workers, employment in
wholesale, retail & import/export trades, and restaurants & hotels.
The darker colors represent the high increase rate of lower-order occupations of
the service economy. The majority of TPUs with darker colors are in the New Territories
and the more distant regions of Hong Kong, while the majority of TPUs with the light
114

colors are concentrated in the urban core (Figure 4-16). There is an obvert increase of
high end services in the urban core.

Figure 4- 16 Map of factor score dimension 6
The seventh dimension reveals changes in housing tenure. Gentrified areas are
often found associated with an increase in owner-occupied housing and a decrease in
renter-occupied housing. A large proportion of rental housing in Hong Kong is publicly
subsidized housing. The dark color depicts an increase in renter-occupied housing while
the light color indicates an increase of owner occupied housing (Figure 4-17). The
increase in rental and public housing is most evident in the New Territory, while the
increase of owner-occupied housing is more apparent in the urban core.

115

Figure 4- 17 Map of factor score dimension 7
The eighth dimension portrays an increase in the never-married population. The
darker colors represent a concentration of the young never-married population while the
lighter colors represent an increase in the married population (Figure 4-18). In addition to
a few new towns that show an increase in never married population growth, the majority
of TPUs on Hong Kong Island have also experienced an increase in this population
subgroup.

116

Figure 4- 18 Map of factor score dimension 8
The ninth dimension depicts the sharing of housing units. This dimension shows a
positive correlation with the increase of housing units with more than 2 households living
in the unit. There is also a positive correlation with the growth of private housing. The
areas with darker colors represent more household sharing housing units (Figure 4-19).
Remote areas in the New Territory tend to have the darker colors. In contrast, much of
the urban core is experiencing reductions in households per dwelling unit.
Overall, the above nine dimensions depict the major demographic, socioeconomic
and housing changes experienced in Hong Kong between the years 1986 and 2006. The
PCA is known as one of the commonly used techniques for dimensionality reduction.
Using the dependencies between the variables, and without losing too much information,

117

the PCA takes high-dimensional data and represents it in a more tractable, lowerdimensional form. In this case, 55 variables reflecting changes of population,
socioeconomics, and housing characteristics in Hong Kong are reduced to nine
dimensions.

Figure 4- 19 Map of factor score dimension 9
The K-means clustering process, based upon the factor scores from the PCA, is
used to group together TPUs that are experiencing similar directions of change. The
number of clusters is also relevant to the nature of the research question and the size of
observation units. The Cubic Clustering Criterion was used to identify the number of

118

9

clusters, with twelve clusters being identified (Figure 4-20) . It is worth noting that not
every TPU experienced physical and social upgrading in Hong Kong (Table 4-4).

Figure 4- 20 Map of K-means clustering on physical and social upgrading in Hong Kong,
1986-2006
Note: TPUs were removed due to the fact that they were outliers or added new territory
(between 1986 and 2006) through land reclamation.
9

The following TPUs are excluded from the K-means clustering process. Central (TPU
123 and TPU 124) is mainly for commercial use. Waterfront in Yau Ma Tei (TPU251254) were excluded since there are mainly new developments built after 1986. The east
part of Tuen Mun new town, which is located on the west side of the Tuen Mun River
Channel (TPU 421-423 and TPU 428) is excluded. Part of this area was reclaimed land
and now has a concentration of residential buildings. Although a certain degree of
physical and social upgrading is observed in this area, it is minor. Other areas that were
excluded in the K-means clustering process were sparsely-populated areas in 1986, so
any type of displacement would have been minor. TPU 545 and TPU 546 had only 2,101
residents in 1986. TPU 627, TPU 741-744, TPU 838-839, and TPU 911-913 had 373,
1,045, 331, and 595 residents in 1986 respectively.
119

Table 4- 4 Change in gross rent, median household income and major employment
income, 1986-2006 (12 groups)
Median
Median household
Median employment
gross rent
income
income
Group 1
78.782
39.809
79.445
Group 2
169.120
55.559
75.677
Group 3
146.378
25.654
25.672
Group 4
268.739
110.732
130.896
Group 5
160.326
31.068
73.634
Group 6
106.834
70.942
99.314
Group 7
127.366
48.241
74.956
Group 8
34.668
54.352
64.123
Group 9
92.402
19.401
34.519
Group 10
80.130
53.063
76.385
Group 11
194.303
36.563
90.566
Group 12
230.685
17.334
3.989
Hong Kong Average
120.290
45.150
74.480
Among the 12 groups, three clusters of TPUs—groups 2, 4, and 7—show
characteristic of gentrification (Figure 4-21). The increase rate for gross rent, median
household income, and median employment income are all greater than the Hong Kong
average within these clusters. Other groups have also experienced upgrading in some of
the census variables, but it is more limiting.

10

It is worth noticing that not every TPU that

has been captured in the three upgrading groups has experienced displacement. For
instance, there were cases of natural lands being developed, with no or minimal
displacement. Those TPUs with no displacement have been excluded from further
analysis.
As recognized from Wyly and Hammel’s (1999) proposition that quantitative
analysis itself has insufficient capacity to recognize gentrification, since ultimately

10

Group 6 also shows a contained degree of physical and social upgrading. However,
given the fact that the increase rate of gross rent is lower than the Hong Kong average, I
was being conservative and excluded this group from further discussion of upgrading.
120

capital reinvestment and displacement is not captured in the quantitative analysis, a
qualitative analysis of the neighborhoods identified as experiencing upgrading was also
performed. Following the PCA and k-means cluster analysis, ground surveying and a
historical analysis was carried out on the neighborhoods that have been grouped into the
three clusters showing upgrading. This allowed verification that capital reinvestment and
displacement did actually occur within these TPUs.
There were, in fact, large areas—some 92 square kilometers in total—that were
captured in the three groupings, resulting from the quantitative analysis showing
upgrading, but they involved development on natural and/or agricultural lands, or the
redevelopment of former industrial sites. While these cases involved capital investment
or reinvestment, since the cases did not involve displacement, they were removed from
the three clusters identifying gentrification.
The three captured groups of TPUs have manifested many of the characteristics
that are consistent with characteristics of gentrified neighborhoods, as evident in the
literature.

11

The ground surveying of these neighborhoods reveals extensive capital

reinvestment, which will become more evident in this qualitative analysis. First, the
economic status of these areas has increased. All monetary indicators—which include
rent, household income, and personal income from main employment—have experienced
dramatic increases.
These areas have experienced a rise in educational attainment among its residents.
In these TPUs, the population number and the percentage of college graduates have both

11

However, the median age of the residents has increased, a pattern that is different from
what is expected in the existing literature.

121

increased substantially. Also, the number and the percentage of the population in the
upper end of the occupation categories—professionals, administrators and managerial
workers—have also increased. In contrast, lower-occupation classes, including craft
workers and manufacturers, have decreased. In the three upgrading clusters, there has
been a 58.5% decrease in residents employed in the traditional sector—from 177,917
(1986) to 73,870 (2006). In contrast, within these three clusters, there has been an
increase in residents employed in finance, insurance, real estate and business services; an
increase of over 205%—from 49,276 (1986) to 150,237 (2006).
In addition, the household size has generally decreased. Many rental units have
also been converted to owner-occupied housing, with owner-occupied housing increasing
from 45.5% (1986) to 64.2% (2006) in the three upgrading clusters. While the
gentrification is generally focused within the urban core and surrounding neighborhoods,
upgrading redevelopment processes are also evident in the suburbs. The three clusters
2

capture 377 km of social and physical upgrading in Hong Kong, some 34.0% of Hong
Kong’s territory.

122

Figure 4- 21 K-means clustering showing ‘social’ upgrading groupings in Hong Kong
Note: TPUs have been removed from the three upgrading clusters in this map given the
absence of displacement and/or capital reinvestment. Post-neighborhood surveying and
historical analysis, these TPUs have been identified as not being cases of gentrification,
even though they have been captured in the initial clusters showing upgrading.
While Group 2, Group 4, and Group 7 all show similar characteristics of physical
and social upgrading, they are indeed different (Table 4-5, Table 4-6, and Table 4-7).
TPUs in Group 2 are mainly distributed along the Victoria harbor on the Hong Kong
Island. This grouping seems to be driven by the high increase rate of high-order
occupations, especially professionals and managers. There is a drop in the lower-end of
the occupations within the service economy. TPUs in Group 2 are mainly established
neighborhoods in the urban core. In this cluster, back in 1986, rent was 1.865 times the
Hong Kong average. Rent has increased in this cluster to 2.278 times the Hong Kong

123

average in 2006. Household income and employment income were both above the Hong
Kong average in 1986, and they have both increased over the past twenty years, from
1.145 times to 1.228 times, and from 1.191 to 1.199 times respectively.
TPUs in Group 4 are mainly distributed in the New Territory. This group is
clearly driven by the fast turnover in housing stock and residents, the decline of the
traditional economic sector, and social upgrading of individuals who primarily live in
private housing. These TPUs are not the traditionally densely populated areas in the
urban core. Rent, household income and employment income were all below the Hong
Kong average in 1986. The ratio of rent, household income and employment income
were 0.658, 0.787, and 0.841 times the Hong Kong average (Table 4-5 and Table 4-6).
However, as the Hong Kong population decentralized, population and housing increased
dramatically in these areas from 1986 to 2006. The increased population is of higher
socioeconomic status compared to the original residents. As of 2006, all monetary
indicators are clearly above the Hong Kong average. Rent is now 1.102 times the Hong
Kong average. Household income and employment income are now 1.143 and 1.113
times the Hong Kong average.
TPUs in Group 7 are scattered across the territory. This grouping seems to be
driven by the dramatic increase of owner-occupied housing and a great increase in
higher-order occupations. Similar to Group 2, neighborhoods in this group are mainly
well established neighborhoods. As of 1986, all monetary indicators were above the
Hong Kong average. From 1986 to 2006, they have all increased slightly. Rent has
increased from 1.342 times the Hong Kong average to 1.385 times the Hong Kong
average. Household income has increased from 1.031 to 1.053 times the Hong Kong

124

average. Employment income has increased from 1.055 to 1.057 times the Hong Kong
average.
Table 4- 5 Change in gross rent, median household income and major employment
income (three groups), 1986-2006
Median
Median gross
Median household
employment
rent (US$)
income (US$)
Area
income (US$)
1986
2006
1986
2006
1986
2006
Group 2
341
918
2,302
3,580
1,222
2,146
Group 4
121
447
1,595
3,361
870
2,008
Group 7
247
562
2,088
3,095
1,091
1,908
HK Average
184
406
2,026
2,940
1,034
1,805
Median
Median gross
Median household
employment
rent (HK$)
income (HK$)
Area
income (HK$)
1986
2006
1986
2006
1986
2006
Group 2
2,644
7,116
17,847
27,763
9,473
16,643
Group 4
933
3,441
12,269
25,854
6,689
15,445
Group 7
1,903
4,326
16,062
23,810
8,390
14,679
HK Average
1,418
3,124
15,582
22,617
7,956
13,882
Table 4- 6 Ratio of gross rent, median household income and major employment income
(three groups), 1986-2006
Median gross
Median household
Median employment
rent ratio
income ratio
income ratio
Area
1986
2006
1986
2006
1986
2006
Group 2
1.865
2.278
1.145
1.228
1.191
1.199
Group 4
0.658
1.102
0.787
1.143
0.841
1.113
Group 7
1.342
1.385
1.031
1.053
1.055
1.057

Table 4- 7 Characteristics of changes in the three gentrified groups (%)
College
graduates

Profession
als

Managerial
workers

Craft
workers

Manufactu
res

Group 2
292
158
187
-72
-67
Group 4
2396
1254
1822
-8
-16
Group 7
253
125
133
-68
-75
Note: The number reflects the percentage of change of the key variables. Unit: %.

125

Owneroccupied
housing
63
311
83

Descriptive statistics are conducted on the three gentrified clusters. The results,
including the cluster mean and the standard deviation, are shown in Table 4-8.
Table 4- 8 Cluster averages of the key socioeconomic variables for the three gentrified
groups
Group 2
Group 4
Group 7
Grand mean
(N=15)
(N=30)
(N=12)
(N=57)
Mean SD
Mean
SD
Mean
SD
Mean
SD
PPOP
-1.7
52.4
549.5
1723.7 -14.9
45.1
285.6
1272.2
PDEGREE

298.1 211.6

5548.1

9621.9

457.9

548.7

3094.9

7404.3

PPROF

147.8 124.5

2010.1

3458.3

186.4

241.6

1136.1

2659.5

PCRAFT

-74.2

271.0

1418.4

-73.1

19.1

107.7

1035.5

PADMIN

199.5 139.2

22666.3

83580.7

332.7

524.6

12052.2

61197.1

PMANUF

-71.2

15.9

202.3

1044.7

-77.8

13.5

71.3

764.7

POWNER

57.3

53.3

917.7

3219.8

114.3

160.5

522.1

2356.2

PRENT

159.5

70.0

311.5

267.5

144.8

69.8

236.4

213.6

PHSHINCOME

53.0

24.2

116.7

61.8

49.6

20.1

85.8

57.3

PEMPINCOME

73.8

22.9

124.4

51.9

78.1

23.3

101.3

47.3

13.7

Note: SD stands for standard deviations
To further examine the diversity and complexity of gentrification, three
neighborhoods are selected from each of the three clusters showing upgrading for a more
detailed qualitative analysis. To ensure that the case studies are representative, the
corresponding values of the three individual case studies are listed in Table 4-9. This
analysis involves exploring how many standard deviations the neighborhood values are
from their respective cluster mean values. With the majority of the values within one
standard deviation of the cluster mean, it reinforces the representativeness of the case
studies.

126

Table 4- 9 Comparison between case values and cluster averages
Kennedy Town
Tiu Keng Leng
Yuen Long
Value
Distance
Value
Distance
Value
Distance
PPOP
-3
-0.02
948
0.23
24
0.86
PDEGREE
554
1.21
10923
0.56
794
0.61
PPROF
187
0.31
3037
0.30
313
0.52
PCRAFT
-72
0.16
260
-0.01
-41
1.68
PADMIN
392
1.38
17883
-0.06
547
0.41
PMANUF
-67
0.26
173
-0.03
-65
0.95
POWNER
76
0.35
523
-0.12
106
-0.05
PRENT
253
1.34
170
-0.53
198
0.76
PHSHINCOME
71
0.74
108
-0.14
71
1.06
PEMPINCOME
101
1.19
132
0.15
96
0.77
Note: The unit for the TPU value is in percent (%). Distance refers to the distance from
cluster mean. It is calculated to see how many standard deviations the neighborhood
values are from their respective clusters' mean value.
A two-tailed, one sample t-test is performed to test whether the group mean is
significantly different than the case value. The null hypothesis is that the group mean is
equal to the corresponding case value. The alternative hypothesis is that the group mean
is not equal to the corresponding case value. If the t > critical t-value or t < -critical tvalue, the null hypothesis is rejected. The case value which is not significantly different
than the group mean is highlighted in Table 4-10.
Table 4- 10 Two-tailed one sample t-test
Variables
Group 2
Group 4
PPOP
0.063384
-1.26551
PDEGREE
-4.6845
-3.05967
PPROF
-1.22782
-1.62647
PCRAFT
-0.68332
0.042616
PADMIN
-5.35396
0.313485
PMANUF
-1.04197
0.167443
POWNER
-1.37108
0.67105
PRENT
-5.15611
2.906589
PHSHINCOME
-2.845
0.798084
PEMPINCOME
-4.67138
-0.76225
Df
14
29
Critical T-value (Significant level: 95%) t=2.1448
t=2.045

Group 7
-2.97004
-2.12379
-1.81056
-5.89019
-1.41434
-3.2817
0.173996
-2.65771
-3.70384
-2.71779
11
t=2.201

In order to reinsure the representativeness of the case studies, the Grubbs’ T test is

127

conducted to check each of the key variables for all three gentrified groups. The Grubbs’
test can be used to evaluate multiple possible outliners. The null hypothesis is that there
are no outliers in the data set while the alternative hypothesis is that there is at least one
outlier in the data set. Starting with the furthest outlier, the t value is calculated and then
compared with the critical t value. If the t > critical t-value, the null hypothesis is rejected.
After one outlier is identified, it is expunged from the dataset and the test is iterated until
no more outliers are detected.
In the case of Kennedy town, all variables pass the test at the level of significance
of 0.05. In the case of Tiu Keng Leng, majority of the variables are not outliers except for
three variables: PPOP, PDEGREE, and PMANUF. While the t value for PPOP and
PDEGREE are 3.21 and 2.71 respectively, the critical t value is 2.70 (level of
significance: 0.05). The t value for PMANUF is 3.06 while the corresponding critical t
value is 2.68 (level of significance: 0.05). In the case of Yuen Long, none of the
variables are found to be outliers. Taking all tests results into account, it is concluded that
the three cases (Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng, and Yuen Long) are not outliers of their
respective clusters.
In the TPUs of these three upgrading clusters—where gentrification was clearly
present after it was verified by the ground surveying and the non-gentrified TPUs were
removed—104,047 residents employed in just the traditional sector (mainly
manufacturing) were erased. In general, there has been a move to shift the poor to select
parts of Hong Kong’s urban periphery, where new public housing projects are
concentrating, but these are also areas distant from urban amenities, including jobs.
Peripheral neighborhoods with rapid increases in lower-income populations include Tin

128

Shui Wai and Tuen Mun. However, the poor are also concentrating in select urban core
neighborhoods, urban slums such as in Kwun Tong and Sham Shui Po, where increasing
rents are forcing the poor to live in small, overcrowded spaces, including ‘cage
apartments’ and on rooftops. Thus, it can be argued that the living condition for many of
the displaced poor, given their removal from their traditional neighborhoods and the
break-down of their community networks, should not necessarily be viewed as an
upgrade, even though the physical quality of their dwelling unit might be improved.
The K-mean cluster process, with the initial seed setting, allows me to capture the
diversity in upgrading using the quantitative analysis. This method captures three clusters
of physical and social upgrading, with diversity evident in the outcomes of the PCA and
cluster analysis. While this chapter has largely focused on the quantitative analysis, the
next three chapters will have a detailed qualitative analysis into a neighborhood from
each group. This qualitative analysis will show the diversity of gentrification in more
detail.
4.6. Conclusion
In this chapter, a discussion of the demographic, socioeconomic, and housing
changes that have occurred in Hong Kong between 1986 and 2006, using Hong Kong
census data, are analyzed. A set of maps are first used to assist in the general
understanding of Hong Kong’s neighborhood change from 1986 to 2006 and the current
condition in year 2006. A PCA was performed followed by a K-means clustering process.
The principal components analysis is used for data reduction. Based on the dependencies
between the variables, the PCA used orthogonal transformation to covert the highdimensional data into lower-dimensional data that is linearly uncorrelated.

129

Nine dimensions were extracted by the PCA. In order to group together TPUs
which experienced similar scales of physical and ‘social’ upgrading, a K-means
clustering process was conducted based upon the factor scores from the PCA. The Kmeans clustering minimize the within-group difference and maximize the between-group
difference. Twelve clusters were identified using the seeded K-means clustering method.
The combination of the principal component analysis and K-means clustering is a valid
and effective method to detect gentrified and gentrifying neighborhoods, and the
methodology proposed here was advanced as a way of attempting to use the quantitative
analysis to reveal diversity in upgrading.
Even though these three groups of clusters have all exhibited characteristics of
physical and social upgrading, they are not homogenous and have involved different
redevelopment processes. TPUs that are grouped together are not necessarily close to
each other geographically. In the next section, three neighborhoods are chosen to indicate
the diversity and complexity of gentrification: Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng and Yuen
Long. The process and effects of physical and social upgrading in these three
neighborhoods will be discussed in detail over the next three chapters.

130

Chapter 5 Kennedy Town
To further examine the diversity and complexity of gentrification, three
neighborhoods are selected from each of the three clusters showing upgrading for a more
detailed qualitative analysis. The three case studies, representing different income
groupings and scales of change, allow for an exploration into the diversity of agents and
upgrading processes. These three case studies are Kennedy Town (Chapter 5), Tiu Keng
Leng (Chapter 6), and Yuen Long (chapter 7). The location of these three case studies is
shown in Figure 5-1.

Figure 5- 1 The locations of the three case studies
The study of the detailed gentrification processes in this chapter focuses on
131

Kennedy Town. Kennedy Town has traditionally been a lower-income residential
th

neighborhood. Staring in the mid-20 century, the neighborhood became a working class
district in Hong Kong. Since the 1980s, however, the built environment and socioeconomic composition in Kennedy Town has changed dramatically. A large number of
redevelopment projects—all very much on a relatively small scale, involving the building
of one or two structures—have altered both neighborhood housing and socio-economic
characteristics.
Kennedy Town’s location, close to the CBD and along the waterfront, encouraged
the rapid redevelopment of this area, particularly since the 1980s. Both the public and
private sectors were extensively involved in redeveloping this neighborhood. Kennedy
Town, in some ways, represents a classic case of gentrification, because the original
lower-income working class populations have been displaced by the new middle class of
the high-tech and specialized services economy.
5.1. A Brief History of the settlement of Kennedy Town
Kennedy Town is located on the northwest coast of Hong Kong Island. It is
surrounded by Victoria Harbor and Belcher Bay to the north and the Sulphur Channel to
the west. To the south lies Mount Davis, which is the western-most hill on Hong Kong
Island. To the east the neighborhood connects to Shek Tong Tsui, another old
neighborhood on the north shore of Hong Kong Island.
Kennedy town is in the western section of the historical Victoria City. One of the
seven boundary stones for the city erected by the Hong Kong Government in 1903 can
still be found in this region. Kennedy Town is named after the seventh Hong Kong
governor, Arthur Edward Kennedy (1872-1877), who played an important role in the

132

development of this neighborhood. A large influx of Chinese migrated to Hong Kong
after the Taiping Rebellion in the 1850s. In order to give these migrants an area to settle,
Governor Kennedy decided to develop the western area of Hong Kong Island (Leung,
1999). In 1886, some 22 acres of land was reclaimed along the west wharf and the entire
district was named Kennedy Town. Additional lands were reclaimed during the 1930s
and then again at the end of the 20th century (Leung, 1999).
Kennedy Town is one of the oldest communities in Hong Kong. However, since
the neighborhood was at the very end of Hong Kong Island, the development of this
community has historically been somewhat slow. It was after the opening of Shek Tong
Tsui, in the early 20

th

century, that the development pace of Kennedy Town began to

accelerate.
With brothels, hotels, and restaurants springing-up in Shek Tong Tsui, economic
activity began to spill-over into Kennedy Town. Many Chinese started to move into this
area. Some rich Chinese merchants were also attracted to Kennedy Town. This rapid
development pace, however, did not last long. It ceased when the Hong Kong
government prohibited prostitution in Shek Tong Tsui in 1935 (Leung, 1999). The
generally moderate housing units, with a few upscale homes interspersed among them,
began to be replaced with lower-income dwellings. The neighborhood soon began to
experience increasing deterioration.
5.2. Changes in built environment since the 1950s
Continuing

into

the

mid-20

th

century,

Kennedy

Town

remained

an

underdeveloped area of Hong Kong. Kennedy Town was home to many ‘unpleasant’ and

133

noxious facilities, such as incinerators, a public mortuary, hospitals for infectious
diseases, a slaughter house, and trash-transfer stations (Leung, 1999) (see Figure 5- 2).
Industry once flourished in this area. Due to the relatively low land cost and the
concentration of labor, industrial investment started to increase during the 1960s. Most of
the workshops were clustered along the waterfront. For example, workshops for auto
maintenance were concentrated along North Street, while cooking oil manufacturing
shops gathered along Davis Street (Kwok, 1995).

Figure 5- 2 ‘Unpleasant’ facilities in Kennedy Town: cattle-market in the left foreground,
and an Infectious Disease Hospital in centre background (1935-1941)
Source: Hong Kong Public Record Office, Photograph 08-09-173
During the 1950s, the traditional tenements in Kennedy Town were of two or
three stories. Mixed land uses (combining residential and commercial use) were common
in the town center as well as along the major arterial roads. In later years, these old
buildings were gradually replaced by multistory houses, as housing demand rapidly

134

increased due to the influx of refugees from Mainland China (Kwok, 1995). Wholesale,
retail and service outlets can still be found on nearly all the ground floor units of these
residential buildings (Figure 5- 3).

Figure 5- 3 Old buildings were gradually replaced by multistory houses in the Kennedy
Town district (1963)
Source: Hong Kong:Information Services Department,
http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/object?svc=objrtv&src=CM&itemid=VUA%239IGDO
5RGB8M0&pid=1&mime=image/jpeg
In addition to all the private construction, public housing was also being built
during the 1950s to alleviate Hong Kong’s housing shortages. The Sai Wan Estate in
Kennedy Town is the second oldest existing public housing estate in Hong Kong and it
was built by the Hong Kong Housing Authority (see Figure 5- 4). Built in 1958, the Sai
Wan Estate provides 640 flats for low-income families in the region. The five linear

135

blocks of 10-to-14 story buildings are still in use. It is the only existing public housing
estate developed by the Hong Kong Housing Authority in the Central and Western
Districts of Hong Kong (Hong Kong Housing Authority, 2013a).

Figure 5- 4 Sai Wan Estate (2012)
Source: Author
The Kwun Lung Lau is another public housing estate in Kennedy Town. It was
built in 1967 by the Hong Kong Housing Society (Cheung, 1999). The Kwun Lung Lau
consists of seven 20-story buildings. It contains 2,073 flats and provides accommodations
for about 13,000 residents. When it was first built, it was used to accommodate residents
affected by the government-led urban improvement plan of 1968. The Kwun Lung Lau is
still in use today as a public housing estate, but it has been extensively redeveloped and
renovated since the year 2000. Two out of seven blocks were demolished and rebuilt into

136

two 40-storey buildings. These two blocks now provide 872 flats for rental. The
redevelopment of these two buildings cost US$83.8 million (HK$650 million).

12

Renovations and remodeling have also been taking place in the other five buildings.
These renovations costs have amounted to approximately US$37 million (HK$287
million).
While some of the early public housing projects in Kennedy Town have been
retained, others have been demolished. Kung Man Village,

13

which was located on the

hillside of Mount Davis, was one of the oldest Cottage Resettlement Areas in Hong Kong
(Figure 5- 5). The majority of the residents in Kung Man Village were from Chiu Chow
(Leung, 1999). The Cottage Resettlement Area is a good example of the early form of
public housing in Hong Kong. It usually involved temporary single story squatter
settlements.
According to the Emergency (Resettlement Areas) Regulations in the ‘Emergency
Regulations Ordinance’ (1952), cottage resettlement areas were only for specifically
approved residents. After paying a certain fee, the residents would receive a permit to
build or buy temporary squatter settlements on the land. However, they did not own the
titles of the land under the settlements. They also continued to be responsible for paying a
quarterly fee. The Emergency (Resettlement Areas) Regulations were abolished when the
Resettlement Ordinance was adopted in 1958. A decade and a half later, the Resettlement
Ordinance was replaced by the Housing Ordinance of 1973 (Leung, 1999).
12

In this chapter, all monetary values are listed in US dollar and Hong Kong dollar.
When Hong Kong dollar is converted to US dollar, the currency rate of June 2013 is
used. Inflation and change in currency rate overtime are not taken into account. HK$1
equals US$0.13.
13
It is also called Mount Davis Cottage Resettlement Area.
137

Figure 5- 5 The Kung Man Village and its surrounding (1970)
Source: Lam, 2010
The Kung Man Village was first built in 1952 and was used to settle those
affected by the fire in She Kip Mei in 1953 (Leung, 1999). It was another public housing
project in Kennedy Town managed by the Urban Council before it was turned over to the
Resettlement Department in 1958 and then to the Housing Authority in 1970. When the
Kung Man Village was first built, there were more than 250 households and about 1,800
people lived in this project (Lam, 2010).

138

The Kung Man Village was well planned even though it was a resettlement area.
It was around 180 acres in size and it was built along a hillside. The settlement mostly
consisted of two-bedroom detached homes. Each housing unit was about 200 to 300
square feet. The whole area was divided into four districts with only two entrances. Since
the cottage resettlement areas were located on a hillside and restricted to a given
population, the community was largely isolated from the rest of Hong Kong, and the
outside world in general.
The Kung Man Village was demolished in 2001. When the settlement was torndown, there were only 699 people left in the project. In total, 221 housing units and 184
families were affected by the demolishment. The Kung Man Village has been vacant ever
since (LegCo, 1999). According to the latest zoning plan, 171 acres of land where the
Kung Man Village used to be located was rezoned to green space, while the remaining 9
acres was defined as “undetermined.” The site of the Kung Man Village is no longer
recognizable since it is now surrounded by numerous newly built luxury buildings.
5.3. Recent urban redevelopment and conflicts over space
The built environment has changed significantly in recent years due to new
development and redevelopment projects, which have been particularly evident since the
1980s. Although some squatters in Smithfield and along Kennedy Town Praya still exist,
the overall living environment of Kennedy Town has been significantly upgraded
(Caritas Social Centre, 1985). Many of the ‘unpleasant’ and noxious facilities have been
removed to make way for new redevelopment projects. For example, the cattle depot in
Smithfield was closed down in 1986 and the incinerator was closed down in early 1993
(Planning Department, 1993). The cargo handling area at the waterfront, near Sai Ning

139

Street, has been relocated outside of Kennedy Town.
Manufacturing was also slowly phased out to make way for new upscale
residential developments facilitated by the rezoning. For example, the Industrial Zone in
Sai Ning Street was changed to Residential (E) (Town Planning Board, 2004). With some
of the old industrial structures cleared away, new upscale residential buildings have been,
and are being, rapidly built. Both the public and private sectors are heavily reinvesting in
Kennedy Town. The transformation of Kennedy Town is a more piecemeal
redevelopment process, however, generally involving one or two high-rises at a time, and
hence there is still a clear inter-dispersal of the old and new structures throughout the
neighborhood.
The Belcher’s

is

a relatively recent,

large-scale high-rise residential

redevelopment in Kennedy Town (Figure 5-6). It was a maritime defense gun
emplacement before it served as the government quarters for senior government officials,
beginning back in 1956. In 1989, Shun Tak Holdings Limited reached an agreement with
the government to redevelop this site, consisting of 324,263 square feet. Shu Hung Kai
Properties Ltd and New World Development Company Ltd were also invited to join this
large-scale redevelopment project. The project was completed in 2001. Six towers of 45to-49 stories were built on this site. The site now provides 2,213 units ranging from about
800 square feet to over 3,300 square feet. Targeted to attract upper income earners, all
apartments and condos were furnished with luxury facilities and opulent materials.
According to Centaline Property, a furnished apartment with 3 bedrooms (979 square feet)
was being rented for US$4,254 (HK$33,000) per month in the summer of 2010.

140

Figure 5- 6 The Belcher’s (2012)
Source: Author
The Belcher’s is a successful example of a ‘Flat-for-Flat’ arrangement in a
redevelopment project. The ‘Flat-for-Flat’ arrangement refers to the option of obtaining
‘in-situ’ flats as compensation for those domestic owner-occupiers affected by a

141

redevelopment project. However, since the enforcement of the Land (compulsory Sale for
Redevelopment) Ordinance (LCSRO) in June of 1999, ‘Flat-for-Flat’ arrangements
seldom happen.
Before the LCSRO was brought into force, the developer needed to own 100% of
the undivided shares of a lot before proceeding with a redevelopment. This requirement
brought the developers of a site into regular negotiations with the original residents
occupying the structure. In order to make a redevelopment project possible, the developer
needed to provide fair compensation and economic incentives to the original residents
living on the site. In the case of the Belcher’s, the developer offered the owner-occupiers
affected by the redevelopment the option to obtain housing unit(s) in the new
development as an alternative to cash compensation. Depending on the size of their
original housing units, residents could receive one to two housing units in the new
development project (Ho, 2011).
Under the LCRSO, any person who owns not less than 90% of the total undivided
shares of a lot may apply to the Lands Tribunal for an order of compulsory sale of the
whole lot. In the case of compulsory sale, the original residents lose the power of
negotiation. With lack of competition, the majority of the sales are at the minimum price
(Apple Daily, 2010). In 2006, a revision was made to further facilitate private
redevelopment. The compulsory land sale application threshold was lowered to 80% of
the undivided shares of a lot for the following three classes: (1) a lot in which one unit
accounts for more than 10% of the total undivided share; (2) a lot with all building(s)
aged 50 or above; (3) a lot with industrial-use buildings aged 30 years or above in a nonindustrial zone. Under the LCRSO, compulsory sales for redevelopment have increased

142

(Yu, 2012).
The Merton is another large-scale residential redevelopment project in the area
(Figure 5-7). It is one of the urban redevelopment projects led by the Urban
Redevelopment Authority (URA) with cooperation with New World Development.
Fifteen existing buildings were demolished and 1,685 residents were displaced by this
project (Urban Renewal Authority, 2011a). The complex started to be built in 1998 and it
was completed in 2005. The construction site was 65,391 square feet with a total gross
floor area of 677,093 square feet. Consisting of three high-rise towers ranging from 591
to 646 feet in height, the Merton is now providing 1,182 luxury units to upper income
earners. According to Centaline Property, the average sale price is US$1,319
(HK$10,233) per square feet.

14

The Merton is now one of the new landmarks in Kennedy

Town.
In addition to the Merton, the Mount David 33 is another example of joint
development between the URA and a private developer (Figure 5-8). The government
granted the site to the developer for free. The site is 7,836 square feet in size. The old
building was demolished and redeveloped into a high-rise residential building of 27
floors. The total gross floor area has been doubled to 78,361 square feet. The project was
completed in 2007 and it now provides 89 housing units targeted towards upper income
earners. The estimated investment from the private developer, Kowloon Development
Company Limited, was US$33.5 million (HK$260 million) (Urban Renewal Authority,
2011b).

14

This price is an estimate based on the past transactions. This estimate is provided by
Centaline Property. (http://hk.centadata.com/phome.aspx)
143

Figure 5- 7 The Merton (2005)
Source: URA, http://www.ura.org.hk/tc/projects/redevelopment/central/kennedy-townnew-praya-project-the-merton.aspx

144

Figure 5- 8 The Mount David 33 (2012)
Source: Author
In addition to the extensive demolishment and redevelopment, the URA is also
actively involved in rehabilitation projects. Kin Yu Mansion was built in 1960 (Urban
Renewal Authority, 2011c). The URA provided an interest-free loan for the rehabilitation

145

of this structure. The total investment was around US$464,116 (HK$3.6 million). The
physical condition of the building was greatly improved after the completion of the
project in 2006.
However, an acquisition was conducted by Wheelock Properties in 2010 by
applying the newly enforce Land (Compulsory Sale for Redevelopment) ordinance (Zhou,
2010). Wheelock Properties applied for a forced sale of the building and the starting
bidding price was only US$75.8 million (HK$588 million). The eventual per square foot
price that the mansion was sold for was only US$831 (HK$6,446), which is a much
lower price than what property is normally sold for in the area. Wheelock Properties
plans to demolish the whole building to make way for a 43-floor high residential building
(Zhou, 2010). After redevelopment, the site of 11,119 square feet will provide around
100 housing units targeted towards upper income groups, with an average unit size
ranging between 700 to 1,000 square feet.
In addition to demolishing residential buildings to make way for upscale
dwellings, industrial buildings in the region have also been redeveloped. Belcher’s Hill,
which was completed in May 2011, is another upscale housing development completed in
Kennedy Town. The New World Development started the acquisition of two industrial
buildings in 1996 and turned the 15,285-square-feet site into a 42-floor-high residential
building (Zheng, 2010). The structure now provides 152 housing units for upper and
middle income groups. The units typically range in size from 732 to 973 square feet.
Some special luxury units of 1,990 to 2,198 square feet are also offered; with sale prices
of US$1,083 (HK$8,400) per square foot and higher. Although the acquisition took the
developer 10 years and cost US$25.8 million (HK$200 million), the project turned out to

146

be a lucrative venture (Zheng, 2010).
Old buildings throughout Kennedy Town are also being demolished to make way
for upscale serviced apartments to fulfill the new housing demand in the neighborhood.
Manhattan Heights (607 feet, 55 floors) was jointly developed by Cheung Kong Holdings
and Fook Lee Holdings Limited (Emporis, 2013a). It was completed in 2000. In addition
to providing condominium units to upper income groups, it also provides upscale
serviced apartments targeting higher income groups.
Another development project of Cheung Kong Holdings in Kennedy Town is
University Heights (Emporis, 2013b). The site was previously owned by the Hong Kong
and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited and used as its staff quarters. The site has
been redeveloped into 3 high-rise residential towers providing 444 housing units of 529
to 1,048 square feet in size.
The Cayman Rise is another high-rise tower in Kennedy Town (Figure 5- 9). It
was initially built under the “Sandwich Class Housing Scheme” by the Hong Kong
Housing Society (Hong Kong Housing Society, 2013a). The Hong Kong Housing Society
is the second largest public housing provider in Hong Kong. It is a non-governmental and
non-profit organization. During the 1990s, it initiated a program to offer condos at
concessionary prices for middle-income families. However, the program was terminated
in 2000. The condominium units were sold at full market prices when they were
completed in 2001. The Cayman Rise consists of 496 units.

147

Figure 5- 9 The Cayman Rise in Kennedy Town (2012)
Source: Author
The Hong Kong Housing Society is a major landlord in Kennedy Town. In
addition to the “Sandwich Class Housing Scheme,” it also initiated the “Urban

148

Improvement Scheme.” The program was designed to redevelop old deteriorating
buildings in urban areas of Hong Kong. The first Urban Improvement Scheme was
launched in 1974 at the Mei Sun Lau in Kennedy Town, initiated with a start-up loan
from the government (Hong Kong Housing Society, 2013b). These units are not
subsidized as the Housing Society paid full market values for the land premium and sold
the properties at market prices. Other project under the “Urban Improvement Scheme”
include the Mei Sun Lau, the Lai Yan Lau, Western Garden, Ko Wang Court, 1 Hee
Wong Terrace, and 10 Tai Pak Terrace (Hong Kong Housing Society, 2013b).
Figure 5-10 shows the major redevelopment projects in Kennedy Town. Overall,
it can be reasonably argued that both the public and private sectors have played an
important role in the redevelopment of Kennedy Town. Newly built high-rises continue
to surface throughout the neighborhood. A mixture of old and new buildings can be seen
throughout Kennedy Town (see Figure 5- 1 Figure 5- 12, and Figure 5- 13). Tong Lau,
the tenement buildings built from the late 1800s to the 1960s in Hong Kong, can still be
found along Catchick Street. However, surrounded by new developments, these old
buildings will soon also likely be replaced by upscale high-rise towers. With the
piecemeal development and redevelopment waves, Kennedy Town is slowly making its
transition from a residential area for low to low-middle income residents to a solidly
middle-upper income neighborhood (Figure 5- 14).

149

Figure 5- 10 A Major redevelopment projects in Kennedy Town

150

Figure 5- 11 A mixture of old and new buildings in Kennedy Town (2012)
Source: Author

151

Figure 5- 12 A typical streetscape in Kennedy Town, showing a mixture of old and new
buildings (2012)
Source: Author

152

Figure 5- 13 An old building complex in Kennedy Town (2012)
Source: Author

153

Figure 5- 14 Kennedy Town (2011)
Source: http://www.dorsett.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/41.jpg
5.4. Government involvement in development and redevelopment
It is important to stress that government has played an important role in the
physical and ‘social’ upgrading of Kennedy Town. Public housing had been built in this
neighborhood throughout the late 1950s and 1960s. Government buildings and public
recreation facilities have also been increasingly built since the 1970s. In addition,
reclamation and massive infrastructure projects have been constructed in the district to
assist with the new development and redevelopment efforts (Kwok, 1995).
The public sector has been extensively involved in reclamation and regenerating
the waterfront area of Kennedy Town. The waterfront is of great recreational and
aesthetic value and the regeneration of the waterfront has been used to stimulate local

154

economic activity (Breen, 1996; Fagence, 1995). Worldwide, there are many cases of
waterfront regeneration, which allow new commercial and residential areas to be built. In
Kennedy Town, reclamation in Belcher Bay was carried out in the early 1990s and was
completed in 2000.
In addition, many warehouses, docklands and factories used to be located along
the Kennedy Town waterfront (Craig-Smith, 1995; Marshall, 2001). The relocation of
these facilities has further facilitated the waterfront development and redevelopment,
with residential buildings now being built in place of the factories and warehouses.
The government had at one point considered a large-scale waterfront reclamation
plan called Green Island Reclamation. It was first recommended in 1983, emerging out of
the Study of Harbor Reclamation and Urban Growth (Environmental Protection
Department, 2000). Under the 1996 Territorial Development Strategy Review, this plan
was considered as one of the ten strategic growth areas for development. According to
the Green Island Development—Engineering Investigation and Planning Review,
completed in 1998, the reclamation would have created about 477 acres of land to
accommodate a target population of about 135,800 people (Environmental Protection
Department, 1998). However, this large-scale reclamation was revaluated and
downscaled to 195 acres and was then called off in 2003 (Town Planning Board, 2004).
In addition to waterfront reclamation, the government has been actively involved
in efforts to improve accessibility into and within Kennedy Town. Kennedy Town was
once considered to be remote, with lack of access to Hong Kong’s downtown. This
situation has changed in recent years due to the significant investment by the Hong Kong

155

government to improve transportation facilities. A coastal highway (Highway Route 4),

15

which connects Kennedy Town to the Central Harbor crossing and the Western Harbor
crossing, was completed in 1997. It has helped Kennedy Town link to other parts of
Hong Kong. The Western Extension of the MTR Island Line linking Kennedy Town and
Sheung Wan is expected to be finished in 2014 (see Figure 5- 14). After its completion,
travel time from Kennedy Town to other parts of Hong Kong Island will be shortened
greatly (MTR Corporation, 2012). In addition to these infrastructure improvements, the
construction of the Smithfield Road Extension, widening Rock Hill Street, and linking
Rock Hill Street and Belcher’s Street, have all been important infrastructure projects
facilitating movement into and within Kennedy Town.

Figure 5- 15 West Island Line Railway Alignment (MTR Corporation, 2012)
Source: http://www.mtr-westislandline.hk/en/project-details/alignment.html
5.5. Discussion of Data and Trends
With the mushrooming of new redevelopment projects in Kennedy Town, the

15

It was called route 7 and renamed to route 4.
156

demography of the neighborhood is rapidly changing. Kennedy town was once a
traditional residential area for the lower income Chinese. The income level, education
level and other socioeconomic variables in Kennedy Town were all around the Hong
Kong average in 1986. Corresponding to the physical upgrading of the built environment,
social ‘upgrading’ is also evident within this neighborhood. A growing number of
professionals and expats are moving into the new Kennedy Town luxury buildings.
Kennedy Town was once called “Little Chiu Chow”

16

(Leung, 1999). During the

civil war in China (1945-1949), many residents from Southern China took refuge in Hong
Kong. There was a large population of people from Chiu Chow that moved to Hong
Kong during the period of the civil war. People from Chiu Chow have their own dialect
and were known to be very generous with in-migrants from their home region. They
banded together in very tight communities after they arrived in Hong Kong. Many of
them concentrated in Kennedy Town. People from Chiu Chow are also known for being
good entrepreneurs. During in the 1960s, many grocery stores in this region were run by
the Chiu Chow. However, with the development and redevelopment in recent decades,
the Chiu Chow population is no longer the dominant community in Kennedy Town.
The Census data for Kennedy Town portrays many of the characteristics of an
area experiencing physical and ‘social’ upgrading (Table 5- 1 and Table 5- 2). The total
population of Kennedy Town has declined about 3% from 1986 to 2006. This is largely
reflecting the fact that Kennedy Town is in transition. Many of the old buildings were
torn down and the lots are vacant awaiting redevelopment. Since many of the
redevelopment projects were completed after 2006, the area has actually experienced

16

Chiu Chow is a poor region in Guangdong Province in Mainland China.
157

greater change than the Census data indicates. With the upgrading of the built
environment, median gross rent has increased by 253% from 1986 to 2006. Median gross
rent is now almost two times the Hong Kong average. Median household income and
median employment income have both increased faster than the Hong Kong average. The
median household income and employment income are both about 1.2 times the Hong
Kong average. However, as noted earlier, given that significant changes in the
neighborhood have taken place since 2006, these figures understate the scale of ‘social
upgrading’ that has actually taken place in Kennedy Town.
Table 5- 1 Percentage of Change in major indicators in Kennedy Town, 1986-2006
Major indicators
Percentage of Change (%)
Total population
-3%
Median gross rent
+253%
Median household income
+71%
Median employment income
+101%
College graduates
+554%
Professionals
+187%
Managerial workers
+392%
Craft workers
-72%
Manufacturers
-67%
Owner-occupied housing
+76%
Table 5- 2 Change of percentage in major indicators and comparison to the Hong Kong,
1986-2006
Hong Kong Average
Kennedy Town
1986
2006
1986
2006
College graduate
4.3%
15.3%
4.1%
25.6%
High-end occupations
11.8%
32.8%
13.4%
47.2%
Service sector employments
61.5%
89.6%
78.7%
92.9%
Manufacturing employments
36.0%
9.7%
20.0%
6.9%
Another dramatic increase lies in education attainment. College graduates in
Kennedy Town have increased from about 4.1% of the neighborhood in 1986 to 25.6% in
2006. The percent of college graduates in Kennedy Town is now substantially above the
Hong Kong average of 15.3%.

158

As discussed in the literature, one of the critical drivers of gentrification is the
increase of higher income earners moving into an area, driving an increase in the demand
of upscale housing units. Kennedy Town also reflects this demographic shift. High-end
occupations have increased from 13.4% to 47.2%. More specifically, professionals living
in the area have increased from about 10.1% in 1986 to about 30.3% in 2006. Over the
same period, residents who are managers and administrators have increased from about
3.3% to 16.9%. Service sector employment has also increased from 78.7% to 92.9% of
the neighborhood. In contrast, manufacturing employment has declined significantly,
from 20.0% to only 6.9% of the neighborhood.
Housing characteristics in Kennedy Town have also changed substantially. The
dramatic increase in owner-occupied dwelling units is one of the notable features. The
ratio of owner-occupied dwelling units has increased from 44.5% in 1986 to 64.3% in
2006. The area now largely consists of owner-occupied dwelling units.
5.6. Summary
The case of Kennedy Town, in many ways, represents a typical, and classic, case
of gentrification. Kennedy Town was a traditional working class neighborhood. Gross
rent, income, and education levels in Kennedy Town paralleled Hong Kong’s average in
1986. However, the neighborhood’s location, close to the CBD and along the harborfront,

encouraged

capital

reinvestment

and

‘social

upgrading.’

With

recent

redevelopment efforts, this neighborhood has been transformed into a residential area for
upper-middle income earners which increasingly consist of younger, single professionals,
and a growing number of expats. Median gross rent, median household income, and
median employment income have all been increasing at a higher rate than in Hong Kong

159

and are all significantly above the Hong Kong average as of 2006.
The public and private sectors have increasingly engaged in the redevelopment of
Kennedy Town. While private development firms lead the majority of the redevelopment
projects in Kennedy Town, there are a handful of joint development efforts led by the
Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and private developers. All these projects
involve refurbishing or new build gentrification, which provide luxury units to middle
and middle-upper income earners.
The upgrading of Kennedy Town has involved a larger-number of smaller-scale
redevelopments—generally involving the construction of one or two high-rise structures
at a time. This is likely because the original residents in Kennedy Town were never a
significant social or political threat to the new, private capital reinvestment and higherincome residents moving into the neighborhood. With a large number of smaller-scale
redevelopment projects, Kennedy Town is being slowly transformed from a lower-middle
income neighborhood, which had a clear manufacturing presence, to an upper-middle
income neighborhood for Hong Kong professionals and expats.

160

Chapter 6 Tiu Keng Leng
Tiu Keng Leng is located in the Sai Kung District. It used to be a refugee camp
for Kuomintang soldiers and their families back in the 1950s. After a number of decades
of intensive development and redevelopment, the neighborhood is now a residential area
filled with high-rise buildings, which are largely public housing projects. Different from
the Kennedy Town experience, Tiu Keng Leng was a core poor neighborhood that was
transformed into a lower, to middle-lower-income neighborhood. This was a case of a
core poor population being displaced by a better-off, but still generally poor population.
It presents a seldom discussed case study in the gentrification literature, because the
conflicts over land are among lower income sub-groups. This analysis contributes to
understanding the diversity of gentrification processes and actors involved, because it is
not middle or upper income groups that are the gentrifiers.
In addition, in contrast to Kennedy Town—where the redevelopment processes
were on a relatively small scale, involving the construction of one or two buildings at a
time—Tiu Keng Leng is a reflection of a large scale community clearance and
redevelopment process, driven by the extra-ordinary power of the state. With heavyhanded public involvement, the redevelopment of Tiu Keng Leng was similar to urban
renewal processes in the United States during the mid-20

th

century. It is a case of

redevelopment that very much illustrates the extra-ordinary impacts of government
involvement in land acquisition, community clearance, and community redevelopment.
6.1. The history of Rennie’s Mill
Tiu Keng Leng was once a barren hillside at the bottom of Chiu Keng Wan
161

Mountain, on the south-eastern fringe of the New Territories. Tiu Keng Leng also goes
by the name of Rennie’s Mill. It got its name from a Canadian businessman Alfred
Herbert Rennie (1857-1908) who started a flourmill in this uninhabited area in 1907. He
called the land Rennie’s Mill. However, the business failed and Rennie got into deep
financial trouble. He committed suicide in 1908.

17

The mill was forced to close and the

250,000 square foot-structure was left vacant for a number of years (Jarrett, 1933). It was
then confiscated by a bank and in 1925 sold to the Hong Kong government (Lan, 2006).
The government used the building as a Quarantine Station for three years before
abandoning it. The mill was torn down by the government of Hong Kong in 1935.
The site of Rennie’s Mill would have been abandoned for a longer period of time
if it was not used as a temporary camp to house refugees after the Chinese civil war.

18

A

considerable number of refugees from China migrated to Hong Kong, including about
6,800 former Nationalist soldiers and other Kuomintang supporters. These refugees first
gathered around the abandoned military barracks on Mount Davis. The group not only
created a serious financial burden

19

for the Hong Kong Government, they also raised a

17

It is believed that Rennie killed himself by hanging. Since then, the place is called Tiu
Keng Leng where “tiu keng” in Cantonese can mean hang over and “leng” means ridge.
Currently, Tiu Keng Leng is pronounced a little bit differently to avoid the inauspicious
meaning. Literally “Tiu Keng Leng” means “ridge of pleasant scenery.”
18

The Chinese civil war resumed between the Kuomintang (also called the Chinese
Nationalist Party) and the Communist party from 1946 to 1949. Kuomintang was
defeated and forced to flee to Taiwan. With the Kuomintang’s defeat, the Communist
party established the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949.
19

The cost of feeding the refugees was high. It cost the Hong Kong government around
US$ 229 (HK$ 1,775) a day or over US$ 6,832 (HK$ 53,000) a month to feed all the
refugees (Lan, 2006).

162

sensitive political issue: the conflict between the Nationalist and the Communist Party.
After the “Rice Seeding Dance Incident,” involving fighting between Nationalist and
Communist supporters in June of 1950, the Hong Kong government decided to resettle
the refugees to a more secluded area to prevent further tensions (Lan, 2006). The
government intention, however, was still to place the camp within the vicinity of Hong
Kong.
On June 26, 1950, the Nationalist soldiers were relocated to Tiu Keng Leng by
ferry (Chen, 2010). Initially, the goal was to settle these refugees temporarily before they
would eventually be repatriated to Taiwan or return back to Mainland China. Because the
resettlement was an ad hoc action by the Hong Kong government, there was no
comprehensive planning. In fact, no attempt had ever been made to plan the site because
the area was designed to be a temporary refugee camp. The government intended to close
the camp as soon as the refugees’ repatriated to either Taiwan or Mainland China. No one
expected that Tiu Keng Leng would become a long-term settlement. Even though the
Hong Kong government tried to resettle former Kuomintang soldiers and their families,
the repatriation was denied by both the governments in Taiwan and Beijing (Lan, 2006).
Living in Tiu Keng Leng was harsh for the original settlers (Figure 6- 1). Most
refugees were housed in tents made of waterproof tarpaper and timber frame. Electricity,
clean water and sanitation facilities were not available. In addition, there were no roads
inside or surrounding the refugee camp. The camp was also generally isolated from the
outside world (Figure 6- 2). A ninety-minute-hike was required before residents could
reach the “nearby” neighborhood of Lei Yu Men. Only from there could they take a boat
to Hong Kong Island (Wang, 1960). It has been argued that the government deliberately

163

isolated the camp and made it undesirable so that the refugees would leave the camp
voluntarily. However, as more people moved into the settlement—seeking free
government food rations and missionary relief supplies—the population increased and
shanty huts continued to be built (Lan, 2006). In order to induce voluntary relocation
from Tiu Keng Leng and to discourage further migration into the camp, the Social
Welfare Office, which was run by the Hong Kong government, suspended its foodrationing program in 1953 (FCRA , 1960).

Figure 6- 1 Squatters in Tiu Keng Leng (1952)
Source: Hong Kong Public Library

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Figure 6- 2 Tiu Keng Leng (1955)
Source: Website of Alunmi Associations of Ming Yuen Middle School,
http://www.hkmyms.net/50es/1955_wholeview.jpg
While the Hong Kong government played only a marginal role in the
development of Tiu Keng Leng during its early years, two quasi-official relief bodies
closely affiliated with Taiwan had a strong influence on Tiu Keng Leng. These two
organizations were the Free China Relief Association (FCRA) and the Aid Refugee
Chinese Intellectual Incorporated (ARCI). Since the termination of the government foodrationing program, these charitable bodies stepped in and took the responsibility of
providing social welfare to residents.
In addition, with the help of these charitable agencies, the infrastructure within the
camp was also improved. A dam, a reservoir, a library, community centers, a clinic, a TB
sanatorium, a pier and public toilets were built during the 1950s (Wang, 1960). Another
major improvement was in education. With charity support, Tiu Keng Leng became an

165

“education hub.” There were five middle schools, nine primary schools and three
kindergartens in Tiu Keng Leng at the peak of its education boom (Lan, 2006). Given
that the two major charity bodies were affiliated with Taiwan, most residents became
loyal to the Kuomintang. Almost every household’s rooftop had a Kuomintang flag.

20

On

th

October 10 , Taiwan’s National Day, Kuomintang flags and banners were hung
throughout Tiu Keng Leng.

21

Since the Hong Kong government had a hands-off policy, a self-organized
community was formed in Tiu Keng Leng. Supported by money from Taiwan, the camp
was run by local residents. In order to manage the camp, the whole neighborhood was
divided into five districts. Each district was then divided into sub-districts and semi-subdistricts. In addition to being engaged in managing the camp, residents were also
involved in constructing roads. They built paths within the neighborhood as well as roads
connecting Tiu Keng Leng to the outside world. As a result, roads in Tiu Keng Leng were
expanded from 0 feet in 1950 to a total of 7,475 feet in 1961 (Lan, 2006).
In 1953, after a pier was built, a ferry running between Tiu Keng Leng and Shau
Kei Wan, on Hong Kong Island, also came into service. The improvement in accessibility
made Tiu Keng Leng less isolated. From that point, some camp residents started to
venture out of the settlement for job opportunities. Also, some became self-employed as

20

Activities of Hong Kong Rennie’s Mill Refugee Camp Relief Committee
(XianggangDiaojinglingying Nanmin Gaikuang). Hong Kong: Gangjiu Gejie
Diaojingling NanminWeiyuanhui, 1959)

21

th

October 10 is the national day for Republic of China which was established in 1912.
th

After Kuomintang came to rule in Taiwan October 10 was and is celebrated as its
national day.

166

grocers, barbers and shop owners (Wang, 1960). With the newly earned income, more
people started to build houses using wood and bricks, replacing the tents and shabby huts
that they had been living in. Even though residents in Tiu Keng Leng were still
considered the extreme poor, overall improvements in the settlement were becoming
evident (Lan, 2006).
6.2. From a camp to resettlement cottage estate
Along with the natural population growth, people also began moving into Tiu
Keng Leng due to the fact that anyone could build their own house freely in the
settlement (Lan, 2006). However, although improvements were being made in the living
environment, many basic facilities were still absent. The government eventually realized
the need to provide supervision and it took Tiu Keng Leng under its direct control. It was
not just traditional neighborhood planning issues that Hong Kong was concerned with.
The government was afraid that Tiu Keng Leng might become a hotbed for
Nationalists to carry out anti-communist activities in Hong Kong. The government
decided to convert Tiu Keng Leng from a refugee camp to a resettlement estate. Most
inhabitants in Tiu Keng Leng were against this conversion, as they were afraid that
government interference might change their way of life. They were afraid, in particular,
that this conversion of local responsibility to the Hong Kong government might lead to
the demolishment of their houses to make way for new construction and development
(Lan, 2006). After negotiations, the government promised that the demolishment of
existing buildings would be kept to a minimum. The government also pledged that all
existing residents could remain in their properties as long as they agreed to pay a permit
fee (FCRA, 1993).

167

The conversion of the camp to a resettlement estate was carried out in March of
1961 (Chen, 2010). The “Camp” was officially transformed into a “resettlement area,”
coming under the supervision of Hong Kong’s Resettlement Department. All inhabitants
were immediately registered as “settlers” instead of “refugees” (Lan, 2006). As the
government required, each household needed to pay a permit fee.

22

Also, inhabitants

could no longer enjoy the right to construct dwellings as they wished. Government
approval was required for any new building construction. Those who refused to accept
the government rules and regulations could be evicted from their properties (Lan, 2006).
In return, the government provided electricity, clean water, sanitary facilities as
well as police, fire and postal services to the residents. More roads were constructed to
connect the neighborhood to other parts of Hong Kong. Regular public transportation
also became available to the residents in Tiu Keng Leng. With improvement in
accessibility, job opportunities increased for the residents.
Many of the residents began to work in the manufacturing sector in Kwun Tong, a
nearby industrial district. Kwun Tong was the first industrial zone in Hong Kong, with a
high concentration of textile and clothing manufacturers (He, 2009). A ship demolition
company also opened in Tiu Keng Leng, hiring many locals (HKRS, 1961). In addition,
Tiu Keng Leng residents were being hired in the public sector, as the Hong Kong
government gave priority to locals when filling government positions in the resettlement
22

The permit fee is a quarterly fee for occupying government-owned land. The mount of
the permit fee is determined by the size of the site each household occupies. For example,
the permit fee for a “cottage” around 200 square feet would be US$1.30 (HK$10) each
quarter. Memo from J.T.Wakefield (for Colonial Secretary) to Commissioner for
Resettlement, Director of Information Services, Commissioner of Police (December 28,
1960) in HKRS No. 890, D & S 2/44, Proposed Rolling Mill Near Rennie’s Mill Camp,
p.1.

168

area (Lan, 2006). With the increasing employment of residents, the housing conditions
started to further improve. The wooden structures were gradually replaced by brickcottages with asbestos roofing. In addition, the Hong Kong government’s investment in
infrastructure and public facilities also improved the environment of the neighborhood
(South China Morning Post, 1962).
After the government “takeover,” Tiu Keng Leng began to integrate socially with
Hong Kong. It was no longer isolated from the outside world. With the socio-economic
improvements and imposed restrictions on new housing construction, many original
residents voluntarily relocated to other places. The government had also facilitated this
process. Unlike residents in other resettlement areas, the Hong Kong government offered
the residents in Tiu Keng Leng an opportunity to resell their properties. Many people, in
fact, did sell their properties, which made it possible for outsiders to move in (Lan, 2006).
The population makeup began to gradually change and the neighborhood became less
associated with the Kuomintang regime in Taiwan. Although nationalist festivities were
still celebrated in Tiu Keng Leng, the anti-communist atmosphere and the Taiwan
influence was slowly beginning to diminish (Figure 6- 3).

169

Figure 6- 3 Tiu Keng Leng (1970)
Source: Hong Kong Public Library
6.3. Clearance of the resettlement
Due to the increasing housing demand for the exploding Hong Kong population,
the government decided to develop the new town program in the New Territories
beginning in the 1950s. In 1983, the Hong Kong government started the new town
development in Tseung Kwan O. In the early 1990s, the government decided to demolish
the whole neighborhood of Tiu Keng Leng to make room for the second phase of the
Tseung Kwan O New Town development. Whether the clearance of the “Kuomintang
enclave” was due to the new town development or more for political reasons is arguable
(Chen, 2010).
Some have maintained that the major reason for the clearance was the
approaching handover of Hong Kong on July 1, 1997 to the People’s Republic of China.
Although the demographic patterns in Tiu Keng Leng had changed substantially, and the

170

pro-Nationalist flavor had diminished, the neighborhood was still perceived as “Little
Taiwan.” It was believed that the central Chinese government would not tolerate such a
settlement within its jurisdiction (Lan, 2006).
The residents of Tiu Keng Leng were brought into a new round of conflicts over land
with the Hong Kong government when the clearance plan was announced in 1992. The
residents soon initiated a legal battle. The residents argued that the government had
violated the pledge it made when Tiu Keng Leng was turned into a resettlement area in
1961. The pledge ensured the residents’ right to stay in Tiu Keng Leng permanently. The
court agreed that the government had broken its promise by evicting the residents
(FRAC, 1993). However, the court’s judgment, and the local resistance to the clearance,
did not change the fate of Tiu Keng Leng. It did, however, bring the Hong Kong
government into a negotiation process with the residents in order to develop a
compensation package for the soon-to-be displaced. Initially in 1995, the government
offered the residents four thousand dollars per person if they would leave their properties.
The residents were also given priority to be accommodated at nearby public housing
estates (Sunday Morning Post Magazine, 1996).
The residents were upset by the compensation, as the government did not take the
value of their houses or their land into consideration when determining the compensation
sum. Lawsuits were again filed and protests continued. A protest requesting the
intervention of the Taiwan Government over the compensation of the displacement
caught international attention (Chen, 1995). In response, the Hong Kong government
agreed to offer more substantial compensation. First, the government added US$39
(HK$300) per square foot of the ground floor of the dwellings as part of the

171

compensation, and then it raised this sum to US$77 (HK$600) per square foot of both the
ground floor and first floor. Eventually, an agreement was reached of US$84 per square
foot (HK$650.56 per square foot, or HK$7,000 per square meter) (Sunday Morning Post
Magazine, 1996). The average price of private residential housing, for a size of 431 to
753 square feet, in 1996 was US$52 (HK$400) per square foot in the New Territory and
US$73 (HK$567) per square foot on Hong Kong Island.

23

In the end, while many locals were satisfied with their final compensation package—
at least for those who received it—it came after extensive court and political battles. In
addition, ultimately, the residents were forcibly displaced from their community and the
existing social network within the community was uprooted. All historical local ties to
Tiu Keng Leng were erased. Tiu Keng Leng was cleared on April 1996 and demolished
in 1997 (Figure 6- 4 and Figure 6- 5). A total of 1,661 squatting houses were demolished,
while 2,179 families and 6,000 residents were displaced (Tam 2001). The majority of the
affected residents were resettled in Hau Tak Estate in the Tseung Kwan O district, a
neighborhood outside of the Tiu Keng Leng settlement.

23

Private Domestic - Average Prices by Class (from 1982), Rating and Valuation
Department.

172

Figure 6- 4 Former Tiu Keng Leng development with Kuomintang flags (1995)
Source: GAKEI.com

173

Figure 6- 5 Tiu Keng Leng before demolishment in the foreground, with encroaching new
developments and construction in the background (1995)
Source: GAKEI.com
6.4. Redevelopment efforts of Tiu Keng Leng
Tiu Keng Leng was torn down and redeveloped as part of the Tseng Kwan O new
town development. According to the government’s plan in 1996, Tiu Keng Leng was to
provide more than 20,000 flats to house around 55,000 people after redevelopment. In
total, the Tseung Kwan O area was intended to accommodate 450,000 people by 2010
(Yeung , 1996).
The once isolated settlement, which lacked basic road provision, now consists of a
concentrated development of high-rises with its own metro station. With a key aspect of
Hong Kong’s redevelopment program focused on improving accessibility, considerable
public resources were directed at connecting Tiu Keng Leng with the rest of Hong Kong.
The area is now served by the MTR metro system and the local station is called Tiu Keng
174

Leng.
Directly above the Tiu Keng Leng Station sits a large residential high-rise
development project—called Metro Town—jointly developed by Cheung Kong Holdings,
Nan Fung Group, and the MTR Corporation (Centadata, 2013) (Figure 6- 6 and Figure 67). Metro Town is one of the new landmarks in Tiu Keng Leng. The site is 8 acres with a
domestic gross floor area of 2,550,670 square feet. Metro Town Phase One consists of
four towers, ranging from 617 to 673 feet in height (Emporis, 2013c). The project was
completed in 2006 and provides 1,676 upscale residential units.
Phase Two (named Le Point) consists of another five towers. It was completed in
2008 and provides 2,096 units. The average unit size is about 676 square feet. Targeting
the upper income earners, Metro Town has the biggest club house in the Tseung Kwan O
District. In addition to the residential space, the project also provides 180,834 square feet
of retail space (Emporis, 2013d).
The MTR Corporation is now a privatized major property developer and landlord
in Hong Kong, although it was established in 1975 as a government-owned statutory
corporation to run the Mass Transit Railway metro system (MTR Corporation, 2012).
Having received development rights over land, the MTR Corporation has become
actively involved in the development of residential and commercial projects near its
railway stations. In fact, the major profits of the MTR are from property development and
property ownership and management, making it one of the few profitable public transport
systems in the world.
According to the 2006 annual report, the MTR made US$748 million (HK$5.8
billion) in profit from property development and another US$142 million (HK$1.1 billion)

175

from property ownership and management. In comparison, the profit from transport
operations was US$529 million (HK$4.1 billion) (MTR Corporation, 1996). In 2000, the
government started its initiative to reduce interests in various public utilities. It sold 23%
of its issued share capital of the MTR to private investors in an Initial Public Offering
(MTR Corporation, 2012). The MTR is now a privatized company listed on the Hong
Kong Exchange. However, the Hong Kong government still continues to be the largest
stakeholder.

176

Figure 6- 6 Metro Town above Tiu Keng Leng MTR station (2012)
Source: Author

177

Figure 6- 7 Metro Town is a large scale private development (2012)
Source: Author
To the south of Metro Town sits another large-scale private development called
Ocean Shores (Figure 6- 8). This project was jointly developed by Swire Properties

178

Limited and Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd, two of the major developers in Hong Kong.
The site was previously used by the Shui Wing Ship Demolition Company for its
steelworks (Apple daily, 2006). The developers bought the site at a price of US$1.6
billion (HK$12.7 billion) in 1997. The total investment in the project has been US$3.2
billion (HK$25 billion) (Apple daily, 2006). The site has been developed into 19 towers
of 50-story buildings. It provides 5,728 dwelling units in total, with a residential gross
floor area of 4,036,466 square feet. The project was completed in 2002 and is now one of
the most luxurious housing estates in Tseng Kwan O.

Figure 6- 8 Ocean Shores (2012)
Source: Author
Across the street from Metro Town stands a new Tiu Keng Leng landmark
designed by French architects Coldefy & Ass. The building belongs to the Hong Kong
Design Institute (Figure 6- 9). The structure was completed in 2010 and cost US$155
179

million (HK$ 1.2 billion).

Figure 6- 9 Hong Kong Design Institute in Tiu Keng Leng (2012)
Source: Author
Despite the significant private investment, the public sector remains the largest
investor in the redevelopment of Tiu Keng Leng. The government has the ambition of
providing 12,000 units of public housing in the neighborhood. Public housing has been a
priority after the original cottage area was demolished.
The Tiu Keng Leng slope was flattened into two huge parcels to construct the Kin
Ming Estate and the Choi Ming Court. Both properties are owned by the Hong Kong
Housing Authority (Hong Kong Housing Authority, 2013b; 2013c). Choi Ming Court
was completed in 2001. It consists of 6 high-rise blocks and 1,920 units, ranging from
506 to 646 square feet (Figure 6- 10). This development is part of a program called the

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Home Ownership Scheme.
The Home Ownership Scheme is a subsidized-sales program which targets lowerincome earners to purchase public housing. It provides an option for low-income
residents—with somewhat higher incomes—to purchase their own condominium units.
The Kin Ming Estate, which consists of 10 high-rise blocks, was also designed to be part
of the Home Ownership Scheme (Figure 6- 11). However, the government terminated the
program in 2002. When completed in 2003, the Kin Ming Estate became a rental housing
project. The Kin Ming Estate now provides 7,000 rental units ranging from 183 to 527
square feet.

Figure 6- 10 Choi Ming Court (2008)
Source: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Choi_Ming_Court.jpg

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Figure 6- 11 Kin Ming Estate (2007)
Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Kin_Ming_Estate.jpg
Another major public housing project in this area is the Shin Ming Estate (Figure
6- 12). It consists of two blocks of high-rise public housing, which were completed in
2011. The Shin Ming Estate now provides 2,000 rental units to low-income earners, with
the size of each unit ranging from 152 to 421 square feet.

182

Figure 6- 12 Shin Ming Estate (2012)
Source: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Shin_Ming_Estate_2012_part3.JPG
Figure 6-13 shows the location of the major redevelopment projects in Tiu Keng
Leng.

183

Figure 6- 13 Major redevelopment projects in Tiu Keng Leng
6.5. Data of trends from 1986 to 2006
This once isolated and impoverished refugee camp has been transformed into an

184

intensively-developed residential area, with a high concentration of high-rise residential
complexes. With this large-scale redevelopment process, the original inhabitants were
completely erased from Tiu Keng Leng, imposing significant changes in the makeup of
the community.
The census data for Tiu Keng Leng portrays many of the characteristics of an area
experiencing physical and social upgrading (Table 6- 1 and Table 6- 2). But, this case
study presents a physical and social upgrading process that is very different from that of
Kennedy Town. Tiu Keng Leng is a case of large-scale government clearance and
redevelopment, and not the more piecemeal redevelopment process of Kennedy Town.
This large-scale public development and redevelopment project has brought about major
changes in this neighborhood over a two decade period.
The total population of Tiu Keng Leng has increased by about 948% over just
twenty years. The median gross rent has also experienced a dramatic increase, a total of
170% from 1986 to 2006. However, despite the rent increase, the median gross rent in
Tiu Keng Leng is still much lower than the Hong Kong average. It has increased from
62.7% to 76.7% of the Hong Kong average. The low median rent is largely related to the
high percentage of public housing that is being built in the neighborhood.
Median household income and median employment income in Tiu Keng Leng
have both increased faster than the Hong Kong average, with an increase of 108% and
132% respectively. The median household income and employment income were about
72.5% and 82.8% of the Hong Kong average back in 1986. By 2006, both the median
household income and employment income were about the same as the Hong Kong
average.

185

Table 6- 1 Percentage of Change in major indicators in Tiu Keng Leng, 1986-2006
Major indicators
Percentage of Change (%)
Total population
+948%
Median gross rent
+170%
Median household income
+108%
Median employment income
+132%
College graduates
+10,923%
Professionals
+3,037%
Managerial workers
+17,883%
Craft workers
+260%
Manufacturers
+173%
Owner-occupied housing
+523%

Table 6- 2 Change of percentage in major indicators and comparison to the Hong Kong,
1986-2006
Hong Kong Average
Tiu Keng Leng
1986
2006
1986
2006
College graduates
4.3%
15.3%
1.7%
17.9%
High-end occupations
11.8%
32.8%
8.8%
35.2%
Service sector employment
61.5%
89.6%
62.7%
90.5%
Manufacturing employment
36.0%
9.7%
36.3%
8.8%

Tiu Keng Leng has also experienced a large increase in educational attainment
among its residents. The population of college graduates has increased by 10,923% over
twenty years. The neighborhood had a lower percentage of college graduates than the
Hong Kong average in 1986. College graduates have increased in Tiu Keng Leng from
about 1.8% of the neighborhood population in 1986 to 17.9% of the neighborhood
population in 2006. The percentage of college graduates in Tiu Keng Leng is now above
the Hong Kong average.
Similar to other gentrified neighborhoods, Tiu Keng Leng is experiencing an
increase in higher income earners. Professionals, along with managers and administrators,
have increased dramatically from 1986 to 2006. Professionals have increased by 3,037%
and managers and administrators have increased by 17,883% over the twenty year period.

186

In 1986, only 8.0% of the employed population was comprised of professionals in Tiu
Keng Leng. By 2006, this figure had increased to 22.6%. Similarly, the percentage of
managers and administrators has increased dramatically, from less than 1% of the
neighborhood in 1986 to 12.5% in 2006. In contrast, the neighborhood has experienced a
huge drop in the percentage of the population employed as craft and related workers,
from 43.7% in 1986 to only 13.9% in 2006.
In terms of the percentage of the employed population working in different
industries, a huge drop is evident in manufacturing. The percentage of the employed
population in manufacturing has dropped from 36.3% to 8.8%. In contrast, the percentage
of the population employed in finance, insurance, real estate & business services has
increased from 5.2% to 17.5%. In terms of actual numbers, this represents a 3,660%
increase in the population employed in these service sectors. The percentage of the
employed population in wholesale, retail & import/export trades, restaurant & hotels, as
well as in community, social & personal services has also increased substantially.
In terms of home ownership characteristics, the number of housing units, as well
as owner-occupied housing units, have both experienced a substantial increase. However,
the ratio of owner-occupied housing units has decreased. This can be explained by the
large-scale construction of public housing projects built in Tiu Keng Leng between the
years 1986 and 2006. Although there have been many private housing units constructed
in the area, the majority of housing units are part of the Hong Kong government’s public
housing projects. As of 2006, the percentage of public housing in Tiu Keng Leng stands
at 67%, showing the extensive and extra-ordinary impact of the state in this
redevelopment project.

187

6.6. Summary
Tiu Keng Leng is a neighborhood that is now adjacent to Hong Kong’s growing
urban core. It was originally set up as a temporary refugee camp to settle thousands of
Kuomintang supporters and their families during the 1950s. After a few decades of
development and redevelopment, it has been transformed from a refugee camp to a stable
residential Hong Kong neighborhood, with concentrated public housing development as
well as some new upscale private high-rise complexes (Figure 6- 14).

D

B
A
C

Figure 6- 14 Tiu Keng Leng, a concentration of newly developed high-rises, and
particularly public housing projects, with all physical remnants of the original community
erased (2012)
Note: A is Kin Ming Estates, B is Choi Ming Court, C is Shin Ming Estates, and D is
Metro Town.
Source: http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tiu_Keng_Leng_2012_part6.JPG

188

The original residents of Tiu Keng Leng built up their homes and their
community from scratch, after being abandoned on an isolated piece of land. They were
encouraged by the government to settle freely on this site using whatever resources they
could find to build their community. With extensive international financial aid, the
refugees managed to build a self-contained settlement. In 1961, the government turned
Tiu Keng Leng into a resettlement area in order to take it under its own control. The
government revoked the local privilege of constructing new houses freely, but promised
the residents the right to reside on the site permanently, as long as they followed the
Resettlement Ordinance.
With improvements in accessibility and increasing employment opportunities
during the 1960s, 1970s and into the 1980s, some of the original residents moved out,
while newcomers from Hong Kong started to move in. This growing mobility among the
refugees began to change the character of the original settlement. Along with the dilution
of the original population with Hong Kong residents, the volatile political atmosphere in
Tiu Keng Leng began to soften. The once-refugee camp, with staunch support for the
Kuomintang, had gradually transformed into a residential neighborhood on the outskirts
of urban Hong Kong. During the 1990s, the government broke its promise as it moved to
demolish the whole resettlement area of Tiu Keng Leng and replace it with concentrated
high-rise public housing. With the tearing-down of the neighborhood, the unique identity
and history of Tiu Keng Leng has been erased.
No one had anticipated this astonishing development of Tiu Keng Leng. From a
temporary refugee camp to a pro-Kuomintang suburban enclave, and finally to a welldeveloped residential area in Hong Kong known for its concentrated public housing. The

189

Hong Kong government has played a key role in this transformation. In the early years,
the government adopted a hands-off policy in Tiu Keng Leng and tolerated its existence,
as it saw no immediate use for the land on which the original settlement was built. But
with a growing interest in new town development, and with the political changeover, the
government became actively involved in the redevelopment of the neighborhood.
Unlike in Kennedy Town, the physical and social upgrading process in Tiu Keng
Leng was on a large scale, facilitated by the extra-ordinary impacts of government. This
is evident in the changing urban form and in the socio-economic and demographic makeup evident in the census data. This large scale urban renewal project has enabled a
dramatic transformation of the community, from a refugee camp housing the core-poor,
to a lower-income and middle-lower-income neighborhood dominated by public housing
and a growing number of workers employed in Hong Kong’s service economy.
As Hong Kong grew and expanded, the neighborhood found itself in relatively
good proximity to the urban core, a position further improved by its subway station. The
original physical environment of this community was eventually completely erased by
the large-scale construction of new high-rises, and particularly the large-scale public
housing initiatives that erased the last imprints of the “Kuomintang enclave.” The only
remnant of the original neighborhood is a bronze sculpture—located in Hau Tak Estate—
depicting the former refugee camp.
Only after the announcement of the demolishment did the public and academics in
Hong Kong start to pay attention to Tiu Keng Leng. A number of articles and TV
programs appeared in magazines and public media in Hong Kong and overseas
discussing the history of Tiu Keng Leng. However, the development and redevelopment

190

processes of Tiu Keng Leng have never been studied in detail.
The changes in Tiu Keng Leng were visually the most dramatic, as this
neighborhood transformed from a refugee camp, to a pro-Kuomintang enclave, to an
increasingly-stable Hong Kong residential area known for its concentrated public
housing. The original characteristics of this neighborhood, as a refugee camp and as a
concentration of the core-poor, necessitated large-scale government intervention to
facilitate redevelopment. As the interest for new town development grew, and with the
political unification with China, the government erased the whole community.
It is worth-while recognizing that the redevelopment of this once-refugee camp
parallels Podagrosi and Vojnovic (2008) and Podagrosi et al. (2011) analyses of
cleansing and redeveloping black underclass neighborhoods in the US. Small-scale
upgrading within the context of ghettos is too risky for potential investors and gentrifiers,
necessitating the state to become involved in the land-assembly, redevelopment, and
erasure of the whole neighborhood. The high concentration of a threatening population
will generally require the extra-ordinary powers of government to facilitate
redevelopment.

191

Chapter 7 Yuen Long
Similar to Tiu Keng Leng, Yuen Long was a lower-income neighborhood that
was transformed into a middle-lower-income neighborhood. Yuen Long, however,
represents a case of gentrification in the urban periphery. This neighborhood has
undergone a rapid transformation from its rural township status—consisting of 17

th

century Chinese villages, farms, and more recently, industrial suburbs and industrial
workers—into a new town increasingly characterized by high-rises and a growing
population of clerks, administrators and professionals working in Hong Kong’s new
service economy.
Yuen Long, located in the Northwest New Territories, is one of the oldest
settlements in Hong Kong.

24

Its origins are traced back to as early as the 17

th

century.

Geographically, Yuen Long is located on an alluvial plain, the Yuen Long Plain. Farming
villages started to form when early settlers gathered in the area, taking advantage of the
rich fields. Yuen Long also became a market town, serving as the trading center of the
surrounding farming villages in the region (Figure 7- 1). Early settlement and town
development centered around the market, while its periphery remained largely
agricultural, traditionally giving the area much of its rural flavor (Ho, 2009).

24

Yuen Long is the name given to a number of different jurisdictions, including Yuen
Long District, Yuen Long Plain, Yuen Long New Town, and Yuen Long Town. In this
chapter, Yuen Long refers to Yuen Long Town, unless otherwise stated. This qualitative
study will focus on TPU 524, which covers a major portion of Yuen Long Town, and the
TPU that was identified in the quantitative analysis as an area experiencing social
upgrading. It is bounded by the Ma Tong Rd in the south, Sham Pui River to the west,
Yuen Long Highway to the east, and Tung Tau Industrial Area to the north.

192

Figure 7- 1 The rural setting of Yuen Long (1951)
Source: http://blog.terewong.com/archives/2926
The case of Yuen Long, with gentrification in the suburbs and rural areas,
strengthens the importance of understanding gentrification as a diverse and complex
process that can occur beyond the boundary of the urban core. This is redevelopment, and
physical and social upgrading, at the urban periphery. The displacement in this
redevelopment process involves villages and farm communities in the suburbs and rural
areas of Hong Kong, and in some cases, it also includes the displacement of older public
housing projects built as part of Hong Kong’s New Town Program.
th

st

The redevelopment of Yuen Long in the latter 20 and 21 centuries represents a
unique case of class struggles rarely discussed in the gentrification literature. This
qualitative analysis of gentrification at the urban periphery—a case of gentrification
acknowledged by only limited studies to date (Phillips, 1993; Gonen, 2004; Stockdale,

193

2010)—adds a further dimension to the diversity of gentrification and its actors in the
context of Hong Kong. Here farmers and peasants of traditional Chinese villages, with
some villages being over three hundred years old, are involved in the teardown,
displacement and redevelopment process.
7.1. Government Driven Reinvestment, Redevelopment and Displacement: 1960-1980
With the civil war in China during the 1940s, a large influx of immigrants from
Mainland China came into Yuen Long, leading to a dramatic population increase. In
1962, the population of Yuen Long had reached 34,000 (Wong, 1996). The influx of
immigrants led to housing shortage, generating a sharp increase in residential real estate
prices in the area. At the same time, this population increase also stimulated the
development of manufacturing as it provided a large pool of cheap labor. The majority of
the manufacturing is agricultural-related, including food processing, fertilizers, and
agricultural tool-making (Wong, 1996). With limited education, a large segment of these
immigrants made a living working in the local factories or farming land rented from the
local villagers.
Along with the population increase, there was an increasing demand for lowpriced housing. The rural-housing real estate market became more active and new
development pressures emerged in the villages. Temporary structures and squatter houses
became increasingly common in the village landscapes. Through an application for a
Modification of Tenancy or a Crown Land License through the District Office, a nonvillager could build a temporary domestic structure of up to 400 square feet (Chun,
2000). Along with the squatter houses and temporary structures, there was also an
increasing demand for rentals and outright purchase of existing houses from the local

194

villagers. With the growing presence of ‘outsiders,’ the make-up of the villages became
increasingly mixed.
During the 1970s, a new and added layer of development pressures emerged in
Yuen Long. With the population of Hong Kong itself rapidly increasing, and with
congestion growing in urban Hong Kong, the Hong Kong government initiated the New
Town Development Program in 1973 (New Territories North Development Office
Territory Development Department, 2003). The goal was to decentralize the city’s
population. Since the initiation of this program, nine new towns, including Yuen Long
New Town, have been developed.

25

Yuen Long New Town involved the expansion and

redevelopment of the old Yuen Long Town (New Territories North Development Office
Territory Development Department, 2003). In the initial years of redevelopment, this was
heavily facilitated through public investment.
The establishment of Yuen Long New Town in 1978 opened up Yuen Long for
rapid urban development and redevelopment—residential, commercial and industrial.
Since 1978, manufacturing investments in Yuen Long rapidly increased. The increase in
manufacturing investment in Yuen Long initiated two large-scale industrial
26

developments—Yuen Long Industrial Estate and Tung Tau Industrial Estate —which

25

Yuen Long New Town is a second generation new town. According to Hong Kong’s
New Towns and New Major Urban Developments program, the nine new towns could be
divided into three time periods. The first generation program was initiated in the early
1970s. It includes new towns such as Tsuen Wan, Sha Tin and Tuen Mun. The second
generation new towns were established in the late 1970s and include Tai Po,
Fanling/Sheung Shui and Yuen Long. The third generation program started in the 1980s
and 1990s. It includes new towns such as Tseung Kwan O, Tin Shui Wai and Tung
Chung.
26

Industrial Estates in Hong Kong are industrial lands zoned by government as industrial
parks. These zoned areas offer developed lands at competitive rates for manufacturing
195

were set up in the early 1980s to provide large areas of industrial space for the thriving
manufacturing sector.
Accessibility to Yuen Long was also improved with new public investment in
transportation infrastructure. Due to the relatively long distance from Hong Kong’s urban
center,

27

and the region’s poor accessibility in general, Yuen Long New Town developed

at a much slower pace during the 1970s compared to other new towns. Investment into
the area was spurred when a more robust transportation network was developed. A light
rail service connecting different parts of the Northwest New Territories

28

began in 1988.

In addition, Highway Route 3, which links Yuen Long to Hong Kong Island (Sai Yin
Pun) was opened in 1997. The West Rail Line was also introduced in 2003, connecting
the Northwest New Territories to Hong Kong’s urban core. With the new rail
connections, the travel time from Yuen Long to Hong Kong’s urban center was
shortened, from one hour during the 1990s to half an hour since the West Rail Line began
operating in 2003 (Ho, 2009).
Transportation infrastructure improvements also improved the links between
Yuen Long and surrounding satellite cities, further improving the strategic location of
Yuen Long. The Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Corridor opened in 2007. It is the fourth
vehicular boundary crossing to Mainland China and it shortens the travel time from Yuen
Long to Shenzhen to just ten minutes. These infrastructure projects involved extensive
investment from the Hong Kong government, with the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western
and service industries.
27

Yuen Long is 25 miles from Hong Kong’s urban core.

28

This rail runs mainly between and within Tuen Mun New Town and Yuen Long New
Town.

196

29

Corridor project alone costing US$412 million (HK$3,200 million).

With the Yuen Long economy developing and accessibility to Hong Kong’s urban
center improving, housing demand in Yuen Long began to increase. The Hong Kong
government reacted by building three public housing estates in the region. Yuen Long
Estate, the first public housing project in Yuen Long, was built in 1968 but demolished
by 2001. The original redevelopment plan of constructing 2,000 public housing units was
cut back early in the project. Part of the site, some 132,826 square feet, was sold to
Cheung Kong Holdings (Carlford Investments) at the price of US$ 310 million (HK$2.41
billion) for the development of private housing (Hong Kong Business, 2013). The other
two public housing projects, Shui Pin Wai Estate and Long Ping Estate, are still in use,
providing 2,300 and 4,500 units respectively, to lower income populations. The site of
Shui Pin Wai Estate used to belong to Shui Pin Wai Tsuen.

30

When the six towers of

highrise public housing were built in 1979, only a small portion of the Shui Ping Wai
Tsuen survived.
There was also a subsidized-sale program of public housing offered in Yuen
Long. This involved public financial assistance in building dwelling units that were sold
to qualified buyers. Eligibility was subject to publicly set criteria, including age, family
composition, residence rule, income, assets and property ownership restrictions.
Generally speaking, the income limit was about the same as the Hong Kong median
income. Fung Ting Court, which was completed in 2001, offered 312 dwelling units to be

29

Finalized
project
cost
data
is
from
Highways
Department.
http://www.hyd.gov.hk/eng/road_and_railway/road_projects/6759th/index.htm
30

“Tsuen” means village.

197

purchased, with the project being heavily subsidized by the Hong Kong government. All
units were sold at a discount price that was 30% to 40% lower than the market value. The
site of Fung Ting Court was actually an industrial park, formerly the Yuen Long Factory
Estate. Built in 1966, the Yuen Long Factory Estate provided 405 factory units to squatter
factories and cottage workshops. With the decline of manufacturing in Hong Kong, only
108 tenants were left when the redevelopment plan was announced in 1995, which erased
the last remaining industrial buildings on the site (LegCo, 1998).

31

7.2. Private Sector Reinvestment, Redevelopment and Displacement: 1980-2010
While the public sector was extensively involved in early residential development
in Yuen Long, in recent decades, it has left local real estate development primarily in the
hands of private developers. This lower level of government involvement in housing
provision in Yuen Long is evident in the relatively low percentage of public housing units
that are currently offered in the region. Generally speaking, the construction of public
housing is the major impetus for the growth of new towns in Hong Kong (Wang and Yeh,
1987). The percentage of the population living in public housing in the new towns is
relatively high, 62.8% as of 2001. In an extreme case, 90.1% of the population in Tseung
Kwan O New Town lived in public housing in 1996. However, the proportion of the
population living in public housing in Yuen Long New Town is comparatively low,
accounting for only 28.9% of the population in 2001 (Yeh, 2003).
The private sector has been extremely active in residential development and
redevelopment in Yuen Long New Town, especially since the 1990s. Earlier private
31

Legislative Council of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s
Republic of China. Panel on Housing (Papers) 10 Feb 98, http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr9798/english/panels/hg/papers/hg10024c.htm

198

development and redevelopment projects—primarily low-to-medium rise structures and
commercial-residential mixed land uses—were concentrated along both sides of the
Castle Peak Road, a major commercial strip of Yuen Long (Figure 7- 2).

Figure 7- 2 Yuen Long town center. The majority of the buildings are low-to-medium rise
with a few new high rise developments (2012)
Source: Author
The indigenous villagers have been active in the physical upgrading of Yuen
Long. Given the economic restructuring in Hong Kong, and the relatively cheap and
stable supply of imported food from Mainland China, the indigenous villagers in Yuen

199

Long had little incentive in keeping their land for agricultural uses. Instead, they have,
and continue to be, actively involved in turning farmland into urban land uses. The
traditional villages in the area have been transformed into a growing concentration of
new residential and industrial development, a process of redevelopment that dates back to
the 1960s (see Table 7- 1).
Table 7- 1 Agriculture land use in Hong Kong, 1960-2010
Paddy
Vegetable Other
Orchard Fish
Abandoned Total
field
fields and crop
ponds
farmland
parterre
1960
19813
6153
4554
1564
801
1843
34760
1970
11285
10037
1982
1584
2476
5646
33016
1980
74
9412
198
1527
4510
10470
24636
1990
0
5160
126
1436
3413
10672
20806
2008
0
1226
54
692
2718
10349
15039
2010
0
1112
49
682
2684
10116
14643
Note: Unit is acre
Source: Greeners Action,http://www.greenersaction.org/gsc/public/others/20120816_Mapopo_nentnda/20120816_MaPoPo_nentnda_
PR.pdf
The traditional local farming villagers in Yuen Long have also became
proactively involved in supplying accommodations for the new-comers in the growing
manufacturing sector. Many single-story rows of dwellings had been torn down and
replaced with two or three-story detached houses by the traditional villagers. Houses
began to be built purposely for being rented or sold separately as multiple units. In
addition, agricultural lands or fish ponds were increasingly converted to urban uses,
including as open storage for factories and parking lots, which still yielded greater
economic returns than the traditional agricultural activities. Land was also sold to
developers for large-scale development projects (Figure 7- 3). Thus the initial transition
of Yuen Long, which occurred from the 1960s and into the 1980s, involved the erasure of

200

rural villages and farms by the growing industries and the building of housing for the
growing number of industrial workers moving into the neighborhood. Farmers and low
income renters played a valuable role in these early transitions of Yuen Long (Figure 7- 4
and Figure 7- 5).

Figure 7- 3 Yuen Long in 1983; a view looking north from the village Ma Tin Tsuen. An
example of land-use transitions as farm land is making space for urban development.
Farmers and farms are being displaced by the increasing concentration of housing and
commercial space.
Source:
Hong
Kong
Public
Libraries
http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/igateway?svc=bsch&stype=itr&param=title&frm=1&
to=1&ss=ContentPhoto&ctrlid=752598&lang=eng

201

Figure 7- 4 An old style house near the Yuen Long (E) roundabout and new residential
buildings near Sai Tai Street in the back (1983).
Source:
Hong
Kong
Public
Libraries,
http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/igateway?svc=bsch&stype=itr&param=title&frm=1&
to=1&ss=ContentPhoto&ctrlid=752613&lang=eng

202

Figure 7- 5 A view looking north from an area around Yuen Long Tai Yuk Road in the
1980s. Villages are making way for emerging and higher-density residential development.
Source:
Hong
Kong
Public
Libraries,
http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/igateway?svc=bsch&stype=itr&param=title&frm=1&
to=1&ss=ContentPhoto&ctrlid=752555&lang=eng
The built environment of Yuen Long has changed significantly due to the
intensive private sector investment in the more recent waves of development and
redevelopment, beginning during the 1980s and continuing into the present. With the
decline of manufacturing and the expansion of the service sector over the past two
decades, new residents are being attracted to the region. The new population moving into
the neighborhood is quite varied. They range from lower income earners who are looking
for cheaper housing to higher income earners seeking larger living spaces and access to
the natural amenities still offered in Yuen Long. Attracted by the lucrative housing
market, developers are active in providing housing to meet the growing demand by the
new in-migrants; but especially the demand for upscale homes and condo units being
sought by the higher income earners who are employed in the service economy.

203

Since 1992, 21 major private property development projects were completed in
Yuen Long, providing 14,821 new housing units to the growing population of this new
town (Table 7- 2). These recent projects are either high-rise developments or villa-type
developments, targeting generally a higher-end market. Most of the recent residential
developments are located at the periphery of the new town, creating a very different
urban/suburban landscape in Yuen Long.
Table 7- 2 Major Private Property Development projects in Yuen Long New Town
since1992
Unit Block Floor
Property
Year Developers
Yee Fung
Garden
1992 528 2
33
Prosper Centre 1994 100 1
25
Crystal Park
1995 Sino Group
432 2
27
Parkside Villa
1997 Sun Hung Kai
350 5
10
Grand Del Sol
1997 Sun Hung Kai
1100 13
11
Scenic Gardens 1997 473 6
13-14
480 2
40
Greenfields
1998 Sino Group
Villa Art Deco 1998 Paliburg Holdings Limited
84
2
11
Covent Garden 1998 176 2
11
Park Royale
1999
680 10
10-11
Villa Premiere
2000 Sun Hung Kai
320 4
10
Sun Hung Kai, New World
1618 14
13-15
The Parcville
2000 Development
Sereno Verde
2000 New World Development
1674 16
13-14
Springdale
Villas
2000 Sino Group
204 3
9
330 4
11
Greenery Place 2000 Vision Century Corporation
Villa by the
Park
2002 Sun Hung Kai
828 4
26
Opulence
Height
2005 Henderson Land Development
112 1
28
La Grove
2009 Sun Hung Kai
542 4
17-19
28
1
20
The Brand
2009 Ocena Fame International Limited
YOHO Town
2010 Sun Hung Kai
4090 16
37-40
Emerald Green 2010 New World Development
672 5
24
Source: Ho, 2009, Centadata, http://hk.centadata.com/
The village houses are also being upgraded (Figure 7- 6, Figure 7- 7, and Figure
7- 8). Old structures are renovated or even torn down in order to build new modern

204

structures. The Hong Kong version of Mediterranean-style bungalows are commonly
seen. At the same time, village houses continue to be built due to the Small House Policy
(which will be discussed in more detail in the ensuing section of this chapter). New
village houses are often divided into three flats for rental or sale to non-villagers. Over
the last four decades, villages, and especially those in closest proximity to Hong Kong’s
town center, have had their rural characters erased as they have largely become
residential suburbs.

Figure 7- 6 The typical village setting in Yuen Long (2012)
Source: Author

205

Figure 7- 7 Village houses after upgrading (2012)
Source: Author

Figure 7- 8 New built village homes for higher income renters (2012)
Source: Author

206

In some cases, upscale detached homes are built in a cluster, sharing gardens, car
parks and common areas and facilities. These village houses are normally expensive and
are targeting upper income earners. Interest in village homes is increasing, especially in
those neighborhoods in closest proximity to Hong Kong’s urban center and in areas with
natural resources and amenities. In fact, due to the congestion and high property prices in
Hong Kong’s center, even expatriates have moved from their high-priced city apartments
into the upscale Yuen Long’s village homes. However, it should be noted that while this
physical and social upgrading is evident throughout Yuen Long, the rural village
environment does vary greatly. While some parts of Yuen Long have been upgraded,
others sections remain in poor and rundown conditions (Figure 7- 9).

Figure 7- 9 Remaining traditional, lower-income village houses (2012)
Source: Author

207

Industrial lands, villages, and farmlands are being erased in Yuen Long in order to
allow for new concentrated residential developments, including a growing segment of
upscale construction, that is fundamentally transforming the demography of this area.
The importance of manufacturing in Yuen Long has declined since factories began
relocating northward to Mainland China during the 1990s. This had led to vacant
factories within the old industrial estates, industrial districts that were being developed
since the 1960s. With these shifts in the local employment sector, new interests emerged
in redeveloping industrial buildings, including into upscale residential developments.
The local policy of phasing out existing industrial uses and rezoning for
residential uses is evident around the Tung Tau industrial area and Wang Chau Road.

32

Factories are being torn down and replaced by new and upscale residential developments.
For example, the Parcville—a residential development with a total gross floor area of
331,937 square feet and 1,618 housing units—was completed in 2002 and built on
industrial land (Figure 7- 10). This loss in manufacturing employment is paralleled by the
displacement of factory workers who used to live within Yuen Long, and this is evident
by the reduction of 4,162 industrial workers from Yuen Long between 1986 and 2006.

32

Wang Chau Road was traditionally where factories concentrated. In order to
accommodate the thriving manufacturing in the 1980s, the Hong Kong government zoned
the area north of Wang Chau Road for industrial uses. It is called the Tung Tau Industrial
Area.

208

Figure 7- 10 The Parcville is a large scale private redevelopment, providing 1,618
housing units, largely to upper-middle income earners in the region. Across the street is
the village (Shan Pui Hung Tin Tsuen). (2012)
Source: Author
Whole villages are also being displaced in Yuen Long to accommodate the new
high-end residential developments. There are 32 villages in Yuen Long and its
surroundings (Figure 7- 11). While rural, many of these villages have a long history and
are well-established, consisting in some cases of multi-story buildings and significant
residential densities. The residential housing in these areas consists of traditional brick,
and more recently, concrete structures, normally about one to three stories high. With the
increasing housing demand in Yuen Long, some of the village houses have been
renovated and some torn down to be replaced with new buildings to accommodate the
new and higher-income in-coming population. It is common knowledge that locals are

209

being displaced, but the government is not officially releasing data showing the scale of
this displacement to the public (Ho, 2009).

Figure 7- 11 Villages in Yuen Long and its surrounding
Note: 77 Chung Sam Wai, 78 FukHingTsuen, 80 Fung Chi Tsuen, 88 Lam UkTsuen, 92
Sai Tau Wai, 97 Shui Pin Tsuen, 98 Shui Pin Wai, 101Tung Tau Tsuen, 103
YeungUkTsuen, 130 Ha Yau Tin Tsuen, 131 Hung Tin Tsuen, 133 KikYeungTsuen, 136
Lung Tin Tsuen, 137Ma Tin Tsuen, 140 Nam Pin Wai, 144 Sai Pin Wai, 145 Shan
PuiTsuen, 147 SheungYau Tin Tsuen, 148 Shui Tin Tsuen, 153 Tai Kei Leng, 154 Tai Kiu,
156 Tai WaiTsuen, 159 TsoiUkTsuen, 161Tung Tau Tsuen, 163Wong UkTsuen, 165 Ying
Lung Wai, 166 Yuen Long KauHui, 171 Tung Tau Wai, 172 Tung Tau Wai San Tsuen,
173 Ting Fook Villas, 174 Kwan Lok San Tsuen, 176 Yuk Yat Garden.
Source: Environmental Protection Department (General Location of villages-Yuen Long
District, www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/business.../figure_4_0_pdf.pdf)
The Brand and the Sereno Verde were two examples of private redevelopment

210

projects built on land in the village of Tsoi Lung Tsuen. The Brand only provides 28 new
housing units. All units are luxury duplex units, ranging from 1,270 square feet to 3,175
square feet. The Sereno Verde was the largest residential project in the Yuen Long
District when completed in 2000, providing 1,674 housing units to median and upperincome households (Figure 7- 12). It consists of 16 blocks of 13 to 14 story structures and
has its own club house. The concept of the club house in Hong Kong residential
developments has its origins in private clubs, where a variety of recreational sports
facilities are provided to members, usually upper-middle class residents. As a symbol of
socioeconomic status, the club house is prevalent in upscale residential developments

Figure 7- 12 Village houses in the front and the Sereno Verde, shown in the back. Village
houses were replaced with new model housing units, with the original residents displaced
(2012).
Source: Google Street View

211

throughout Hong Kong.
With current redevelopment pressures, there is even an example of a whole
village being displaced to make room for new upscale redevelopment projects. The
village of Tai Kiu Tsuen will be relocated to Tai Kei Leng—a village further out in the
Yuen Long district—to make room for a new private development project marketed to
upper income earners (Figure 7- 13 and Figure 7- 14). After the removal of the village,
four 27-story-towers will be built on the site. They will provide 827 upscale housing units
and the total investment in the project is estimated at several billion Hong Kong dollars
(Singtao, 2010).

Figure 7- 13 The village of Tai Kiu Tsuen, in Yuen Long, will soon be erased to
accommodate upscale private redevelopment in the district. (2009)
Source: https://ssl.panoramio.com/photo/31435602

212

Figure 7- 14 The whole village of Tai Kiu Tsuen, Yuen Long will be relocated. (2010)
Source: https://ssl.panoramio.com/photo/44467852
Over the past 15 years, there have been many private development projects not
only in the villages, but also on paddy fields and farmlands (Ho, 2009). With new
development projects, the rural setting of the village has changed dramatically and more
importantly, the farming communities are being displaced to further-out remote areas of
Yuen Long (Figure 7- 15). The landscape of Yuen Long, and its socio-economic and
demographic profile, has been fundamentally changed, being physically and socially
upgraded (Figure 7- 16, Figure 7- 17, Figure 7- 18, and Figure 7- 19).

213

Figure 7- 15 Area around Yuen Long San Hui in 1982. The neighborhood was crowded
with traditional village housing and some early high-rises starting to emerge in Yuen
Long’s town center by the early 1980s. With new town development, all these old houses
were demolished by 1984.
Source: Hong Kong Public Libraries,
http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/igateway?svc=bsch&stype=itr&param=title&frm=1&
to=1&ss=ContentPhoto&ctrlid=752568&lang=eng

214

Figure 7- 16 With the traditional village housing gone, Yuen Long has become a
landscape of high-rises (2012).
Source: Author

215

Figure 7- 17 Castle Peak Road in 1982 (above) and in 2011 (below).
Source:
Hong
Kong
Public
Libraries,
http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/igateway?svc=bsch&stype=itr&param=title&frm=1&
to=1&ss=ContentPhoto&ctrlid=752587&lang=eng (above), Google Street View (below)

216

Figure 7- 18 The Old Theater, near Tung Lok Street, has been redeveloped into a
shopping mall, featuring the different needs of Yuen Long’s changing demographic
profile.
Source: Hong Kong Public Libraries (above), Google Street View (below)
217

1978

1995

2008

Figure 7- 19 The Landscape change in Yuen Long (1978, 1995, and 2008)
Source: Civil Engineering and Development Department,
http://www.cedd.gov.hk/eng/about/achievements/regional/regi_yuenlong.htm

218

Big development firms have been active in redeveloping Yuen Long over the last
two decades. Over 76% of the private housing units constructed since the early 1990s
have been developed by four major development firms: Cheung Kong (Holdings)
Limited (Li Ka Shing Group), Henderson Land Development Company Limited (Lee
ShauKee Group), Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited (Kwok Family Group), and New
World Development Limited (Cheun Yu-tung Group) (Nissim, 1998).
Sun Hung Kai Properties is one of the key players in the redevelopment of Yuen
Long. All their developments are targeting middle-to-upper income earners, with average
unit prices of over US$645 (HK$5,000) per square foot. YOHO town is one of the new
landmark developments in Yuen Long and has the highest average unit price in the
region, at US$925 (HK$7,178) per square foot. YOHO is the abbreviation for “young
home,” advertised as “a vibrant, carefree community for young professionals” (Sun Hung
Kai Properties Limited, 2011).
The first phase of YOHO consisted of eight 37-story-high towers and was
completed in 2004, providing 2,200 luxury units. The second phase (also called YOHO
Midtown) was finished in 2010. Another eight 40-story-high towers were built, providing
1,890 units (Emporis, 2013e). The third phase is now under construction. The investment
is considerable, with the land premium for the site of 318,000 square feet itself being
US$910 million (HK$7.1 billion). YOHO town is clearly targeting upper income groups,
especially young professionals. The club house alone costs US$13 million (HK$100
million). YOHO town has also attracted many Chinese buyers since it is only ten minutes
away from the Mainland China boarder.
In addition to Sun Hung Kai Properties, other major property development firms

219

have also played a crucial role in the redevelopment of this area. Property development
projects by these private developers have significantly changed the skyline of Yuen
Long. The villages, the rural setting and even the industrial buildings and parks formed
during the 1960s and the 1970s have been replaced by high-rises for middle income
earners, and increasingly, for even upper income renters and homebuyers. Yuen Long
now consists of predominantly concentrated urban residential houses, with the landscape
changing to increasingly high-rise developments and upscale housing (Figure 7- 20).
Figure 7-21 shows the major large-scale redevelopment projects in Yuen Long.

Figure 7- 20 Contrasting the village setting (Shan Pui Hung Tin Tsuen) in the front and
highrise private redevelopment (The Parcvilles) in the back (2009)
Source: http://www.pbase.com/jonathanwg/image/114831492

220

Figure 7- 21 Major redevelopment projects in Yuen Long

221

7.3. Policies Shaping Development in the New Territories: the Land Exchange
Entitlements (Letters A/B) and the Small House Policy (SHP)
The New Territories are very different from the urban areas on Hong Kong Island
and in Kowloon. The uniqueness of these districts partly emerges because of the different
land and housing policies that have guided their development. Two land policies are
essential in understanding the property market of the New Territories: the Land Exchange
Entitlements (also called Letters A/B) and the Small House Policy (SHP).
In order to speed up acquisition of private lands for public projects for new town
redevelopment between 1960 and 1983, the Hong Kong government issued the “Land
33

Exchange Entitlements” to affected landowners as an alternative to cash compensation.

The holders are entitled to a future grant of land in the New Territories. In other words, if
the holders purchase a piece of land in the future, the entitlements can be used as
payment toward this purchase (Nissim, 1998). The size of granted land is calculated
based on the specific land use type appropriated by government. The exchange ratio for
agricultural land to future building land was 5 to 2, and building land to future building
land was 1 to 1.

34

For example, if a person owned a 1000 square feet parcel of

agricultural land, he will be granted 400 square feet of building land in the future. The
33

According to the Land Exchange Entitlements resumption Ordinance (Cap. 124), the
government will provide compensation to affected land owner (the person registered or
entitled to be registered in the Land Registry in respect of any land sought to be
repossessed by the government) when private land was taken for public development use
(Eminent domain in the US context). Instead of paying cash compensation, the
government issued Land Exchange Entitlements to land owners (Nissim, 1998). The
holders were entitled to a future grant of land.
34

In case of the agricultural ratio, the 5:2 ratio means that the original tenant would
receive two square feet of building land for every five square feet of agricultural land. For
building land the exchange ratio was one to one. In 1978, the above ratio was scaled back
by 50% by the government. This land exchange practice was terminated in 1983.
222

government soon realized the unsustainable nature of this policy and terminated this
practice in 1983.
By the mid-1970s, the amount of land granted by the entitlements had already
reached about 36 million square feet (Nissim, 1998). In order to reduce the demand of
land granted by the entitlements, the government enforced a monetized scheme

35

to

surrender the entitlements. The figure for public commitment was reduced to 10 million
square feet by 1989 and then to less than 3.2 million square feet by 1995 (Nissim, 1998).
But as the property market values in the New Territories began to rise, the market value
of the entitlements also increased. As the market value exceeded the government’s
assessment value, this method of redemption became less popular.
At the same time, realizing the potential of new town development in the New
Territories, private developers became actively involved in buying up entitlements during
the 1970s and 1980s (Swyer, 1971). As holders of the entitlements, the developers had
access to the bidding for development sites exclusive to entitlement holders. As land cost
for development on exchanged land using the entitlements were consistently lower than
publicly auctioned lands, greater profits are guaranteed for this type of development.

36

As of 1995, the vast majority of the land exchange entitlements to be redeemed
were in the hands of four major development companies, the four development firms

35

The government evaluates the entitlements in currency values. Then the government
pays off through ex-gratia compensation, including modification premia, building
covenant extensions and short-term-tenancy rents.
36

According to Competitive is the Private Residential Property Market (Consumer
Council, 1996), the profit margin for developments on land acquired through Letters A/B
ranged from 77 percent to 364 percent while 6 percent to 109 percent for those developed
on lots obtained through public auction.

223

mentioned earlier (Cheung Kong Holdings Limited, Henderson Land Development
Company Limited, Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited, and New World Development
Limited). The government initiated negotiations with these developers in an attempt to
absorb all of their holdings. Three land exchanges were executed in early 1997, involving
1.5 million square feet of land exchange (Nissim, 1998).

37

Through acquisition and

redemption of the entitlements, these four developers became the biggest land holders in
the New Territories.
Another important policy that has shaped the nature of development in the New
Territories is the Small Housing Policy (SHP), which was introduced in 1972. SHP
entitles “an indigenous villager to apply for permission to erect for himself during his
lifetime a small house on a suitable site within his own village.”

38

The small house is

designed for the occupancy by the indigenous villager himself or his family. The
dwelling cannot exceed 700 square feet in the building footprint and it cannot be any
more than three stories in height. It can be built either on privately owned land with
premiums

39

waived or on government land at a concessionary premium.

40

If the

37

Land exchange of the entitlements was terminated by the Hong Kong government in
December of 1996. As stated in the New Territories Land Exchange Entitlements
(Redemption) Ordinance (Cap. 495), no land exchange can be redeemed but the
government will provide payment of redemption money in respect of land exchange
entitlement to the owners.

38

As the policy only entitle the right of male villager, it is also called “ding (literally,
male) right” (Hopkinson and Lao, 2003).

39

In Hong Kong, all lands belong to the government. The government leases the land to
users for a cost according to the land’s value. The value of the land is called the premium.

40

The concessionary premium is the discounted premium. It is generally about two-thirds
of the market value of the land unbuilt.

224

indigenous villager owns private agricultural land, he can apply for a building license or a
land exchange to build the small house. The premium in this case will be exempt. This is
called “through a building license or land exchange.” If the indigenous villager does not
own land, he can apply to the government for a parcel of land on which to build the
house. He will need to pay a concessionary premium. This is called “through Private
Treaty Grant” (Nissim, 1998; Audit Commission, 2002).
The SHP is rooted in Hong Kong’s colonial history and it can be deemed as a way
of government “compensating the indigenous population by ensuring that their needs and
traditions were respected and that they could also benefit from the major changes that
were being forced upon them, particularly the development of the New Towns and their
associated infrastructure.” (Nissim, 1998, p. 117) It is worth noting that village dwellers
and indigenous villagers are two different concepts. Indigenous villagers refer to male
descendants of villagers who were inhabitants of the village when the British took over
the New Territories.

41

They are a group of people who enjoy certain privileges due to

historical and political reasons, including but not limited to the SHP. Non-indigenous
villagers on the other hand, even if they have lived in the village for more than half a
century, are not entitled to such benefits.
Indigenous villagers also do not necessarily live in the village. They might have
long moved to urban areas or abroad.

41

42

For those who live in the village, they are by no

In 1989, the New Territories was leased to Britain from China for a period of 99 years.

42

Given the downturn of agriculture in the 1960s, many villagers left their hometown
and went to the UK or other countries for employment opportunity. There are no official
figures from the government on the number of indigenous villagers. According to the
Heung Yee Kuk (the Rural Council), the estimated size of indigenous villagers were
460,000 in 1986 (including 260,000 living overseas). It had increased to 700,000 in 1995
225

means necessarily the “rural poor.” While some are still engaged in agriculture, the
majority of them are now engaged in non-agricultural activities. The accelerating land
prices have made those who own lands rather well-off. However, while some villagers
have climbed up the ladder, some still remain as the “rural poor.”
Small houses came with strict restrictions on resale. Technically, they cannot be
sold on the market during the operative period of restriction. The operative period of
restriction for the small house under free building licenses or through land exchanges is
normally five years. In other words, no payment of a premium is required if the
transaction takes place after the five year restriction period from the date of the certificate
of compliance. However, the restrictions can be removed if the full assessed market value
of the lot is paid off subsequently to the government by the owner.

43

In other words, the indigenous villagers can sell the lot and house for profit to
anyone, indigenous villagers, non-indigenous villagers or developers. Because the
government conventionally applies a discounting factor to the premium computation
when removing the restriction (Hopkinson and Lao, 2003), the land cost of the small
house will always be lower than if one is to obtain an equivalent parcel of land in public
auction. Even though the intention of the discounting factor is to provide a special
privilege to the indigenous villagers, these policy rights are extensively used to facilitate
(including 70,000 to 80,000 living overseas). The latest estimation (2012) of the number
of indigenous villagers with entitlements is around 240,000 (Lao, 2013).
43

In 1972, no restrictions were enforced on reselling. The government later introduced
the five year reselling restriction to prevent indigenous villagers cashing in on their
eligibility. At first, selling was prohibited during the operative period of the restriction.
However, due to rural pressures, this restriction was relaxed. Selling is permitted if the
full value of the land was paid to the government by the owner. The discount factor is
applied in order to distinguish those who sell immediately from those who sell at later
stages of the operative period of restriction.

226

redevelopment.
Indigenous villagers cashing in on their eligibility rights is common, and this was
evident in the audit reviews of 1987

44

and 2002

45

by the Audit Commission. Using Tin

Sum Tsuen as an example, the 1987 audit review found that 19 out of 35 indigenous
villagers applied to remove selling restrictions within two months of receiving
Certificates of Compliance.

46

Again, in a 2002 review, similar problems were reported,

but they tended to be even more severe.
From 1997 to 2002, each year there were on average 1,247 Certificates of
Compliance issued and 533 approved applications of removing selling restrictions within
that same year, making the ratio as high as 43%. According to a study of 53 cases, the
indigenous villagers applied for the removal of selling restriction within an average of
three days after the issue of the Certificates of Compliance. After the removal of the
restrictions, 96% of the flats were sold within an average of 158 days. It is clear that
many indigenous villagers apply for the small house with the intention of selling (Audit
Commission, 2002).
In addition to the villagers profiting from these entitlements, developers are also
beneficiaries of SHP, by making use of this housing policy to develop buildings targeting
44

“Small house policy for the indigenous villagers — pilot scheme for village expansion
in the New Territories,” Director of Audit’s Report No. 10, October 1987.

45

“Small house grants in the New Territories,” Director of Audit’s report No. 39,
October 2002.
46

A Certificate of Compliance is an administrative measure. Only if all positive
obligations imposed by the conditions of the small house grant have been complied with,
the Lands Department will issue the certificate of compliance. These positive obligations
include, for example, sewage treatment facilities, refuse collection facilities, building
covenant, and landscaping.

227

the wealthy. The relatively cheap land cost gives developers incentives to buy out small
houses and/or small house rights.

47

If buildings exist on the parcel of land, multi-story

buildings or extensive villa-type developments can then be built to attract upper income
earners. Due to the land scarcity and increasing housing demand, huge profits are
guaranteed through projects on these small house lots. While the lucrative small house
business used to be the territory of local small development firms, it is now attracting a
wide variety of firms, including large Hong Kong development firms and even
developers from Mainland China and Japan (Ng, 1996).
There are two common practices used by developers in abusing the SHP to
facilitate physical and social upgrading in Yuen Long. Developers might purchase the
small houses from indigenous villagers after the Certificates of Compliance are issued.
Developers might even recruit qualified indigenous villagers to apply for the building
license to develop a piece of land that is already owned by the developer (Hopkinson and
Lao, 2003; Nissim, 1998).
Residential (Group C) is zoned for low density development. Targeting the luxury
residential development (villa-type of housing, for example), the premium for residential
(Group C) land is usually high and comes with many restrictions. Developers take the
land of small house development as an equivalent. Given that the land cost for the small
house is much cheaper than the land cost for development on residential (Group C) land,
the developer is able to develop villa-type housing at a comparatively low cost.
These practices reflect a serious abuse of the policy among speculative developers
even though they are not technically illegal (Hopkinson and Lao, 2003). Corruption is
47

The eligibility to build the small house.

228

also evident in some cases. Under the existing system, the certification of indigenous
villager status is issued by the elected village representative. There is evidence that in
some cases, developers or individuals bribe the village representatives in order to falsify
the villagers’ eligibility to the land rights (Hopkinson and Lao, 2003).
It is also worth recognizing that the granting of small house sites is based on
entitlements regardless of residence. Although the majority of the indigenous villagers do
not live in the village, and never might have lived in the village, they are still entitled to
the small house rights. Technically, applications for small house rights from those living
overseas will not be approved unless the applicant can show the intention of returning to
the village. However, there is no control over preventing a villager living overseas from
declaring his intention of returning, and then changing his mind after receiving approval.
In fact, it is reported that developers have even conducted active recruitment of
indigenous villagers with entitlements in the UK (Ng, 1996).
Even though the SHP is indented to improve the standard of living and to address
the housing needs of indigenous villagers, the policy has been abused to facilitate
gentrification. While some indigenous villagers who do not want to build a small house
for themselves proactively sell their entitlements to developers to cash in, some are
forced to sell, including those who cannot afford the cost of construction (Ng, 1996). On
average, the construction cost of a small house is about US$232,120 (HK$1.8 million)
(Lai, 2000). Though the underlying intention of the SHP is to help those who are not able
to purchase land in the open market to construct their house and improve their living
conditions, the reality is that many poor villagers does not have enough capital to take
advantage of these entitlements.

229

While some of the indigenous villagers walk out with extensive financial benefits,
others—primarily renters and non-indigenous villagers—are forced out, displaced with
minimum compensation. Renters and non-indigenous villagers are extremely vulnerable
to displacement (Ng, 1996; Ho, 2009). Renters who live in the area might be expelled if
the owner decides to renovate their property or sell their house. Non-indigenous villager
home owners might even be pressured by the developer or indigenous villagers to sell
their properties in order to accommodate large scale upscale residential projects
(Headline Daily, 2012).
7.4. Data of trends from 1986 to 2006
With intensive development and redevelopment within the district, the total
population of Yuen Long has increased by 23.8% between 1986 and 2006. The socioeconomic characteristics of the population are also changing (Table 7- 3 and Table 7- 4).
While the capital reinvestment is evident in the significant physical upgrading of Yuen
Long’s built environment, “social upgrading” is also apparent. The new population
moving into Yuen Long New Town has a very different socio-demographic profile when
compare to the traditional residents (Kwok, 1997). One of the most distinguished
characteristics is that the new-comers tend to have higher educational attainment.
In 1986, the income level, education level and other socioeconomic variables
were clearly well below the Hong Kong average in Yuen Long. As of 2006, the gaps
have narrowed. In 1986, the rent was about 80% of the Hong Kong average. With the
new capital investments and improvements in the built environment, rent has increased
by 198% between 1986 and 2006. Median household income and median employment
income have both increased faster than the Hong Kong average, 71% and 96%

230

respectively. Another dramatic increase in socio-economic variables in Yuen Long is
evident in education attainment. The rate of college graduates increased from about 3% in
1986 to 17% in 2006. Similar to other gentrified neighborhoods in Hong Kong, with the
new upscale housing provided in Yuen Long, there are higher income earners moving
into the community.
Table 7- 3 Percentage of Change in major indicators in Yuen Long, 1986-2006
Major indicators
Percentage of Change (%)
Total population
+24%
Median gross rent
+198%
Median household income
+71%
Median employment income
+96%
College graduates
+794%
Professionals
+313%
Managerial workers
+547%
Craft workers
-41%
Manufacturers
-65%
Owner-occupied housing
+106%
Table 7- 4 Change of percentage in major indicators and comparison to the Hong Kong,
1986-2006
Hong Kong Average
Yuen Long
1986
2006
1986
2006
College graduate
4.3%
15.3%
2.6%
16.5%
High-end occupations
11.8%
32.8%
9.0%
31.1%
Service sector employments
61.5%
89.6%
67.4%
91.1%
Manufacturing employments
36.0%
9.7%
29.6%
7.9%

Professionals living in the areas have increased from about 7% in 1986 to about
23% in 2006. Over the same period, residents who are managers and administrators have
increased from about 2% to 8%. In contrast, the population employed in manufacturing
has dropped significantly, from 30% to 8%, a loss of over 4,000 industrial workers from
Yuen Long. The population employed in agriculture has also dropped; those employed in

231

agriculture now make-up less than 1% of the employed population.

48

In comparison to 1986, Yuen Long now maintains a very different demographic
profile, with the residents of the old farming and village communities displaced, the once
growing manufacturing class is also being erased, and with new residents increasingly
consisting of professionals and administrators of the growing service economy. The area
also now consists of more owner-occupied housing units, showing the precarious status
of renters in Yuen Long. The ratio of owner-occupied housing units has increased from
55% in 1986 to 73% in 2006.
7.5. Summary
Due to the unique history, culture, traditions, and the unique land and
development policies of the New Territories, the upgrading of Yuen Long is different
from the gentrification processes in Hong Kong’s urban core. Yuen Long has undergone
a rapid transformation from its rural township status—consisting of ancient Chinese
villages, farms, and more recently, industrial suburbs and industrial workers—into a new
town increasingly characterized by high-rises and a growing population of clerks,
administrators and professionals working in Hong Kong’s new service economy.
The geography of gentrification has long been exclusively urban in focus
(Phillips, 2004). Only recently have researchers gone beyond the spatiality of the urban
core and recognized gentrification in rural and suburban areas. The case of Yuen Long
48

The population employed in agriculture and fishing in 1986 was 426 (2% of the
employed population). However, the number for 2006 is not released. The employed
population in agriculture and fishing is combined with the employed population in
mining and quarrying, and also a category called unclassifiable. The combined figure for
2006 was 288 (less than 1% of the employed population). The combined figure for 1986
was 497 (about 2.3% of the employed population).

232

adds to the relevance and strengthens the importance of recognizing the diversity of
gentrification by reinforcing that physical and “social upgrading” are not solely an urban
phenomenon.
Various parties are involved in the physical and “social upgrading” of Yuen Long,
including the government, private developers, and indigenous villagers. The public sector
has largely facilitated Yuen Long’s early development. The once isolated rural areas were
opened up by the Hong Kong government’s new town development policy. But given the
increasing land values, the role of the government has shifted from developing the land to
selling the land for development to generate revenue.
Since the 1980s onward, the private sector has been much more active in driving
reinvestment, redevelopment and gentrification, with four key development firms—
Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited, Henderson Land Development company Limited, Sun
Hung Kai Properties Limited, and New World Development Limited—driving much of
the redevelopment in this new town (Ho, 2009). These four firms have in fact been key in
the redevelopment of all new towns within Hong Kong. The increasing interests of the
private developers away from Hong Kong’s main urban core and into new towns and
rural areas have created far reaching impacts on the region’s urban built environment.
Large scale reinvestment and redevelopment projects are rapidly transforming century
old villages and farming communities into concentrated nodes of high-rise commercial
and residential developments. Thousands of factory workers, farmers, and villagers who
once lived in the Hong Kong outskirts have been displaced by a new population of
administrators, managers, and professionals of the new service economy.
In addition to the large-scale residential development projects, small-scale and

233

piece-meal village development through small-scale individual house refurbishment is
also evident and has also been responsible for substantially altering the built environment
and composition of Yuen Long. This is especially evident in the quaint rural villages.
Despite the original intention of meeting the genuine housing need of the indigenous
villagers, the Small House Policy has turned into a tool for the privileged and local
developers to financially benefit though capital investment, reinvestment and physical
and “social upgrading.”
The Yuen Long District has the greatest concentration of small houses in Hong
Kong.

49

The abuse of the policy helps create a unique rural-housing estate market and

facilitates gentrification, as evident across Yuen Long. Many village houses were
developed and sold or rented to urban dwellers looking for a suburban home or a second
homes. Designed as a social goods policy, purely for the benefit of indigenous
villagers, the SHP has turned into a market commodity for the whole territory, with
considerable financial benefits going to a handful of local developers.
Accompanying the changing built environment, social upgrading is also evident,
with farmers and low-income renters being displaced from Yuen Long. With the new
high-rise developments and the influx of professionals and administrators of the service
economy, the original rural village character of Yuen Long is increasingly being lost.
These redevelopment efforts have all been facilitated with improved transportation and
new infrastructure investments in general. The initial public investment has enabled the
transformation of these traditional villages and farmlands into highly desirable, and in
some areas, expensive suburban communities. The capital reinvestment and the
49

There are 14,157 small house grant applications as of 2002. 4,468 applications are
from Yuen Long District.
234

displacement of the original farming population and the later factory workers are clearly
visible in Yuen Long’s landscape, a peripheral yet rapidly growing hub of Hong Kong’s
service economy.
7.6. Conclusion of the three case studies
The urban redevelopment efforts have increased pressure for physical and social
upgrading throughout Hong Kong. In chapter four, the qualitative analysis explored the
diversity of gentrification and revealed Hong Kong’s class struggles over space. In
chapters five, six and seven, three neighborhoods were selected to show the diverse
nature of gentrification through a qualitative analysis (Table 7-5 and Table 7-6).
Kennedy Town is a classic example of gentrification. It represents a case of a
lower to middle-lower income neighborhood transforming into an upper, middle income
neighborhood. Kennedy Town was a traditional working class neighborhood. With recent
redevelopment efforts, this neighborhood has been transformed into a residential area for
upper-middle income earners, increasingly consisting of younger, single professionals,
and a growing number of expats. This upgrading involved a larger-number of smallerscale redevelopments—generally involving the construction of one or two high-rises in
the redevelopment process. This is in contrast to the large scale public housing
redevelopment of Tiu Keng Leng, and this is likely because the original residents in
Kennedy Town were never a significant social or political threat to the new, private
capital reinvestment and higher-income residents.

235

Table 7- 5 Change in gross rent, median household income and major employment income (three cases), 1986-2006
Median gross rent
Median household income
Median employment
Change
Change
Change
(US$)
(US$)
income(US$)
Area
1986
2006
(%)
1986
2006
(%)
1986
2006
(%)
Kennedy
231
814
252.7
2,140
3,655
70.74
1,103
2,222
101.4
Town
Tiu Keng
116
312
169.5
1,468
3,050
107.7
856
1,984
131.6
Leng
Yuen Long
152
452
198.3
1,555
2,660
71.05
912
1,791
96.35
HK
184
406
120.3
2,026
2,940
45.15
1,034
1,805
74.48
Average
Median gross rent
Median household income
Median employment
Change
Change
Change
(HK$)
(HK$)
income(HK$)
Area
1986
2006
(%)
1986
2006
(%)
1986
2006
(%)
Kennedy
1775
6261
252.7
16465
28113
70.74
8486
17092
101.4
Town
Tiu Keng
889
2397
169.5
11293
23459
107.7
6588
15259
131.6
Leng
Yuen Long
1166
3480
198.3
11964
20464
71.05
7017
13778
96.35
HK
1,418
3,124
120.3
15,582
22,617
45.15
7,956
13,882
74.48
Average
Note: Hong Kong dollar values adjusted for inflation

236

Table 7- 6 Ratio of gross rent, median household income and major employment income
(three cases), 1986-2006
Median
Median household
Median gross rent
employment
income ratio
ratio
Area
income ratio
1986
2006
1986
2006
1986
2006
Kennedy
1.252
2.005
1.057
1.243
1.067
1.231
Town
Tiu Keng
0.627
0.767
0.725
1.037
0.828
1.099
Leng
Yuen Long

0.823

1.114

0.768

0.905

0.882

0.992

Note: Median household value of district divided by Hong Kong median household value;
median household income of district divided by Hong Kong median household income
Tiu Keng Leng is a case of core poor neighborhood that was transformed into a
lower, to middle-lower-income neighborhood. The changes in Tiu Keng Leng were
visually the most dramatic, as this neighborhood transformed from a refugee camp, to a
pro-Kuomintang enclave, to an increasingly-stable Hong Kong residential area known for
its concentrated public housing. The original characteristics of this neighborhood, as a
refugee camp and as a concentration of the core poor, necessitated large-scale
government intervention to facilitate redevelopment. As the interest for new town
development grew, and with political unification with China, the government erased the
whole community. The redevelopment of this once refugee camp parallels Podagrosi and
Vojnovic (2008) and Podagrosi et al. (2011) analyses of cleansing and redeveloping
black underclass neighborhoods in the US. Small-scale upgrading within the context of
ghettos is too risky for potential investors and gentrifiers, leading the state to become
involved in land-assembly, redevelopment and the erasure of the whole original
neighborhood.
Similarly as Tiu Keng Leng, Yuen long was also a case of lower-income

237

neighborhood that was transformed into a middle-lower-income neighborhood. But the
case of Yuen Long illustrates another type of upgrading process. The displacement in this
redevelopment process involves villages and farm communities in the suburbs and rural
areas of Hong Kong. Here farmers and peasants of traditional Chinese villages, some
three hundred years old, are involved in the displacement processes. The redevelopment
of Yuen Long in the latter 20

th

and 21

st

centuries represents a unique case of class

struggle rarely discussed in the gentrification literature.
This qualitative analysis of gentrification at the urban periphery, a fact
acknowledged by only limited studies to date, adds a further dimension to the diversity of
gentrification and its actors in the context of Hong Kong. This case also sheds light, in
the wider Chinese context, of the little interest placed on such rich historical communities
within the context of China’s new development and redevelopment pressures. These three
cases all present exmaples of capital resinvestment and displacement, illustrating the
complex class struggles being experienced throughout Hong Kong, revealing the
diversity of gentrification across this one city.

238

Chapter 8 Women and Gentrification in Hong Kong
8.1. Introduction
This chapter intends to bring the gender dimension into the gentrification
discussion. It provides an analysis into the condition of women in Hong Kong and an
exploration of women’s roles in the gentrification processes. This analysis adds a further
dimension into the discussion of gentrification in Hong Kong and a more detailed
exploration of the three case studies, emphasizing the gender dimension.
It is widely recognized that gender relations play a systematic role in the division
of labor, income, wealth, education, and publicly provided goods (Bee, 2000). In recent
decades, as women in many parts of the world have become integrated into the world’s
production and consumption processes, the newly evolving economic, social, and cultural
dimensions have had far-reaching and dramatic impacts on their lives. However, the role
of women in these processes has not been extensively studied. There are frequent calls to
bring gender to the forefront of economic, social, and cultural analyses, including in the
urban context.
The role of women is changing. It is well recognize that the advancement of
women is an important economic, business and societal issue with a significant impact on
the growth of nations (Hausmann et. al., 2006). Women have made many advances in
recent decades. Women are freer than 50 years ago, or even 20 years ago, to choose the
paths in their lives. They are more educated, earn more money, have more legal

239

protections, and in general, live better than ever before. But still, gender inequality exists
(Kershaw and DeGolye, 2006).
The changing role of women has received increasing attention in the wide-ranging
debates on gentrification. Gender is more than just a secondary concern to class in the
process of gentrification (Butler and Hamnett, 1994). Women are known to be agents of
gentrification as well as “victims” who suffer most from gentrification. It is widely
suggested that gentrification has been stimulated by the increased participation of women
(especially married women) in the labor force (Rose, 1984; Ley, 1986; Smith, 1987;
Short, 1989). Of particular significance is the increasing success of middle-class women
in obtaining well-paid jobs (Wekerle, 1984; Short, 1989). Another interpretation of the
demographic dimension involving the role of women in gentrification focuses on the
increase in households that is accounted for, in a large part, by an increase in the number
of women living alone.
Besides being an agent of gentrification, women are also among the “victims”
who suffer most from gentrification. As overrepresented among the poor, women face a
higher possibility of displacement due to gentrification. Up until now, there has been very
little research focusing on women as victims of gentrification.
In this chapter, I will examine the gender dimension of the socio-economic
transformations experienced by Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006 and the changing role of
women in the city’s gentrification processes. I will begin with a brief introduction into
the profile of the population and the demographics through the lens of gender in Hong
240

Kong. This will be followed with a gender analysis of employment, occupation, income
and education. Then I will focus on the role of women in the process of gentrification,
both as the agents of gentrification and as the “victims” who suffer most from
gentrification.
8.2. Population and demographics through the lens of gender
8.2.1. Population change
Hong Kong has been experiencing a rapid population increase, from 456,739
residents in the early 1910s to 6,857,100 residents in 2006, and this population increase
has been synchronous with a declining sex ratio (Figure 8- 1).
4000000
3500000

2000

3000000
2500000
2000000
1500000
1000000

1000

500000
0

0
1911 1921 1931 1961 1966 1971 1976 1981 1986 1991 1996 2001 2006
male
female
sex ratio

Figure 8- 1 The Population Growth Trend by Sex in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006
Source: Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region
At the start of the 20

th

century, Hong Kong’s population had a heavily skewed

gender ratio, with almost two times more men than women. This had much to do with the
nature of the colonial administration and the requirements of this administrative structure

241

th

for manpower. But the sex ratio has continuously decreased throughout the 20 century.
By 1996, the gap between the number of females and males had narrowed to 4,500. In
1997, females outnumbered males by 22,600, constituting 50.2% of Hong Kong’s
population. Since then, the overall population of females has consistently surpassed
males. The sex ratio in 2006 was 912.
The sustained decline in the sex ratio in Hong Kong was mainly due to two
factors. The first is the large inflow of female one-way permit holders from the mainland
of China, most of whom joined their husbands in Hong Kong after unification. Situated
on China’s doorstep, Hong Kong has always relied strongly on immigration, and
especially immigration from the Mainland (Lin, 2002). The earlier wave of migration
from China was dominated by young men who were absorbed primarily into the
manufacturing sector and who helped to relieve upward pressure on wages in this once
key sector. But since abandonment of the ‘touch-base’ policy

50

in 1980, cross-border

population mobility was dominated by female one-way permit holders, the majority of
which were dependents of Hong Kong residents. This became especially apparent after
Hong Kong’s unification in 1997. From 1996 to 2006, there were 360,000 female oneway permit holders that moved into Hong Kong (CSD, 2007a).
The second major factor to the changing sex ratio in Hong Kong was the

50

The ‘touch-base’ policy allowed immigrants from Mainland China who reached the

urban areas of Hong Kong to receive legal status. They were permitted to register for
a Hong Kong Identity Card after arrival. This policy ended on 24 October, 1980.
242

admission of a large number of female foreign domestic helpers, consisting mainly of
women from the Philippines and Indonesian (which make-up 3.0% and 2.4% of Hong
Kong’s total female population respectively). Globalization is a major force behind the
influx of foreign domestic helpers (Gunter, 2003). On the one hand, enhanced mobility
allows people from poorer countries to earn a better living in richer places like Hong
Kong. On the other hand, the global city is run by people with little time but enough
money to support their exclusive lifestyles by employing domestic helpers (Wu, 2006).
From 1996 to 2006, 230,000 female foreigner domestic helpers came into Hong Kong
(CSD, 2007a).
Despite the increasing proportion of females, the number of female live births has
been continuously lower than that of males (See Figure 8-2). Female infants represented
47.3% of all live births in 2006, a ratio of 1,115 boys to 1,000 girls. This ratio is lower
than in western countries (1,050 boys born for every 1,000 girls) (CSD, 2007a). The sex
ratio of live births has been quite stable with more male infants than females born from
1981 to 2006, which reflects Confucian patriarchy in which the son carries on the family
name. Sons are still prioritized over daughters, especially among the elderly Chinese
(Cheung, 1997). Moreover, it was suggested that sex selection or sex-selective abortion
might be practiced among Hong Kong Chinese women (Wong and Ho, 2001). Wong and
Ho’s (2001) study of Hong Kong women’s childbirth patterns also finds that women who
have had two daughters were more likely than those with two sons to have a third child.

243

100%
75%

44610

36917

35197

32664

25160

34595

50%
25%
0%

42141

34703

33084

30627

23059

31031

1981

1986

1991

1996

2001

2006

Female

Male

Figure 8- 2 Live Births in Hong Kong from 1981 to 2006
Source: Demographic Statistics Section, Census and Statistics Department
The population pyramids shows that the population distribution of men and
women in Hong Kong varies by age (Figure 8- 3). Women outnumbered men in the age
groups of 1) 30 to 34, 2) 35 to 39, 3) 80 to 84 and 4) 85 and older. The large proportion
of the female population aged 30 to 34 and 35 to 39 may be attributed to new arrivals
from the Mainland, while the large proportion of women aged 80 or older reflects the
longer life expectancy of females compared to males in Hong Kong. In 2006, the average
life expectancy for women was 85.6 years while for men it was 79.5 years (CSD, 2007b).

244

Figure 8- 3 Population Pyramids, 1996 and 2006
Note: The population pyramid for 1996 was shown in lines while the population pyramid
for 2006 was shown in bars.
Source: Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region
8.2.2. Marriage and family
The general profile of marriage and family in Hong Kong has been experiencing
th

dramatic changes in the late 20 century. As noted in the 2006 Population By-census, the
birth rate in Hong Kong has dropped dramatically and is now among the lowest in the
world. The crude birth rate dropped from 23.7 in 1967 to around 10 in 2006. Paralleling
this shift, the average household size has dropped from 4.5 persons in 1971 to 3.0 persons
in 2006 (CSD, 2007a).

245

In addition to the markedly decreasing birth rates and family size, there is a trend
toward late marriage and childbirth. As women and men increasingly devoted more time
to education and started to work later, the median age at first marriage has risen steadily
for both women and men. For women, it was 25.3 in 1986 and 28.2 in 2006, while for
men it was 28.0 in 1986 and 31.2 in 2006. The median age at first marriage for women in
Hong Kong is the highest in the East Asia/Pacific region. The later timing of marriage
contributes to the increase in women’s earning capacity and their opportunities for
economic independence (EOC, 1997). The phenomenon of delaying marriage became
more prevalent among females, leading also to the postponement in having the first child.
In 2006, the median age of women at first childbirth was 29.2, as compared to 26.6 in
1986 (CSD, 2007a) (Table 8-1).
Table 8- 1 The Trend of Late Marriage and Childbirth in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006
Sex
Median Age of Men at First Marriage
Median Age of Women at First Marriage
Median Age of Women at First Childbirth

1986
28
25.3
26.6

1991
29.1
26.2
28.1

1996
30
26.9
28.8

2001
30.2
27.5
29.4

2006
31.2
28.2
29.2

Source: Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region
Moreover, getting married and giving birth to children were traditionally natural
developments in life. However, currently, people do not see marriage as a necessity.
Marriage is increasingly seen as only one of the many paths in life and increasingly a
choice (Chan, Wong, Tang, Wong, Ng, and Lo, 1997). Currently, more women than men
choose not to marry. During the period 1986 to 2006, the proportion of never-married

246

women increased by 3.3% while the proportion of never-married men decreased by 1.2%.
As census data from 1986 to 2006 shows, the number of never-married women overall
increased by nearly 57% (from 614,824 in 1986 to 964,018 in 2006) (CSD, 2007a).
8.3. The gender dimension of Hong Kong’s socio-economic transformation
Hong Kong has made great strides toward improving gender equity (EOC, 1997).
Rapid industrialization, economic advancement and educational expansion since 1970
have helped Hong Kong females surpass their older generation and Asian counterparts in
narrowing the gender gap. However substantial gender inequality still exists in terms of
the labor division of employment, occupational grouping and income. Significant
institutional and cultural obstacles still exist that prevent all Hong Kong citizens from
reaping the economic and societal benefits that would come with true gender equity
(EOC, 1997). The objective of this section is to bring the gender dimension to the socioeconomic transformation of Hong Kong and to quantify gender inequality.
There are many different ways to quantify gender inequality. In this section, the
dissimilarity index (DI) is used to determine the extent of employment/occupation
segregation of men and women and the W/M ratio was used to assess the income gender
gap.
The dissimilarity index measures segregation of men and women in terms of
employment and occupation. It is half the sum of the absolute differences (positive and
negative) between the percentage distributions of the females and males in an

247

industry/occupation. It can be stated mathematically as:
k
DI = 100 (1/2 Σ  xi - yi)
i=1
where

xi = the percentage of female in a given industry/occupation
yi = the percentage of male in the same industry/occupation
k = the number of categories
DI = the dissimilarity index

The index is a summary measure of the overall employment/occupation
segregation of men and women. The index value may range from “0” (indicating no
segregation), to “100” (indicating complete segregation). The higher the index, the
greater the degree of employment/occupational segregation. This analysis also allows
longitudinal comparisons. If the index increases over time, it indicates that the degree of
segregation is growing. The calculations of overall employment/occupation segregation
of men and women will be explored in more detail later in the chapter, Tables 8-4 and 8-5.
The W/M ratio (W/M) measures the earning gap between men and women in the
same levels of employment, occupation or educational attainment. It can be stated
mathematically as:
W/M = ai / bi
where

ai = the median monthly employment earnings of female in a given
industry/occupation or educational attainment level
bi = the median monthly employment earnings of male in the same
248

industry/occupation or educational attainment level
W/M = the ratio of women’s median monthly income from main
employment to that of men in a given industry/occupation or
educational attainment level
The index is a summary measure of the overall inequality in terms of income
distribution of men and women. If the W/M ratio is equal to 1, no gender gap in terms of
income is detected. If the W/M ratio is less than 1, it indicates that women earn less than
men even when they are in the same levels of employment, occupation and educational
attainment. The W/M ratio also allows longitudinal comparisons. If the ratio increases
over time, it indicates that the gender gap is narrowing. The details of overall income
inequality in Hong Kong will be explored later in the chapter, Tables 8-8 to 8-10.
8.3.1. Education
From 1986 to 2006, an increase in women’s enrollment at all levels of formal
education has been evident. The proportion of women aged 15 and over who have
attended secondary or higher education has increased from 50.0% in 1986 to 71.9% in
2006. At the higher end of educational attainment, the proportion of women who have
attained a college degree has increased from 4.4% to 15.4% during the same period.
Although educational opportunities for females have widened in the past two
decades, inequalities still exist. Education in Hong Kong is still a gendered experience
(Table 8-2). In 1986, 50.0% of the female population aged 15 and over had attended a
secondary education program or higher, as compared to 61.0% of the male population
249

aged 15 or over. Even after the steady improvement in recent years, women persistently
maintain lower levels of educational attainment compared to men. In 2006, 71.9% of the
female population had attained a secondary education or higher, compared to 79.3% of
the male population that had attained a secondary education or higher.
Table 8- 2 Sex-ratio of Population Aged 15 and Over by Educational Attainment
Educational attainment
1986
1991
1996
2001
2006
No schooling/Pre-primary
263
339
325
306
290
Primary
1245
1160
1066
929
815
Lower secondary
1643
1543
1426
1286
1136
Upper secondary/Sixth form
1096
1004
940
889
882
Tertiary (non-degree)
971
985
940
970
977
Tertiary (degree)
2204
1744
1432
1232
1086
Overall
1056
1017
983
934
891
Note: (1) Sex-ratio refers to Number of males per 1 000 females (2) population aged 15
and over includes land-based non-institutional population aged 15 and over only. (3)
Lower secondary refers to persons with lower secondary educational attainment include
persons with Secondary 1 to Secondary 3 educational attainment. (4) Lower secondary/
Sixth form refers to persons with upper secondary educational attainment include
persons with Secondary 4 - 5 or equivalent educational attainment while persons with
sixth form educational attainment include those with Secondary 6 - 7 or equivalent
educational attainment.
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department
Moreover, gender role stereotypes still prevail in every aspect of education. There
is continued gender segregation in fields of study which leads to segregation in work and
employment. According to the 2006 census, gender segregation occurs in tertiary-level
fields of study. More female students enrolled in programs of medicine, dentistry and
health (62.5%), business and management (59.9%), social sciences (65.9%), arts and
humanities (72.5%) and education (71.2%) when compared with their male counterparts.
The most popular majors among male university students were Engineering and
250

Technology, Sciences and Business and Management (Kershaw, and DeGolyer, 2006).
8.3.2. Work and employment
Hong Kong’s economic development has been accompanied by a dramatic
increase in women’s labor force participation. From 1976 to 2006, the increase in the
labor force, in both absolute and relative terms, was more significant for women than for
men (Figure 8- 4). The increase in the number of women in the labor force during this
period was 970,800 (or 148.1%), while the corresponding increase in the number of men
was 716,300 (or 57.8%). The labor force participation rate for women gradually
increased from 45.0% in 1976 to 52.6% in 2006 (CSD, 2007a). The rise in the female
labor force participation rate can be attributed to the influx of foreign domestic helpers,
as well as the improved educational attainment, marriage postponement and increased
prevalence of women who choose to be single.
The foreign domestic helpers have accelerated the increase in female workforce
participation in two different ways. On one hand, they became part of the workforce
themselves. On the other hand, they allowed more Hong Kong women to seek alternative
employment to housework (CSD, 2007a).

251

%
90
80.7
80
71.0

70
63.3

61.3

60
50

52.6
45.0

40
1976

1981

1986
F

1991
M

1996

2001

2006

Overall

Figure 8- 4 Labor Force Participation Rates by Sex
Source: Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region
Though the overall labor force participation rate for women has always been
significantly lower than that for men, the labor force participation rate for never-married
women was actually higher than that of never-married men in 2006, 68.7% compared to
67.2%. Marital and family status, and their associated conditions, are widely held to have
a determining impact upon female labor force participation; an effect that is felt much
more strongly by women than by men. The labor force participation rate for nevermarried women was significantly higher than that for married women, 68.7% compared
to 45.6% (Table 8-3). Family obligations are a significant impediment to women who
wish to work. In 2006, 98.1% of home-makers were female (CSD, 2007a).

252

Table 8- 3 Labor Force Participation Rates by Marital Status and Sex
Marital status
Sex
1986
1991
1996
2001
2006
F
70.8
70.1
68.4
67.6
68.7
Never married
M
76.9
74.9
70.9
67.9
67.2
F
39.1
38.3
39.3
43.6
45.6
Ever married
M
82.9
81.3
78.2
75.6
73.0
F
48.9
47.9
47.8
50.7
52.6
Overall
M
80.5
78.9
75.7
73.0
71.0
Note: Ever married refers to those now married, widowed and divorced/separated.
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department
Women’s labor force participation has greatly increased since the manufacturing
boom in Hong Kong. As Hong Kong became a center of manufacturing in the global
economy from the 1960s and into the 1970s, a large number of women entered the
thriving manufacturing industries and supplied the bulwark of cheap factory labor (Salaff
1981). By the 1980s, over half of Hong Kong manufacturing workers were female,
mostly concentrated in textiles, apparel, electronics, and footwear factories (Salaff 1981).
In these industries, foremen, technicians, supervisors, and labor contractors were almost
all men, while shop floor operators and home workers were almost all young women.
Female workers were always branded as ‘secondary workers.’ They are subjected to low
wages, long hours, frequent overtime, little or no prospects for advancement, and
generally uncertain employment.
During the 1980s, Hong Kong experienced an economic restructuring and it
appeared to hit women harder than men (Figure 8-5). With China’s open door policy,
industries moved northward into the mainland, leading to the loss of many manufacturing
jobs in Hong Kong to women workers in nearby cities in Mainland China. More female
manufacturing workers suffered underemployment and layoffs. At least 57.6% of female
253

manufacturing workers were pushed out from full-time employment, compared with only
18.4% of male workers (Chiu and Lee, 1997).
Those able to keep their jobs in manufacturing faced under-employment and wage
cuts. Moreover, women were in a worse position in terms of job search duration, re-entry
into the manufacturing field and improvement in living standards. Only 15% of the
women in this group managed to become reemployed in non-manufacturing jobs, and
even then, in many of these cases where they were faced with low pay, long hours of
work, heavy workloads, age discrimination, conflicts with family obligations and
physical exhaustion (Kershaw and DeGolyer, 2006). The percentage of female
manufacturing workers dropped from 44.2% in 1986 to 4.9% in 2006 (CSD, 2007a).
50

(﹪)

40
30
20
10
0

1986

1991

1996

2001

2006

Female

44.2

28.3

14.9

8.2

4.9

Male

29.8

24.7

16.6

11.3

7.6

Figure 8- 5 Change of Manufacturing Employment from 1986 to 2006
Source: Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region
Paralleling this deindustrialization, there have been an increasing number of
women being absorbed in the expanding job opportunities in Hong Kong’s service sector.
As seen from Figure 8-6, the rate of growth for women in services is higher than that for
254

men. It is worth noticing that the unemployment and underemployment figures only
report those ‘actively seeking’ work. There are many women engaged as ‘Home-makers’
that do not count as the ‘Economically-inactive.’ The labor participation rate for women
might, in fact, be understating a much harsher employment situation for women.

Figure 8- 6 Change of Manufacturing and Services Employment in Hong Kong, 19802005
Source: GenderStats Database, World Bank
Several women workers’ rights organizations found that unemployment appeared
to be increasing for women with a higher education and for women within the younger
age group 30 to 39 (Chiu and Lee, 1997). In addition, as women historically tended to
occupy lower-level positions, they were among the first workers to be pushed out of the
labor market. If they were able to find new employment, typically it was in casual, low
income jobs (Chiu and Lee, 1997).
Significant changes in the gendered employment division can be observed over
the past 20 years (Table 6-3). In 2006, employed females were mainly engaged in the
community, social and personal services sector (38.6%), followed by the wholesale, retail
255

and import/export trades, restaurants and hotels sector (35.7%) and then the financing,
insurance, real estate and business services sector (13.9%). Men’s work, on the other
hand, was somewhat different, with the wholesale, retail and import/export trades,
restaurants and hotels sector being the largest (29.7%). Although accounting for a smaller
percentage of the total employed, the industries of transport/storage/communication,
construction, and mining/electricity/gas are all male dominated, with men making-up
more than 80% of the workforce. Significant segregation in terms of the gender division
of labor is found in Hong Kong.
In addition, according to the dissimilarity index, the degree of segregation in
terms of gender division of labor between 1986 and 2006 in Hong Kong has increased
over time. The dissimilarity index has been steadily increasing, from 21.613 in 1986 to
28.752 in 2006.
8.3.3. Occupation
In recent decades, there has been an increase in the number of women entering
high-end occupations in Hong Kong (Table 8-5). Rapid economic growth combined with
women’s increased educational attainment and the implementation of equal employment
laws has facilitated this improvement (Chow and Luk, 1996). For example, the
proportion of female employed persons holding managerial and administrative,
professional or associate professional occupations increased substantially, from 19.6% in
1993 to 30.2% in 2006. However, the proportion of females in these occupations by 2006
was still much less than that of male employed persons in these occupations, which was
256

40.9% in 2006. The degree of gender occupational segregation increased from 1993 to
2001, with the dissimilarity index increasing from 34.016 to 35.380. But there is an
evident decrease in the 2000s, with the dissimilarity index decreasing to 33.489 in 2006.
Despite the steady progress, a significant gender gap in terms of occupational
structure still exists (Chow, 1995). On the one hand, women persistently remain
underrepresented and underutilized in high-end occupations. On the other hand, women
were overrepresented in low-end occupations (Figure 8-7). In 2006, about half of female
employed persons worked as clerks and workers in elementary occupations.

257

Table 8- 4 Employed Persons by Industry and Sex, 1986 - 2006
1986
1991
1996
F
M
F
M
F
M

Industry
Number (Thousands)
Manufacturing
Construction
Wholesale, retail and import/export trades, restaurants
and hotels
Transport, storage and communications
Financing, insurance, real estate and business services
Community, social and personal services
Others
Total

% of sub total
Manufacturing
Construction
Wholesale, retail and import/export trades, restaurants
and hotels
Transport, storage and communications
Financing, insurance, real estate and business services
Community, social and personal services
Others
Total

2001
F

M

2006
F

M

424.3
9.5
212.3

495
191.6
390.7

292.2
10.9
300.3

424.8
214
431.8

179.7
15.7
404.4

310.3 115.6
257.5 20.6
503.4 480.7

208.6
268.2
500.7

77
19.2
559.5

140.7
252.3
549

26.9
64.1
208.3
15.6
961

190.1
97.8
253.2
44.2
1662.6

40.5
101.8
278
7.7
1031.4

233.1
127.2
258.1
33.2
1722.2

62.3
147.7
392
5.7
1207.5

273.9
216.1
275.9
28.9
1866

73.1
198.3
512
4.3
1404.6

279.1
284.4
287.2
18.5
1846.7

82.8
217.8
604.2
5.4
1565.9

285.9
308.3
292
17.6
1845.8

44.2
1.0

29.8
11.5

28.3
1.1

24.7
12.4

14.9
1.3

16.6
13.8

8.2
1.5

11.3
14.5

4.9
1.2

7.6
13.7

22.1
2.8
6.7
21.7
1.6
100

23.5
11.4
5.9
15.2
2.7
100

29.1
3.9
9.9
27.0
0.7
100

25.1
13.5
7.4
15.0
1.9
100

33.5
5.2
12.2
32.5
0.5
100

27.0
14.7
11.6
14.8
1.5
100

34.2
5.2
14.1
36.5
0.3
100

27.1
15.1
15.4
15.6
1.0
100

35.7
5.3
13.9
38.6
0.3
100

29.7
15.5
16.7
15.8
1.0
100

21.613
22.159
24.842
28.010
28.752
DI
Note: (1) “Others” include such industries as “Agriculture and fishing”, “Mining and quarrying”, “Electricity, gas and water” and industrial
activities inadequately described or unclassifiable. (2) From 1993 onwards, the industrial classification used in the General Household Survey
basically follows the 'Hong Kong Standard Industrial Classification (1991)' which is an updated version of the classification used in previous
rounds of the survey. Figures from 1993 onwards are thus not strictly comparable with the corresponding figures prior to 1993. (3)Unit of
number: thousands.
258

Source: General Household Survey Section, Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region
Table 8- 5 Employed Persons by Occupation and Sex, 1993-2006
1993
1996
2001
F
M
F
M
F
M

2006
F

M

Occupation
Number (Thousands)
Managers and administrators
Professionals
Associate professionals
Clerks
Service workers and shop sales workers
Craft and related workers
Plant and machine operators and assemblers
Elementary occupations
Others
Sub total

40.3
37.7
126.4
354.7
140
16.6
97
224.6
3.7
1041.2

211.4
78.4
186.4
167.3
257.8
337.4
268
240.3
11.9
1758.9

59
52.6
171.1
397.9
169.8
13.1
61.4
279.3
3.1
1207.4

242
108.4
254.9
163.6
264.6
328.1
239.3
256.1
8.9
1865.9

71.4
64.6
232.2
406.3
220.1
9.8
34.3
364.1
1.8
1404.6

207.1
133.5
341.5
152.1
254.2
296.6
214.4
242.6
4.7
1846.7

99.6
84
289.1
388.6
263.2
9.1
21.7
408.1
2.4
1565.8

242.1
147.8
364.4
142.5
251.5
252.8
202.6
237.2
4.7
1845.8

% of sub total
Managers and administrators
Professionals
Associate professionals
Clerks
Service workers and shop sales workers
Craft and related workers
Plant and machine operators and assemblers
Elementary occupations
Others
Sub total

3.9
3.6
12.1
34.1
13.4
1.6
9.3
21.6
0.4
100

12.0
4.5
10.6
9.5
14.7
19.2
15.2
13.7
0.7
100

4.9
4.4
14.2
33.0
14.1
1.1
5.1
23.1
0.3
100

13.0
5.8
13.7
8.8
14.2
17.6
12.8
13.7
0.5
100

5.1
4.6
16.5
28.9
15.7
0.7
2.4
25.9
0.1
100

11.2
7.2
18.5
8.2
13.8
16.1
11.6
13.1
0.3
100

6.4
5.4
18.5
24.8
16.8
0.6
1.4
26.1
0.2
100

13.1
8.0
19.7
7.7
13.6
13.7
11.0
12.9
0.3
100

34.016
34.108
35.380
33.489
DI
Note: From 1993 onwards, the occupational classification used in the General Household Survey basically follows the major groups of the
259

'International Standard Classification of Occupations (1988)' with local adaptation for Hong Kong. There are significant differences between
this classification scheme and the one adopted for years prior to 1993. Hence, no comparison can be made with figures in earlier years.
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region

0%

50%
29.1%

Managers and administrators

70.9%

36.2%

Professionals

63.8%

44.2%

Associate professionals

55.8%
73.2%

Clerks

26.8%

51.1%

Service workers and shop sales workers
Craft and related workers 3.5%
Plant and machine operators and assemblers

100%

96.5%

9.7%

90.3%
63.2%

Elementary occupations
Others

48.9%

33.8%

Female

36.8%
66.2%
Male

Figure 8- 7 Employed Persons by Occupation and Sex, 2006
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region

260

While well-educated qualified women taking low-end jobs in Hong Kong
indicates the gendered structure of opportunity (Westwood et al., 1995), the
underrepresentation of women in higher level positions among those holding high-end
occupations reveals occupational segregation (Chow, 1995; Korabik, 1994). Table 6-6
shows some examples of the underrepresentation and underutilization of women in
senior positions (Table 8-6).
Table 8- 6 Women in senior positions, 2006
Profession
Women
Men
Legislative Council
18%
82%
District Council
17%
83%
Employed Persons
44%
56%
Managers & Administrators
26%
74%
Junior counsel
25%
75%
Senior counsel
7%
93%
Doctors
25%
75%
Doctors in Consultant Rank
5%
95%
Solicitors
40%
60%
Barristers
23%
77%
Senior lecturer
15%
85%
Professors
8%
92%
Heads of church
20%
80%
Pastors
18%
82%
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department
Equity in political leadership/decision-making positions is an essential route to
achieving gender equity throughout all facets and levels of society (Broderick et al.,
2008). Women in Hong Kong were also underrepresented in these positions. In Hong
Kong, women and men have equal rights in voting and in standing for election. But
there were still far less females than males serving as political leaders/decisionmakers and there was not much progress made in women holding these positions in
the past decade. Although females represented 52.3% of Hong Kong’s population by
the end of 2006, they did not hold anywhere near half of the decision-making
261

positions in Hong Kong’s government. Even in the appointed positions to statutory
bodies—which are mandated by quotas to be 25% filled by women—women still fill
less positions in government than the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW) mandates. More often than not, these are not leading or
decision-making roles that women are appointed to; rather they are entry-to-mid-level
positions.
At best, women hold only 20% of the leadership positions in any of Hong
Kong’s decision-making bodies (i.e., six out of the thirty Geographical Constituency
representatives in Hong Kong’s legislature are women). All other bodies of Hong
Kong’s government that are not subject to quotas have less than 20% women in
leading positions. Women fare even worse in local level politics in Hong Kong. Data
from the latest village representative elections show that women hold less than onetenth of one percent of political positions (i.e., 12 out of 325, or 0.04% of village
representatives are women) (Broderick et al., 2008).
Although women are making progress in playing roles in the civil service and
directorate offices in the civil service, the situation is still far from equitable. In 2006,
only 27.9% of directorate officers in the civil service were female. Three out of 19
principal officials were women and there were four female members of the Executive
Council among the total of 29 members (Table 8-7).

262

Table 8- 7 Civil Service from 1981-2006
Sex
1981
1986
1991
1996
Female 25.58
29.18
31.79
32.12
Civil Servants
Male
74.42
70.82
68.21
67.88
Female 4.90
5.95
9.84
15.35
Directorate
Officers
Male
95.10
94.05
90.16
84.65
Source: Census and Statistics Department, the Government of
Special Administrative Region

2001
2006
33.51
33.72
66.49
66.28
23.04
27.90
76.96
72.10
the Hong Kong

While the quantitative analysis shows an unequal representation of women
employed in positions as managers, administrators, professionals and associate
professionals, the qualitative research studies reveal the struggles behind the success
of these professional women, and the difficult personal, social and institutional issues
facing them in the different occupations.
Negotiating traditional gender roles with career choices situated in maledominated institutional hierarchies remains a day-to-day struggle for professional
women in Hong Kong. Conflicts between work and family, as well as institutional
barriers, are experienced among women professionals (Brooks, 2004; Ng and Chan,
2004). Organizational culture, assessment for promotion and job assignments often
work in favor of men. Women need to work harder than their male colleagues to
prove their competence and make-up for the disadvantage of being excluded in male
social gatherings.
8.3.4. Income
In Hong Kong, a gender gap in salary attainment is also apparent. In general,
the median monthly employment earnings of female employed persons were lower
than that of their male counterparts. The median monthly employment earning of
female employed persons was US$1,031 (HK$8,000) in 2006 while that for males
263

was US$1,483 (HK$11,500) (CSD, 2007a). This difference could be attributed to a
host of factors, including the differences between female and male employed persons’
industrial and occupational positions, educational attainment, working experience and
the nature of work. Compared to their female counterparts, a higher proportion of
male employed persons worked as managers, administrators and professionals who
had higher monthly employment earnings than other occupational groups. On the
other hand, a relatively higher proportion of female employed persons were engaged
in clerical and elementary occupations, which offered relatively lower monthly
employment earnings. But even when women and men are in the same levels of
employment, and maintain similar occupations and educational attainment, significant
income differences were still observed (Table 8-8, Table 8-9, and Table 8-10).
Women and men in elementary occupations provide an example. In 2006, the
median monthly employment earning of females was US$438 (HK$3,400) as
compared to US$877 (HK$6,800) for their male counterparts. This could partly be
attributed to the fact that a large number of female employed persons in this category
were foreign domestic helpers who normally had monthly employment earnings of
less than US$516 (HK$4,000). However, even if foreign domestic helpers were
excluded, the median monthly employment earning for women was still much less
than men, US$645 (HK$5,000) compared to US$902 (HK$7,000) in 2006.
Substantial gender inequality in terms of income still exists in Hong Kong and
this gender gap in income has not been closing over time. As measured by the ratio of
women’s median monthly income from main employment to that of men, the gender

264

gap narrowed from 1986 to 1996, but widened from 1996 to 2006. Similar patterns
are observed when calculating the gender gap across different industry and
occupational groupings, as well as different levels of educational attainment. The
widening gender gap is more obvious at the bottom end of the industry and
occupational sub-groups. The gender gap for elementary occupations increased as the
W/M ratio dropped from 0.583 in 1993 to 0.500 in 2006, the lowest among the
occupational groups in 2006. Similar patterns are found for people employed as
service workers and retail workers. The W/M ratio of people employed in community,
social and personal service also decreased steadily, from 0.750 in 1986 to 0.353 in
2006. Overall, gender income inequality exists in Hong Kong and this gap is
increasing.

265

Table 8- 8 Median Monthly Employment Earnings of Employed Persons by Industry of Main Employment and Sex, 1986-2006
Median Monthly Employment Earnings
W/M Ratio
Main employment
Sex
1986
1991
1996
2001
2006
1986 1991 1996 2001 2006
F
1,900
4,000
6,900
8,000
7,000
Manufacturing
0.633 0.667 0.690 0.667 0.583
M
3,000
6,000
10,000 12,000 12,000
F
2,200
5,500
10,000 9,000
8,300
Construction
0.733 0.917 1.000 0.900 0.874
M
3,000
6,000
10,000 10,000 9,500
2,100
5,000
8,000
8,000
8,000
Wholesale, retail and import/export F
0.700 0.833 0.800 0.727 0.696
trades, restaurants and hotels
M
3,000
6,000
10,000 11,000 11,500
F
2,900
6,000
9,500
10,500 10,500
Transport, storage and communications
0.829 1.000 0.950 1.050 1.050
M
3,500
6,000
10,000 10,000 10,000
3,200
6,500
12,000 13,000 13,000
Financing, insurance, real estate and F
0.821 0.813 0.923 0.867 0.929
business services
M
3,900
8,000
13,000 15,000 14,000
2,700
4,800
7,500
6,000
5,300
Community, social and personal F
0.750 0.632 0.577 0.375 0.353
services
M
3,600
7,600
13,000 16,000 15,000
F
2,000
4,500
8,000
8,600
8,000
Overall
0.667 0.750 0.800 0.717 0.696
M
3,000
6,000
10,000 12,000 11,500
Note: (1) unit: HK$. (2) From 1993 onwards, the occupational classification used in the General Household Survey basically follows the major
groups of the 'International Standard Classification of Occupations (1988)' with local adaptation for Hong Kong. There are significant
differences between this classification scheme and the one adopted for years prior to 1993. Hence, no comparison can be made with figures in
earlier years.
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region

266

Table 8- 9 Median Monthly Employment Earnings of Employed Persons by Occupation of Main Employment and Sex, 1993-2006
Median Monthly Employment Earnings
W/M Ratio
Occupation
Sex 1993
1996
2001
2006
1993
1996
2001
2006
F
15,000
20,000
28,000
26,000
Managers and administrators
1.000
0.909
0.933
0.867
M
15,000
22,000
30,000
30,000
F
17,000
22,000
30,000
28,000
Professionals
0.850
0.833
0.938
0.933
M
20,000
26,400
32,000
30,000
F
10,000
15,000
16,000
15,000
Associate professionals
0.909
1.000
1.000
1.000
M
11,000
15,000
16,000
15,000
F
7,000
9,000
10,000
9,000
Clerks
0.933
0.947
1.000
0.947
M
7,500
9,500
10,000
9,500
6,000
7,000
7,000
6,500
Service workers and shop sales F
0.750
0.700
0.700
0.650
workers
M
8,000
10,000
10,000
10,000
F
5,300
7,000
8,000
8,000
Craft and related workers
0.707
0.737
0.800
0.842
M
7,500
9,500
10,000
9,500
4,500
5,300
6,000
5,500
Plant and machine operators and F
0.600
0.558
0.600
0.579
assemblers
M
7,500
9,500
10,000
9,500
F
3,500
3,800
3,900
3,400
Elementary occupations
0.583
0.543
0.520
0.500
M
6,000
7,000
7,500
6,800
F
6,000
8,000
8,600
8,000
Overall
0.750
0.800
0.717
0.696
M
8,000
10,000
12,000
11,500
Note: (1) unit: HK$. (2) From 1993 onwards, the occupational classification used in the General Household Survey basically follows the major
groups of the 'International Standard Classification of Occupations (1988)' with local adaptation for Hong Kong. There are significant
differences between this classification scheme and the one adopted for years prior to 1993. Hence, no comparison can be made with figures in
earlier years.
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region

267

Table 8- 10 Median Monthly Employment Earnings of Employed Persons by Educational Attainment and Sex, 1986-2006
Median Monthly Employment Earnings
W/M Ratio
Educational attainment
Sex 1986 1991
1996
2001
2006
1986
1991
1996 2001 2006
F
1,500 3,000
4,500
4,600
4,500
No schooling/ Pre-primary
0.600 0.652 0.643 0.575 0.643
M
2,500 4,600
7,000
8,000
7,000
F
1,800 3,600
5,200
5,500
5,000
Primary
0.600 0.655 0.612 0.579 0.588
M
3,000 5,500
8,500
9,500
8,500
F
2,000 4,000
6,500
6,000
5,500
Lower secondary
0.667 0.667 0.722 0.600 0.611
M
3,000 6,000
9,000
10,000 9,000
F
2,500 5,000
8,000
9,000
8,000
Upper secondary/Sixth form
0.714 0.714 0.727 0.750 0.727
M
3,500 7,000
11,000 12,000 11,000
F
4,600 8,500
14,000 15,000 12,000
Tertiary (non-degree)
0.836 0.850 0.824 0.833 0.800
M
5,500 10,000 17,000 18,000 15,000
F
6,000 10,000 18,000 20,000 18,000
Tertiary(degree)
0.750 0.667 0.720 0.667 0.720
M
8,000 15,000 25,000 30,000 25,000
F
2,000 4,500
8,000
8,600
8,000
Overall
0.667 0.750 0.800 0.717 0.696
M
3,000 6,000
10,000 12,000 11,500
Note: (1) unit: HK$. (2) Persons with lower secondary educational attainment include persons with Secondary 1 to Secondary 3 educational
attainment. (3) Persons with upper secondary educational attainment include persons with Secondary 4 - 5 or equivalent educational
attainment while persons with sixth form educational attainment include those with Secondary 6 - 7 or equivalent educational attainment.
Source: General Household Survey Section (2), Census and Statistics Department, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region

268

8.4. Role of women in gentrification
8.4.1. Agency and/or Victimhood
Having provided a profile of women in the Hong Kong economy, the next section
of the chapter focuses on the role of women in local redevelopment processes and
gentrification. The cultural context and the perception and attitudes toward women in
Hong Kong has been influenced by both the traditional Chinese patriarchy structure and
Western culture. Traditionally in the Chinese context, the society was male-dominated.
While men are the householder and the bread earner of the family, women have a
relatively subordinate familial role. It is more common for women to stay at home and
raise kids. However, the Western cultural influence has also shaped Hong Kong during
the British colonial period. While the male dominance structure is still in place, a
significant improvement in the role and status of women can be observed in Hong Kong.
Compared to counterparts in Mainland China, women in Hong Kong are more
independent, career-focused and monetarily autonomous (Lee, 2003). The labor
participation rate is higher and there are more women in professional and managerial
positions. In fact, women in Hong Kong are being described as “superwomen” or the
“female strong person” (Lee, 2003). In general, the Hong Kong cultural context can be
seen as a mix of traditional Chinese and Western values. The divergent view of women in
gentrification is also supported by this unique cultural context. As discussed earlier, it is
known that women are both agents of gentrification as well as victims who suffer most
from gentrification. This duality in roles is explored in more detail below.
The role of women as important agents of gentrification is well documented. The
increased participation of women in the labor force (Rose, 1984; Ley, 1986; Smith, 1987;

269

Short, 1989) and the increasing success of middle-class women in obtaining well-paid
jobs (Wekerle, 1984; Short, 1989) are known to contribute to gentrification.
Improvements in the position of women in the labor market can be observed in Hong
Kong. As discussed earlier in this chapter, the labor force participation rate for women
gradually increased from 45.0% in 1976 to 52.6% in 2006. The increase in the labor force
was more significant for women than for men during this period.
The increase rate of women in the labor force was 148.1% while the
corresponding increase rate for men was 57.8%. More importantly, there is a trend
showing greater success of middle-class women in obtaining well-paid jobs. Despite the
fact that gender gaps in occupations still exist, there is an increasing number of women in
high-end occupations (Chow, 1995; Chow and Luk, 1996). The proportion of female
employed persons holding managerial and administrative, professional or associate
professional occupations increased substantially, from 19.6% in 1993 to 30.2% in 2006.
Even though it was still much less than the proportion of males in these occupations,
women are making steady progress. This is consistent with what Rose (1984) observed in
North American cities.
Another interpretation of the women’s role in gentrification is that gentrification
is the result of an increasing number of households due to the increasing number of
women living alone, either divorced/widowed, or young and not (yet) married (Bondi,
1991). Similar demographic changes can be observed in Hong Kong. There is a trend
toward later marriage and childbirth, which leads to a larger pool of the ‘never-married’
population. From 1986 to 2006, never-married women in Hong Kong have increased by
56.8% (from 614,824 in 1986 to 964,018 in 2006) (CSD, 2007a). In addition, the

270

increasing rate of divorce also contributes to the increase in the number of women living
alone. The percentage of divorce or separation for females rose significantly, from 0.8%
of the 1986 female population (21,525) to 4.1% of the 2006 female population (147,122).
As a result, improvements in the position of women within segments of some
local labor markets do appear to be creating more relatively affluent households, whether
consisting of single women, married women or cohabiting couples, all of which
contribute to the pool of gentrifiers. Greater demand for expensive housing has been
stimulated due to changes in the structure of employment and changes in patterns of
consumption.
Besides being agents of gentrification, women are also among the “victims.” As
overrepresented among the poor, women are facing a higher possibility of displacement
associated with gentrification. Despite Hong Kong’s reputation as one of the world’s
51

wealthiest cities, one in five people in the city still live in poverty . However, women
are more likely to suffer from poverty, given the rigidity of socially ascribed gender roles
and women’s limited access to power, education and other important resources, and
especially, income inequality. As of 2006, nearly three times as many women as men
were in poverty in Hong Kong, and poverty among women is rising faster than among
men (CSD, 2007a).
The number of females living in poverty increased from 485,000 in 1996 to
621,000 in 2000, and to 643,000 in 2005. This 33% increase occurred during a period
when the total population in Hong Kong increased by only 25% (CSD, 2007a). Thus,
51

Here we used the concept of ‘relative poverty’ to define poverty. In 2006, relative
poverty in Hong Kong refers to those with a monthly income of less than US$902
(HK$7,000) for a two-person household and US$1,527 (HK$11,850) for a four-person
household.
271

there are more women living in low-income neighborhoods and they are more likely to be
pushed out in the process of gentrification. Six specific causes of women’s poverty in
Hong Kong have been identified, and they include: (1) the gender division of labor
(women in low paying jobs and occupations); (2) the widening income gap between men
and women; (3) intra-household inequality between men and women; (4) social
exclusion; (5) lack of gender-specific anti-poverty policies and a lack of women’s voices
in the public sphere as well as in decision-making; and (6) flawed immigration policy
(Broderick et al., 2008).
Among the poor, single mothers

52

are a group that suffers most from the

economic dimensions of gender issues. The number of single mothers rose markedly,
from 23,059 in 1991 to 57,613 in 2006, while the increase among male single parents was
less pronounced, rising from 11,479 in 1991 to 14,713 in 2006 (CSD, 2007a). Generally
speaking, single mothers were younger and had lower levels of education when compared
to single male parents and married mothers (Tang, 2004). Single mothers also tended to
have lower working participation rates, lower family income and lower levels of
economic improvement over time (Cheung and Liu, 1997).
In 2006, only 54% of the female single parents were working, which is less than
their male counterparts (70%). The median monthly household income of single mothers
rose by 21%, from US$999 (HK$7,750) in 1991 to US$1,025 (HK$9,345) in 2006, while
the corresponding figure for those households with male single parents had a significantly
greater increase of 41%, from US$1,109 (HK$8,600) to US$1,566 (HK$12,150) over the
same period (CSD, 2007a).
52

The term ‘single parent’ refers to persons who are widowed, divorced or separated,
and living with a child or children under the age of 18.
272

Research on single mothers, which is relatively extensive compared to other types
of research on women, indicates that poverty and stigma are enduring problems for single
parents (Kershaw and DeGolyer, 2006). As limited economic resources are often a
characteristic of female-headed families, more single mothers suffer from poverty.
Accordingly, the number of females relying on Comprehensive Social Security
Assistance (CSSA) was much higher compared to males, and the rate of increase was
also greater for females than males.
The number of female CSSA recipients in the ‘single parent family’ category
increased from 21,758 in 1996 to 60,923 in 2006, while the number of male recipients in
this category increased from 14,847 to 36,740 respectively (CSD, 2007a). Moreover,
there is less likelihood for single mothers to end reliance on CSSA. Due to limited
salaries in the labor market, the lack of childcare support and the low sums of income
they were able to earn without losing CSSA, single mothers had little or no choice but to
rely on the social security system (Kershaw and DeGolyer, 2006). Many single mothers
on benefits suffer from sub-standard living conditions.
In addition, single mothers tend to suffer from social discrimination, which comes
from Chinese cultural norms. The traditional concepts of ‘true womanhood’ and social
norms of harmony and cohesiveness of family are violated by divorce, making it
shameful for a woman to be a single mother. Single mothers typically reported more
psychological symptoms (e.g., anxiety, insomnia, somatic complaints, social dysfunction
and depression) than male single parents (King, 1998; Tang, 2004).
Overall, in different parts of Hong Kong, it could be reasonably assumed that
different groups of women will be involved or affected by gentrification in different ways.

273

Depending on their socio-economic status, they might be the gentrifiers or they might be
the displaced. All of this will could be expected to be manifested differently by
neighborhood and the socio-economic position of women in these neighborhoods across
Hong Kong.
In terms of the typical socio-economic and demographic profile of women
gentrifiers across Hong Kong, there are some general identifiable spatial patterns evident.
In the urban core, middle class women are an important driver in the gentrification
process. They are usually well educated and employed as a professional or managerial
worker in the CBD. Neighborhoods near the CBD, in Hong Kong’s urban core, are
extremely attractive and particularly for young professional females. Given their
relatively high income, they can afford to live in the upgraded and upgrading urban Hong
Kong neighborhoods. A significant proportion of these women are young professionals
and not-yet married. The housing demand of the young single women is now an
important driving force of gentrification, at least in some key gentrifying neighborhoods.
In fact, more than 40% of the single women in Hong Kong live in owner-occupied
housing (Huaxia, 2004).
While professional women with higher incomes can afford to live in the urban
core, those with lower incomes and who are employed in the lower-end occupations of
the service economy will tend to live in Hong Kong’s periphery. Barbara is a clerk in the
service economy (RTHK, 2012). She goes to work in Kowloon. She used to live with her
parents in public housing in Tin Shui Wai, but commuting from home to work cost her
about HKD$2,000 per month. She decided to move out and rent a place that is closer to
work. The private development projects and refurbished village houses are relatively

274

cheaper in the urban peripheral districts of Hong Kong. Compared to the price of housing
in the city itself, the prices and rents are much lower in the Hong Kong suburbs, which
continue to attract lower to middle income earners, including a large segment of single
women and female headed households.
While housing is relatively cheaper in the peripheral districts of Hong Kong,
compared to the urban center, some still cannot afford to live in private housing. Rental
units continue to make-up a large segment of the suburban dwelling stock. In fact, public
housing becomes an alternative option for large segments of the population employed in
the lower-end occupations of the service economy. According to China Daily (2012),
increasingly young people have been applying for public rental housing in Hong Kong.
As of 2012, more than half of the non-elderly single applicants on the waiting list for
public rental housing in Hong Kong are under the age of 30.
Afee is one of them. She is a self-employed performing artist in Hong Kong
(RTHK, 2012). Although she holds a tertiary education degree, she cannot afford private
housing with her average income of HKD$ 6000-7000 per month. She lives with her
family in public housing. She wants to move out and live by herself and public housing is
the only realistic option for her. She is now on the waiting list and will move into public
rental housing when it becomes available.
Women of different socio-economic status have been involved in transforming
Hong Kong in different ways, in different parts of the city. While a significant segment of
women are counted as gentrifiers, women are also among the “victims” who suffer most
from neighborhood upgrading. Women of disadvantaged social backgrounds are
extremely vulnerable to social and physical upgrading. These women include single-

275

mothers, new immigrant women and older women (Chan, 2011).
8.4.2. Comparing gentrified and non-gentrifies neighborhoods
When comparing gentrified neighborhoods and non-gentrified neighborhoods, the
following differences can be observed (Table 8-11, Table 8-12, and Table 8-13). The
female population has increased in all gentrified neighborhood groupings. In terms of
percentage of change, all three gentrified groups have experienced an increase in the
female population. The average increase rate is 37.39%. In comparison to the percentage
of females across Hong Kong, the gentrified groupings have experienced a 4.48%
increase in women, compared to a 3.45% increase in women in the non-gentrified
neighborhoods. As of 2006, 53.03% of the total population is female in the gentrified
neighborhoods while 52.13% of the total population is female in the non-gentrified
neighborhoods.
The never-married female population has also increased in the gentrified
neighborhoods. The never-married female increase rate for the gentrified neighborhood
groupings is 70.98% and 53.20% for the non-gentrified groupings. In the gentrified
neighborhood groupings, the percentage of never-married females in the female
population has increased from 22.91% in 1986 to 26.90% in 2006, a 3.99% increase.
During the same period, in the non-gentrified neighborhood groupings, the female
population has increased from 23.69% to 26.84%, a 3.15% increase. In 1986, the
percentage of never-married females in the female population for gentrified groups was
lower than that of non-gentrified groups. However, as of 2006, the percentage of nevermarried females in the female population for gentrified groups was higher than that of
non-gentrified groups.

276

Table 8- 11 Percentage of selected population groups, 1986
nevernever-married female-headed
male female
married male
female
household
Non-gentrified
51.33 48.67
30.48
23.69
27.43
neighborhoods
Gentrified
51.45 48.55
30.27
22.91
25.76
neighborhoods
Table 8- 12 Percentage of selected population groups, 2006
nevernever-married female-headed
male female
married male
female
household
Non-gentrified
47.87 52.13
29.83
26.84
43.75
neighborhoods
Gentrified
46.97 53.03
27.02
26.90
47.05
neighborhoods
Table 8- 13 Percentage of change of selected population groups, 1986-2006
nevernever-married female-headed
male female
married male
female
household
Non-gentrified
17.78 35.24
15.24
53.20
144.60
neighborhoods
Gentrified
21.69 45.62
8.62
70.98
180.83
neighborhoods

In terms of female-headed households, the gentrified neighborhood groupings
have experienced a faster increase in female-headed households when compared to nongentrified groups. In terms of percentage of female-headed households, they have
increased in the gentrified neighborhood groupings from 25.76% of the total households
in 1986 to 47.05% of the total households in 2006. During the same period, femaleheaded households have increased from 27.43% of total households to 43.75% of total
households in the non-gentrified neighborhood groupings.
However, it is important to note again that in 1986, only one head of household
was allowed to be reported in the census, while in 2006, the census allowed more than
one head of household to be reported. In fact, among all 2,226,546 domestic households,

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344,591 domestic households reported to have more than one head of household, 15.48%
of the total households (CSD, 2007b). The increase in female-headed households,
therefore, can be attributed, in part, to the increase in solo female-headed households and
dual-headed households.
Employment income is a good indicator in reviewing changes in socio-economic
status within the gentrifying and non-gentrifying neighborhoods. As can be expected, an
increased rate in employment income is evident in the gentrifying neighborhood
groupings compared to the non-gentrifying neighborhood groupings, and for both men
and women. However, women have experienced a higher rate of employment income
increase during these twenty years when compared to men, 99.59% versus 87.34% (Table
8-14).
Table 8- 14 Monthly Employment income of men and women
1986
2006
change
Male
Female Male Female
Male
Female
Non-gentrified
1,139
777
1,961
1,528 72.12% 96.70%
neighborhoods
Gentrified neighborhoods
1,233
882
2,309
1,760 87.34% 99.59%
Note: unit: US$
In order to provide a holistic exploration into how women of different socioeconomic status have been involved in transforming a city, I divided the population by
percentiles, using the 20th, 40th, 60th, and 80th percentile as baselines. This created five
groups: below the 20th percentile, 20th-39.9th percentile, 40th-59.9th percentile, 60th79.9th percentile, and above the 80th percentile.
Gentrified neighborhood groupings have a higher percentage of high employment
income among women compared to non-gentrified neighborhood groupings. The increase
rate is also faster (Table 8-15, Table 8-16, and Table 8-17). The increase rate for the high

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income group (60%-79.9%) and the highest income group (80%-100%) of women have
increased by 138.94% and 117.12% respectively. The 60%-79.9% percentile group
experienced a 4.81% increase (from 13.44% of all employed in 1986 to 18.24% of all
employed in 2006), while the 80%-100% percentile group experienced a 3.94% increase
(from 16.78% of all employed in 1986 to 20.70% of all employed in 2006). There are an
increasing number of middle-class and upper-class women, with higher employment
incomes, moving into gentrified neighborhoods.
Table 8- 15 Percentage of female population in different percentile by employment
income, 1986
0%20%40%60%80%19.9% 39.9%
59.9%
79.9%
100%
Non-gentrified neighborhoods 32.85
26.46
18.40
10.70
11.58
Gentrified neighborhoods
27.15
24.81
17.82
13.44
16.78

Table 8- 16 Percentage of female population in different percentile by employment
income, 2006
0%20%40%60%80%19.9% 39.9%
59.9%
79.9%
100%
Non-gentrified neighborhoods 30.41
21.00
17.71
16.58
14.29
Gentrified neighborhoods
28.38
16.39
16.29
18.24
20.70

Table 8- 17 Percentage of change of female population in different percentile,
employment income, 1986-2006
0%20%40%60%80%19.9% 39.9%
59.9%
79.9%
100%
Non-gentrified neighborhoods 40.71
20.63
46.28
135.40
87.53
Gentrified neighborhoods
83.92
16.21
60.89
138.94
117.12
Paralleling these income trends, the employed population in manufacturing has
decreased significantly in the three gentrified neighborhood groupings, with women in
manufacturing being more impacted then men. While men have decreased by 52.2%
(from 89,538 in 1986 to 42,767 in 2006), women have decreased by 63.7% (from 69,116

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in 1986 to 25,123 in 2006).
In order to get a more textured understanding of the role that women of diverse
backgrounds play in gentrification processes, the three qualitative case studies of
Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng, and Yuen Long will be reexamined with a focus on
gender. This analysis will show the varying nature and the differing role of women in
gentrification across these three Hong Kong neighborhoods experiencing upgrading.
8.4.3. Case studies of a gentrified neighborhood
8.4.3.1. Kennedy Town
As discussed earlier, Kennedy Town was once a working class neighborhood.
However, a large number of redevelopment projects, which have taken placed since the
1980s, have altered the neighborhood dramatically, in terms of neighborhood housing
and socio-economic characteristics. The original tenement housing has been gradually
replaced by high-rises and upscale residential buildings. Correspondingly, the original
lower-income, working class populations have been displaced by the new middle class of
the high-tech and specialized services economy.
An increasing pool of women gentrifiers in Kennedy Town is observed. From
1986 to 2006, the female population and the never married-female population have
increased, while male and never married-male have decreased in Kennedy Town. The
percentage of change of never-married females has increased by 25% while nevermarried male has decreased by 23%. As of 2006, never-married women outnumber
never-married men in Kennedy Town. Never-married women make up 17.70% of the
overall neighborhood population aged 15 and over while never-married-men make up
15.47% of the overall neighborhood population.

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At the same time, while the divorce rate is rising for both men and women, the
increase rate for women is much faster than men in Kennedy Town. The percentage of
change of separated/divorced females has increased by 222% (from 248 in 1986 to 798 in
2006) while that of males has increased by 112% (from 247 in 1986 to 524 in 2006). Less
than 1% of women in Kennedy Town were separated and/or divorced in 1986, but by
2006, this figure had increased to over 2.5%. There is also a significant increase in
female-headed households. Although the increased female-headed households can be
attributed to either solo-female headed households or dual-headed households, it is clear
that the postponement of marriage and the increasing divorce rate have made single
women an increasingly important factor in Kennedy Town.
In Kennedy Town, women in the upper end of educational attainment levels and
occupations have also increased at a faster rate compared to men. In general, there is an
increasing population with college degrees moving into Kennedy Town. However, the
increasing rate of women with college degrees is much greater than that for men with
college degrees. While there is a 358.7% increase in educational attainment for men,
there is a 1,140.6% increase for women.
Paralleling the increasing prominence of women with higher education
attainment, women in high-end occupations in Kennedy Town are also increasing faster
than men. Male professionals have increased by 155.6% from 1986 to 2006, while female
professionals have increased by 255.2% during this same period. A similar pattern is
evident with the growing number of women in positions as managers and administrators
in Kennedy Town. Within this gentrifying neighborhood, while there was a 354.2%
increase in male managers and administrators, female managers and administrators

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experienced a 625.8% increase. As of 2006, however, there are still more men than
women who have high-end occupations in Kennedy Town.
The economic restructuring and deindustrialization, however, hit women harder
than men. The employed population in manufacturing has decreased significantly from
1986 to 2006. While men have decreased by 60.8% (from 3,412 in 1986 to 1,338 in
2006), females have decreased by 72.2% (from 2,684 in 1986 to 746 in 2006).
In terms of household income and employment income, women have experienced
a greater increase than men. For income from major employment, for example, while the
rate of increase between 1986 and 2006 in Kennedy Town for men was 105.4%, it was
123.9% for women. From data showing percentile based on employment income, women
in the upper income groupings have experienced a dramatic increase (Figure 8-8).
The increase rate for women in the high income group (60%-79.9% percentile)
and the highest income group (80%-100% percentile) consisted of increases of 35%
(from 1,790 in 1986 to 2,421 in 2006) and 100% (from 1,885 in 1986 to 3,635 in 2006)
respectively. Most noticeably, there is a great increase among women in the highest
income grouping. The percentage of women who have incomes higher than 80% of the
population has increased by 9.4% (from 16.9% in 1986 to 26.3% in 2006). It is thus clear
that the increase among high income women is the major component of socioeconomic
change in Kennedy Town.
It should be acknowledged, however, that there is also an increase in women in
the bottom income grouping. The percentage of women who have incomes lower than
20% of the population has experienced a 2.6% increase (from 23.3% in 1986 to 25.9% in
2006). Living in the old tenement buildings that have not-yet been redeveloped and

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upgraded, this segment of poor women will likely soon be displaced to make room for the
wealthier.

Income
80%

60%

40%

20%

Population

Figure 8- 8 Income from major employment in percentiles by sex in Kennedy Town,
1986 and 2006

Women have played an important role in the gentrification of Kennedy Town.
While Kennedy Town transformed from a traditional working class neighborhood into a
residential area for upper-middle income earners, an overt increase of participation of
women in the labor force, especially the increasing success of middle-class women in
obtaining well-paid jobs, has been reflected in the demographic transition of this district.
In addition to the socioeconomic change, there are some important demographic changes
that are also visible in Kennedy Town.
There are increasing numbers of households consisting of women, either young
and not (yet) married or divorced/separated. There are also increasing two-headed

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households where women as head of households are in the higher social class. These
socioeconomic and demographic trends together create an increasing number of small but
affluent households that can afford more expensive housing.
Dual-career couples and single women who prefer an inner-urban residential
location, because of the urban lifestyle preferences and reduced commuting costs, are
increasingly moving into Kennedy Town. With Kennedy Town being in close proximity
to the CBD, its advantageous location has facilitated the recent waves of physical and
social upgrading. This gentrification was driven by those populations and households
who found the urban location appealing, and clearly both unmarried and married women
played a relatively more prominent role in the upgrading of this neighborhood than did
men.
As the built environment was physically upgraded, gross rent in Kennedy Town
has also increased. As noted earlier in the dissertation, while rent in Kennedy Town was
at about the city average in 1986, it has increased to two times the city average as of
2006. With the recent redevelopment of the neighborhood, Kennedy Town is now
generally occupied by those of higher incomes. It is also evident that there is an
increasing pool of women gentrifiers, consisting of either young professional single
women or married or cohabiting dual-career couples, who have been seeking out housing
in Kennedy Town and who can afford the more expensive inner-city housing.
8.4.3.2. Tiu Keng Leng
Similar to Kennedy Town, women have played a major role in transforming Tiu
Keng Leng, the once refugee camp that had a high concentration of Hong Kong’s core
poor. The socio-economic and demographic imprint of women in this neighborhood,

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however, is very different from their composition in Kennedy Town. Tiu Keng Leng’s
transformation from a refugee camp into a pro-Kuomintang enclave, and then to an
increasingly-stable Hong Kong residential neighborhood known for its concentrated
public housing, reflects the broader socio-economic and demographic imprint in the
upgrading of this community. While women have played an important role in the
upgrading of this neighborhood, in comparison to Kennedy Town, a broader spectrum of
women gentrifiers is observed in Tiu Keng Leng.
From 1986 to 2006, the female population and the never married-female
population have increased dramatically in Tiu Keng Leng. Even though the male
population and the never married-male population have also increased, the increase rate
for females is much higher. From 1986 to 2006, the female population has increased by
1,086.5% while the male population has increased by 829.8%. During the same period,
never-married females have increased by 1,198.3% while never-married males have
increased by 541.2%.
The divorce rate for both men and women is rising dramatically in Tiu Keng
Leng. But as in Kennedy Town, the increased rate for divorce among women is more
substantial. While separated/divorced females have increased by 4,948% (from 23 in
1986 to 1,170 in 2006), men have increased by 2,765% (from 17 in 1986 to 498 in 2006).
The percentage of female who were separated/divorced in 1986 was only 1%. The
percentage has steadily increased to 4.5% by 2006. There is also a significant increase in
female-headed households, with the increase rate being 1,423.3%. Given the dramatic
increase rate in the female population in the transformation of this neighborhood—
consisting of never-married females, separated/divorced females, and female-headed

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household—just the increase in housing for women has been substantial in Tiu Keng
Leng.
The rate of increase of women who have higher educational attainment and
higher-end occupations has also been greater than that of men in Tiu Keng Leng. In terms
of educational attainment, there is an increasing population with college degrees moving
into Tiu Keng Leng, with a higher increase rate among women. From 1986 to 2006,
women with college degrees in Tiu Keng Leng have increased by 20,034.1% while men
have increased by 7,506.4%.
In terms of high-end occupations, the increase rate for women in this gentrifying
neighborhood is also higher. Between 1986 and 2006, male professionals have increased
by 2,389.4% while female professionals have increased by 4,645.9%. The increase rate
for managers and administrators is also dramatic. Male managers and administrators have
increased from 17 in 1986 to 2,130 in 2006 (12,153.0%). Female managers and
administrators have increased from 0 to 996.
Different than in the case of Kennedy Town, a proportionately greater increase of
women in the lower-end occupations is apparent in Tiu Keng Leng. Women who work as
clerks or service workers and shop sales workers have increased by 3133.7% and 590.6%
respectively. However, the differences between men and women are not as dramatic.
Men with these occupations have also increased, by 3,329.7% and 371.1% respectively.
Given the large scale population increase in Tiu Keng Leng, the employed
population in manufacturing has actually increased in this neighborhood. Employed
males in manufacturing have increased by 165.3% (from 498 in 1986 to 1,322 in 2006),
while females have increased by 200.6% (from 290 in 1986 to 871 in 2006).

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However, the proportion of manufacturing workers in the total employed
population has actually decreased. The proportion of males has decreased from 37.9% to
9.9%, while that of females has decreased from 34.7% to only 7.5%. At the same time,
the employed population in the service sector has increased dramatically. Men in the
service sector have increased by 1,369.3% while women have increased by 1,889.3%. As
of 2006, 92.2% of the women in Tiu Keng Leng are employed in the service sector.
In terms of employment income, from 1986 to 2006, women have experienced a
greater increase than men, with the increase rate being 147.5% for women and 135.7%
for men. From data showing percentile based on employment income, women at all
percentile groupings have increased (Figure 8-9). The increase rate for women in the 0%19.9% percentile group, 20%-39.9% percentile group, 40%-59.9% percentile group,
60%-79.9% percentile group and 80%-100% percentile group are 1,357.0%, 830.6%,
726.7%, 1,583.9% and 3,064.9% respectively. The increase rate for the 60%-79.9%
percentile group and 80%-100% percentile group are most dramatic. The percentage of
women in the 60%-79.9% percentile grouping has increased from 11.9% of the
population in 1986 to 14.6% of the population in 2006. At the same time, the percentage
of women in the 80%-100% percentile grouping has increased from 10.3% in 1986 to
23.7% in 2006. There is also a spike, however, at the bottom end of the income grouping,
the percentage of women in the 0%-19.9% percentile grouping has increased from 28.4%
in 1986 to 30.0% in 2006.
Men in the 60%-79.9% percentile group and 80%-100% percentile group have
also increased. However their increase rate is less than that of women, being 566.9% and
2,139.8% respectively. Overall, the increase of employed women in Tiu Keng Leng is

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evident as this neighborhood has been gentrified, and especially for those with higher
incomes.

Income
80%

60%

40%

20%

Population

Figure 8- 9 Income from major employment in percentiles by sex in Tiu Keng Leng, 1986
and 2006
Tiu Keng Leng was originally set up as a temporary refugee camp to settle
thousands of Kuomintang supporters and their families during the 1950s. After decades
of development and redevelopment, the neighborhood has been transformed to a stable
residential Hong Kong district, with concentrated public housing development as well as
some new evidence of upscale private high-rise structures. Women have clearly played
an important role in the transformation of this neighborhood. The role of women in the
gentrification process in Tiu Keng Leng is somewhat different than that of Kennedy
Town though. A broader spectrum of women gentrifiers is observed within Tiu Keng
Leng.
The increased participation of women in the labor force in Tiu Keng Leng is
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perhaps most evident. There is a great increase in women with higher education levels
who are employed in higher order occupations. However, the increase of women at the
lower end of the occupational spectrum is also an important dimension of the
transformation of Tiu Keng Leng. This neighborhood, after all, is still relatively lower
income, despite the upgrading processes experienced over this two decade period, and
women in the lower paying jobs of the service economy, such as retail and clerical
positions, have been important drivers in the upgrading of Tiu Keng Leng.
In addition to the change in women’s socioeconomic profiles, there are important
demographic changes that are also evident in Tiu Keng Leng. There are an increasing
number of households consisting of women, either young and not married or
separated/divorced. The socioeconomic factors combined with the demographic factors
create a pool of potential female gentrifiers, ranging from lower-middle income earners
to higher income earners. The recent wave of development and redevelopment in Tiu
Keng Leng has made it possible for a whole range of income groups to move into this
neighborhood.
The government has demolished the whole resettlement area of Tiu Keng Leng
and replaced it with concentrated high-rise public housing, which is in large part targeting
lower income populations, and hence the extensive increase among women who are
employed in lower-end occupations within the service economy. Private and commercial
investments followed this initial round of public driven redevelopment, creating more
recent rounds of large-scale new high-rise construction targeting higher income groups.
Over time, it could be expected that the increase in women professionals and
higher income women will continue to transform and upgrade Tiu Keng Leng to an even

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more broad-based gentrification. This neighborhood has the potential to further transform
into a more upscale and upper-income enclave, although there will be limitations that will
be determined by the degree of lower income public housing provided. Women of lower
incomes will thus tend to be subject to higher risk of displacement if upgrading continues.
8.4.3.3. Yuen Long
Similar to the Kennedy Town and the Tiu Keng Leng context, women have also
been playing an important role in the gentrification in Yuen Long. However, contrasting
to the higher income middle class women gentrifiers in Kennedy Town, women
gentrifiers in Yuen Long are of lower socio-economic status. The transformation of this
neighborhood, in many ways, parallels the upgrading of Tiu Keng Leng.
Yuen Long was a lower-income area in the Hong Kong urban periphery. During
the last two decades of upgrading, Yuen Long was transformed into a middle-lowerincome area, where housing for lower income groups still plays a prominent role in this
neighborhood composition. Once again, women have played an important role in this
neighborhoods transition from its rural township status—consisting of ancient, 17

th

century Chinese villages, farms, and more recently, industrial suburbs and industrial
workers—into a new town increasingly characterized by high-rises and a growing
population of clerks, administrators and professionals of the new service economy.
From 1986 to 2006, the female population and the never married-female
population have increased in Yuen Long. The percentage of change in the never-married
females has increased by 83.3% while the never-married males have only increased by
8.7%. Similar to Kennedy Town, the divorce rate for women is rising, and dramatically,
in Yuen Long. The percentage of change of separated/divorced female has increased by

290

715.0% (from 193 in 1986 to 1,573 in 2006), while that of men has increased by 278.0%
(from 191 in 1986 to 722 in 2006). Fewer than 1% of females were separated or divorced
in 1986. This percentage has steadily increased to 5.4% by 2006. The increase of women,
and especially single women, is clearly evident in Yuen Long. In addition, there is also an
increase in female-headed households, suggesting an increase in dual-headed households
as well as solo-female headed households.
In terms of education attainment, there is also an increasing population with
college degrees moving into Yuen Long, with a higher increase rate among women
college graduates than men. Women with college degrees in Yuen Long have increased
by 1386.0% while men have increased by 551.3%.
In terms of occupations, paralleling the increased educational attainment, both
men and women in Yuen Long have been characterized by an upgraded occupational
structure. Male professionals have increased by 317.8% from 1986 to 2006 while female
professionals have increased by 333.2%. During the same interval, male managers and
administrators have increased by 448.7% while female managers and administrators have
increased by 2,549.4%. However, the astonishing increase rate of female managers and
administrators is related to the relatively few women (only 24) that were employed in this
occupation in 1986.
This dramatic increase rate of women in the high-end occupations might be
deceptive. In fact, women living in Yuen Long are still lagging behind men in the highend occupations. For women living in Yuen Long, the most substantial increase in
women employment is in clerical positions. Women clerks have increased from 1,471 in
1986 to 3,068 in 2006. This represents a 304.8% increase. This increase among men, in

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comparison, is 234.9%.
In contrast, the employed population in manufacturing experienced a dramatic
decrease in Yuen Long, and this was evident both for men and women. The decrease rate
in men and women employed in manufacturing was around 63%. Employed males in
manufacturing have decreased from 3,196 in 1986 to 1,176 in 2006, while females have
decreased from 2,920 in 1986 to 1,067 in 2006.
While there has been a dramatic decrease of people employed in manufacturing in
Yuen Long, there has been a parallel increase in populations employed in the service
sector. In addition, the increase in the rate of women employed in services is greater than
that of men employed in services. Men living in Yuen Long that are employed in the
service sector have increased by 46.8%, while women employed in the service sector
have increased by 172.1%.
Women employment in three areas of the service economy has been particularly
noticeable among those women living in Yuen Long. Women employed in wholesale,
retail, and import/export trades, restaurants and hotels have increased by 91.9%, while
men in this employment category have decreased by 12.3%. Women employed in
financial intermediation, real estate, renting and business activities have increased by
407.8%, while men in this employment category have increased by 360.8%. The
difference between men and women employed in public administration, other
community, social & personal services has been the most dramatic in Yuen Long. While
women have increased by 202.5%, men have only increased by 21.7%. In general, the
increase of women in the middle-low end occupations in the service sector has been most
evident as the profile of women moving into Yuen Long.

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In terms of both household income and employment income in Yuen Long,
women have experienced a greater increase than men. In terms of income from major
employment in Yuen Long, women realized an increase of 126.3% between 1986 and
2006, while men realized an increase of 95.9% during the same period. From data
showing employment income broken down by percentile categories, women at the upper
end of the income categories have been increasing in numbers while women at the lower
end of the income category have been decreasing in numbers (Figure 8-10).
The rates of increase in the 40%-59.9% percentile group, 60%-79.9% percentile
group, and 80%-100% percentile group are 144.8%, 271.2% and 174.1% respectively.
The most dramatic increases are found in the 60%-79.9% percentile group and the 40%59.9% percentile group. The percentage of women in the 60%-79.9% percentile group
has experienced a 10.1% increase (from 9.7% in 1986 to 19.8% in 2006).Following a
similar direction, the percentage of women in the 40%-59.9% percentile group has
experienced a 5.8% increase (from 16.3% in 1986 to 22.1% in 2006). The percentage of
women in the 0%-19.9% percentile group and the 20%-39.9% percentile group have both
decreased dramatically, a 11.9% and a 8.8% decrease respectively.

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Income
80%

60%

40%

20%

Population

Figure 8- 10 Income from major employment in percentiles by sex in Yuen Long, 1986
and 2006
The case of Yuen Long demonstrates a different profile in terms of the women’s
role in a gentrification process. In recent years, Yuen Long has undergone a rapid
transformation from its rural township status into a new town increasingly characterized
by high-rises and a growing population of clerks, administrators and professionals of the
new service economy. Women have played an important role in this neighborhood
transformation. The increase in participation of women in the labor force is evident
especially in the service sector. In contrast to the clear and evident increase of high
income middle-class women in Kennedy Town, the increase of women in middle to low
order occupations, and with middle to low incomes, are most dramatic in Yuen Long.
In terms of demographic changes in Yuen Long, there are an increasing numbers
of households consisting of women, either young and not married or separated/divorced.

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The increase in households consisting of women, combined with the improvement of
women’s socioeconomic status, create a demand for better housing. However, this subset
of middle-low income women moving into Yuen Long cannot afford the more expensive
inner-city housing, such as the high-rise units in Kennedy Town. The upgraded urban
periphery, that is still relatively affordable, becomes attractive to these lower-middle
income populations.
Yuen Long’s landscape has changed dramatically given the physical and social
upgrading in recent years. Opened up by the Hong Kong government’s new town
development policy, Yuen Long, the once isolated rural area, has started to become a
major residential destination for many traditional city dwellers. The improved
transportation and new infrastructure investments, along with the new high-rise
developments and refurbished village houses in this peripheral district, has gradually
made this destination more desirable. With the new high-rise developments, the influx of
clerks, professionals and administrators of the service economy—who have displaced the
original farming population and the factory workers—have clearly become more visible
in Yuen Long’s landscape. Women, and especially middle-low income women, have
played an important role in these redevelopment processes in Yuen Long.
8.5. Summary
Gender issues are recognized as an important topic within the gentrification
literature, in large part because of the under-represented status of research on the role of
women in gentrification. Although gender equality and women’s empowerment is
increasingly recognized as an integral aspect of development, our world is still quite far
from achieving gender equity (Çağatay and Ertürk, 2004).

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Hong Kong has gone through a critical historical juncture, with significant
political, economic and social changes in recent decades, driven by globalization
processes and the rise of the service economy. Significant socio-economic changes have
been taking place in this global city. In this chapter, I focused on gender and socioeconomic and demographic changes in Hong Kong from 1986 to 2006, aiming to shed
some light on the gender inequality in Hong Kong, the changing profile of women in the
Hong Kong economy and the gender dimension of gentrification. The exploration of the
women’s role in Hong Kong’s gentrification processes was first examined through an
aggregate comparison of gentrified and non-gentrified neighborhoods in Hong Kong.
Three gentrified neighborhoods were then used as case studies to further illustrate the
diverse nature of women and their socio-economic and demographic profiles in the
gentrification of Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng and Yuen Long.
On the one hand, it is evident that women can be the agents driving gentrification.
In general, the case of Hong Kong shows that women are playing an increasingly
important role in the local gentrification processes. There are some general trends across
all of Hong Kong’s gentrified neighborhoods. Women’s socio-economic status has
greatly improved. The increased participation of women in the labor force is clearly
evident in all three neighborhood clusters showing upgrading. With increased levels of
education among women, there has also an increase in women obtaining well-paid jobs.
In terms of the demographic change, the increase of single women is an important
factor in the gentrifying of Hong Kong’s neighborhoods, given the declining marriage
rates and rising divorce rates (Kershaw and DeGolyer, 2006). There is also an increase in
the number of households with women living alone, whether never-married or divorced

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and/or separated. The role of single women in upgrading neighborhoods is clearly an
important aspect of gentrification in Hong Kong.
While similar to a certain degree, with all three neighborhoods showing
upgrading, the case of Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng and Yuen Long represent three
different profiles of the role of women in gentrification processes, demonstrating the
diverse nature of women in gentrification. The increase of women with high incomes and
high-end occupations is most evident in Kennedy Town. These women, either living
alone or in dual-career family, contribute to the increase of small but affluent households
that can afford more expensive inner-urban housing.
Given its proximity to the CBD, Kennedy Town has become appealing to both
young professional single women or women who are married or cohabiting as part of
dual-career couples. The role of the growing segment of never-married single
professional women becomes a particularly unique imprint of women shaping the
upgrading of Kennedy Town. Women in Kennedy Town are very much a reflection of
the transformation of this neighborhood from a traditional working class neighborhood
into a residential area for upper-middle income earners.
A broader socio-economic spectrum of women gentrifiers is observed in Tiu
Keng Leng. The increase in the participation of women in the labor force is again evident
in this neighborhood. While there is a clear increase in women with higher educational
attainment and women employed in the higher-end occupations, there is also an evident
increase of women in lower-end occupations and with lower incomes. The increase of
women employed in manufacturing is a unique aspect of change in Tiu Keng Leng. A
wide range in housing demand exists in the transformation of this neighborhood, ranging

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from affordable housing for the lower-middle income earners to upscale housing for the
higher income earners. The development and redevelopment characteristics in Tiu Keng
Leng have made it possible to accommodate these varied socio-economic needs, at the
same time that upgrading itself in the neighborhood has been evident.
The original resettlement area was demolished by government and replaced with
concentrated high-rise public housing, and this area continues to be an important
concentration of housing for Hong Kong’s lower income population, including
manufacturing workers. Private and commercial investments followed, creating largescale new high-rises targeting higher income groups. As a result, the original refugee
camp housing the core-poor was transformed into a lower-income and middle-lowerincome neighborhood dominated by public housing and a growing number of
manufacturing workers and workers employed in Hong Kong’s service economy. The
neighborhood reflects a very unique gentrification imprint from what is conventionally
discussed in the gentrification literature.
A substantial upgrading in socio-economic status can also be observed among the
new women residents in Yuen Long, the third case study. However, different than the
increase in high income and middle-class women in Kennedy Town, the increase of
women with middle-low occupations and incomes is most dramatic in Yuen Long. In
many ways, the gentrification of Yuen Long parallels the upgrading and neighborhood
profile of Tiu Keng Leng. Many women employed in the service sector have moved into
Yuen Long, creating an increasing demand for higher quality housing when compared to
the original village homes and later working class industrial residences that have made up
the built environment of this area.

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This upgraded urban periphery has become attractive for Hong Kong’s more
moderate income populations. Private development projects and refurbished village
houses in this peripheral setting are relatively cheaper when compared to property prices
in Hong Kong urban core. As a result, neighborhood redevelopment in Yuen Long has
transformed this once rural township into a new town increasingly characterized by highrises and a growing population of clerks, administrators and professionals of the new
service economy. These are populations who cannot afford the gentrifying neighborhoods
in the urban core of Hong Kong.
In terms of demographic dimensions, there are some similarities in profiles among
these three cases. All three neighborhoods have experienced an obvious increase of single
women, given the decreasing marriage rates and rising divorce rates. The local housing
demand is, in part, driven by the increase in the number of households with women living
alone, whether never-married or divorced and separated. However, these three cases
show that women of different socio-economic status have been differently involved in
transforming different parts of Hong Kong.
The increase in low-middle income women has contributed to a major component
of neighborhood change in Yuen Long. The increase of higher income women has been
most evident in Kennedy Town, while women of a relatively mixed socio-economic
status are found in Tiu Keng Keng. It should be stressed, once again, that these three
cases further add to the relevance and strengthen the importance of the diversity and
complexity of women’s roles in gentrification, and the diversity in gentrification
processes in general.
Hong Kong has always been regarded as a land of opportunity, where everyone

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has an equal chance to improve his or her social and economic status. Women in Hong
Kong have experienced greater gender equality between years 1986 and 2006. While the
gentrified neighborhoods have illustrated the success of women in Hong Kong, these
stories cover-up the reality of the ongoing structures of gender division and inequality in
this urban context. In fact, women in Hong Kong are still lagging behind men in all
aspects of socio-economic profiles, education, employment, occupation, and income. In
Hong Kong, serious gender-based inequalities still persist today.
While women in Hong Kong have made great improvement in educational
attainment, this increasing education has not broken down sex segregation in occupations
and the socio-economic stratification in employment. Women, relative to men, occupy
the lower status, lower paying jobs, with generally poor working conditions. Women also
experience fewer promotional opportunities, and are more vulnerable to economic
restructuring. More women than men were pushed out from their manufacturing jobs.
Within the gentrified neighborhoods, the disappearance of women who were
employed in manufacturing is clearly evident. In addition, more women than men are
engaged in unpaid activities, such as household work, while fewer women than men are
in political leadership/decision making positions. Women are also found suffering from
income inequality, which leads to the feminization of poverty. Among the poor, we know
from the existing literature that single mothers are a group that suffers most from
discrimination, despite the fact that we see from this research that they are the drivers of
gentrification in some Hong Kong neighborhoods.
In addition to being agents of gentrification, women are also among the “victims”
who suffer most from neighborhood upgrading. As overrepresented among the poor,

300

women are facing a higher possibility of displacement due to gentrification. Up until now,
there has been very little research focusing on this alternative aspect in the interpretation
of the gender dimensions of gentrification. Currently, 70% of the world’s poor are
women (UN, 2005). Moreover, the majority of the 1.5 billion people living on US$1 a
day or less are women (UN, 2005). Many studies around the world have consistently
found a similar pattern, with females being most likely to suffer from poverty.
In Hong Kong, we see similar risks for women. In general, the quantitative and
qualitative analyses suggest that women are the prominent sector of the urban population
who are most vulnerable to displacement, and this is evident in Hong Kong’s
redevelopment and gentrification processes. As of 2006, 29.9% of women are in the
lower 20% percentiles of employment income while that percentage for men is almost
half, at 11.5%.
Gentrification advertently or inadvertently leads to displacement. Within the three
gentrified groupings from the quantitative analysis, while there is an increase of 67,423
of women professionals and 29,011 women managers and administrators, 52,862 women
craft workers and 43,993 women manufacturing workers have disappeared from these
neighborhoods. While there is an increase of 108,296 women with college degrees, there
is a loss of 48,931 women who had no school or only pre-school education. However,
while females were more likely to suffer from the consequences of physical and social
upgrading, single mothers are a group that clearly suffers most. More detailed and finescaled analyses on the role of single mothers in displacement in gentrification are needed
in subsequent studies on Hong Kong.

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Chapter 9 Conclusion
Gentrification is restructuring the geography of cities all over the world (Clark
2005; Davidson 2007; Lees 2000). Since first introduced by Glass (1964), the topic of
gentrification has received increasing attention in academic research and popular media,
and increasingly within a wider global setting. However, in the academic scholarship,
gentrification research continues to mainly focus on North American and European cities.
Also, the literature discussing redevelopment processes in China has typically neglected
analysis into social conflict and displacement, a fundamental component of gentrification.
Upgrading processes in China are rapid, still insufficient attention is given to the
displacement of the traditional populations that occupied the urban cores and suburbs of
Chinese urban regions. While gentrification and the impacts on the displaced have been
researched for some five decades in Western cities, gentrification in the Chinese context
has not been extensively explored. This research was designed to fill this gap in the
literature.
In my dissertation, I explore the physical and social transformation of Hong Kong
from 1986 to 2006, examining the various types of physical and social upgrading
processes as well as the role of women in gentrification. I attempt to answer four research
questions: How extensive are gentrification processes within Hong Kong between the
years 1986 and 2006?; What is the degree of displacement that has resulted from
gentrification in Hong Kong during these years?; Have redevelopment efforts in Hong
Kong resulted in a diversity of gentrification processes and what are some of their basic
characteristics?; What is the role of women in Hong Kong’s gentrification? Special

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attention in this research is given to the role of gender in order to bring this dimension of
research to the study of gentrification. This is a unique dimension of urban
redevelopment and upgrading processes in the West and in the Chinese context.
The case study is Hong Kong, specifically because it has experienced a major
economic transformation, with the rise of its service economy. As a global city, Hong
Kong’s rapid economic restructuring makes it an ideal case for the analysis of
gentrification. Following the path of other global cities, Hong Kong has transitioned from
an industrial-based economy to a specialized services and high-tech economy in the late
20

th

century. Accompanying this shift, there has been a notable drive for urban

redevelopment that has fundamentally altered the physical and social characteristics of
Hong Kong’s neighborhoods.
As the industrial and working-class areas of the city were, and continue to be,
torn-down and replaced by dwellings for those associated with the service economy, this
physical and social transformation of the city is evident in changes in household incomes,
occupations, and education levels. Despite the extensive economic and built environment
transformations in Hong Kong, not much attention has been given to displacement of the
poor, and especially the displacement of women.
The general hypothesis of my research is that the physical and social
transformations in Hong Kong in the past two decades are evident and can be explained
by several dimensions. Hong Kong has experienced a diversity of gentrification
processes. In different parts of the city, gentrification is driven by different agents and has
resulted in a range of displaced income groups. In different parts of Hong Kong, women
are also involved in or affected by gentrification in different ways. Besides being an

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agent of gentrification, women are also the prominent sector of the urban population who
are most vulnerable to displacement.
Increasingly, research has recognized the diverse nature of gentrification; a
complex process involving various forms of capital reinvestment and different
gentrifying and displaced populations (Rose 1984; Beauregard 1986; 1990; Clark 2005;
Podagrosi et al., 2011). While each of the gentrification processes has its own distinct
characteristics, all typologies have two basic common traits. First, all forms of
gentrification involve capital reinvestment in the urban built environment. Second,
coupled with the physical upgrading, there are extensive social changes in the make-up of
the neighborhoods experiencing gentrification, as the original lower income residents are
replaced by higher income groups. Gentrification involves the replacement of poorer
residents with wealthier income groups. Displacement is, in fact, a defining element of
gentrification. Gentrification has inadvertently or advertently displaced many of the
original residents from the gentrified neighborhoods. However, these negative social
consequences of gentrification are not at the center of discussion, especially in China.
Gentrification is still largely missing from the discourse on urban redevelopment in
China.
Hong Kong represents a case with both western neoliberal and Chinese
government and governance structures. An adamant city-state government, coupled with
strong civic participation, makes Hong Kong a unique site for exploring gentrification.
The research on gentrification in Hong Kong adds insights into both the physical and
‘social’ upgrading processes in an Asian global city.
Research shows that redevelopment efforts in Hong Kong between the years 1986

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and 2006 have resulted in a diversity of gentrification processes. In order to explore the
full extent of gentrification, and elaborate on the characteristics of different outcomes of
gentrification in Hong Kong, both quantitative and qualitative analyses have been used in
this study. Based on demographic, socioeconomic, and housing characteristics in Hong
Kong, a principal component analysis and a K-means clustering have been performed to
group together Territory Planning Units (TPUs) experiencing similar scales of upgrading.
Again, the PCA and cluster analysis is specifically on social upgrading variables. Capital
reinvestment is not shown in the quantitative analysis.
Nine dimensions were extracted from the PCA process. Seeded K-means
clustering was then used to group together TPUs that have experienced a similar scale of
change and that reveal the diversity of gentrification. From these analyses, three TPU
groupings were found that have experienced physical and social upgrading in Hong
Kong. Three neighborhoods from each of the clusters are then selected to show the
diverse nature of gentrification through a qualitative analysis.
The quantitative analysis reveals that the city is experiencing a widespread
upgrading process covering large urban and suburban areas of Hong Kong. It captured
three upgrading clusters, representing 34.0% of the spatial area of Hong Kong that is
being gentrified in the city. In the TPUs of these three upgrading clusters, where
gentrification was clearly present after it was verified by the ground surveying and the
non-gentrified TPUs were removed, 104,047 residents employed in the traditional sector
(mainly manufacturing) were erased. This is an important finding within the
gentrification literature, since one criticism of gentrification research is that upgrading is
a highly limited process within the inner city (Berry 1985; Bourne 1993). This research,

305

in contrast, shows that it is extensive.
The qualitative analysis further explored the diversity of gentrification and
revealed Hong Kong’s class struggles over space in more nuance. Kennedy Town was a
traditional working class neighborhood. With recent redevelopment efforts, this
neighborhood has been transformed into a residential area for upper-middle income
earners, increasingly consisting of younger, single professionals, and a growing number
of expats. This upgrading involved a larger-number of smaller-scale redevelopments—
generally involving the construction of one or two high-rises at a time. This is in contrast,
for instance, to the large scale public housing redevelopment of Tiu Keng Leng, and this
is likely because the original residents in Kennedy Town were never a significant social
or political threat to investors or the government.
The changes in Tiu Keng Leng were visually the most dramatic, as this
neighborhood was transformed from a refugee camp, to a pro-Kuomintang enclave, to an
increasingly-stable Hong Kong residential area known for its concentrated public
housing. The original characteristics of this neighborhood, as a refugee camp and as a
concentration of the core poor, necessitated large-scale government intervention to
facilitate redevelopment. As the interest for new town development grew, and with
political unification with China, the government erased the whole community. The
redevelopment of this one time refugee camp parallels Podagrosi and Vojnovic (2008)
and Podagrosi et al. (2011) analyses of cleansing and redeveloping black underclass
neighborhoods in the US. Small-scale upgrading within the context of ghettos is too risky
for potential investors and gentrifiers, necessitating the state to become involved in the
land-assembly, redevelopment and erasure of the whole neighborhood. The Hong Kong

306

government was actively involved in erasing not only a cultural community, but a sociopolitical entity that would reasonably be considered undesirable. ‘Little Taiwan’, which
has proudly survived for some five decades, was erased as Hong Kong unified with
China. To many original residents, the political identity of this community was
paramount.
The case of Yuen Long is the third case study and illustrates another type of
upgrading process. The displacement in this redevelopment process involves villages and
farm communities in the suburbs and rural areas of Hong Kong. Here farmers and
peasants of traditional Chinese villages, in some cases villages that are three hundred
years old, are involved in the displacement processes. The redevelopment of Yuen Long
in the late 20

th

and 21

st

centuries represents a unique case of class struggles rarely

discussed in the gentrification literature. This qualitative analysis of gentrification at the
urban periphery, a fact acknowledged by only limited studies to date, adds a further
dimension to the diversity of gentrification and its actors in the context of Hong Kong.
This case also sheds light, in the wider Chinese context, of the little interest placed on
such rich historical communities within the context of China’s new development and
redevelopment pressures. As noted by China Daily (2012), there are about 80-100
villages erased every day in the (re)development of China’s cities. Gentrification is not a
solely urban phenomenon. The case of Yuen Long—with villages removed by large
private development firms—illustrates the increasing importance of the private sector
initiating large-scale redevelopment and displacement.
These three case studies illustrate the diversity of the role of agents in a
gentrification process. Compared to the US context, the government involvement in

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urban redevelopment has a different timeline and is driven by a different set of drivers. In
Hong Kong, it was during the 1980s that government-led redevelopment efforts started to
expand, mainly evident after the establishment of the quasi-governmental agencies (the
Land Development Corporation and the Urban Renewal Authority).
The first case study, that of Kennedy Town, shows the importance of publicprivate joint redevelopment ventures in driving gentrification. In addition to the joint
ventures with the public sector in the urban core, Hong Kong’s private sector is also
responsible for the rapid transformation, built and class upgrading, in the New Territory.
The case of Yuen Long demonstrates how the private sector is involved in redeveloping
large segments of the city and displacing the original residents occupying the
neighborhoods. The third case study, the case of Tiu Keng Leng, illustrates the extraordinary impacts of government involvement in land acquisition, community clearance
and community redevelopment. Given the political sensitive nature of redevelopment,
with the tearing-down of Tiu Keng Leng being too risky for private investors, the state
became actively involved in the land-assembly, redevelopment and erasure of the whole
neighborhood.
While the majority of the attention in the existing literature on redevelopment in
Hong Kong has been focused on government-led reinvestment, the impact of the private
sector, especially large development corporations, has been generally overlooked. This
research on gentrification in Hong Kong shows the complexity and the broad spectrum,
in terms of agents and the nature of reinvestment and displacement, including the
growing role of a few large private development firms driving extensive redevelopment
and displacement in Hong Kong. This research not only provides a missing piece in the

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global gentrification literature, a comprehensive analysis of gentrification in an Asian
context, but it also provides strong evidence of large scale displacement evident in the
rapid redevelopment of Chinese cities.
Another major research question in this dissertation focuses on the role of women
in Hong Kong’s gentrification processes between the years 1986 and 2006. In order to
provide a holistic exploration into how women of different socio-economic status have
been involved in transforming a city, data collection and analysis are broken down by
gender. Results show that in different parts of the city of Hong Kong, women are
involved or affected by gentrification in different ways. The more detailed qualitative
analysis of the role of gender in gentrification in Kennedy Town, Tiu Keng Leng and
Yuen Long reveal the complexities found in gender itself in the physical and social
upgrading process.
While these three cases all show the importance of women in transforming the
neighborhood, they reveal a very different profile among the women sub-groups in
gentrification. The increase in women with high incomes and high-end occupations in
Kennedy Town is the most evident aspect of gentrification in this neighborhood. Women
gentrifiers, consisting of either young professional single women or married or cohabiting
dual-career couples are an important driving force in the upgrading of Kennedy Town.
These women, either living alone or in dual-career family, contribute to the increase of
small but affluent households, which can afford more expensive inner-urban housing in
the neighborhood.
A broader socio-economic spectrum of women gentrifiers is observed in Tiu
Keng Leng. While there is a clear increase in women with higher education levels and

309

women employed in the higher-end occupations, there is also an evident increase in
women in lower-end occupations with lower incomes, including an increase in women
employed in manufacturing. The role of women as gentrifiers in Tiu Keng Leng has
supported a wide ranging new housing demand, from affordable housing to upscale
housing, reflective of the socio-economic diversity in this neighborhoods upgrading.
The increase in women in middle-low occupations and with middle to lower
incomes was most dramatic in Yuen Long. Many women employed in the service sector
have moved into Yuen Long, creating an increasing demand for higher quality housing
from the original village homes and working class residence that have traditionally been
reflective of this neighborhood. Moderate income women are particularly attracted to this
peripheral district, where private development projects and refurbished village houses are
relatively cheaper when compared to the price of housing in the city itself.
Gentrification is a complex process involving various forms of capital
reinvestment and different gentrifying and displaced population sub-groups, and this is
clearly supported by the Hong Kong case study. However, all processes show a particular
focus on producing a homogenous urban environment for wealthier population subgroups, a condition similar to global cities in the West. In the Hong Kong context, a large
segment of the city is being physically and ‘socially’ upgraded.
There has been a clear move in Hong Kong to shift the poor to select parts of the
urban periphery, where new public housing projects are concentrating. Peripheral
neighborhoods with rapid increases in lower-income populations include Tin Shui Wai
and Tuen Mun. However, the poor are also concentrating in select number of urban core
neighborhoods. In urban slums such as in Kwun Tong and Sham Shui Po, increasing

310

rents are forcing the poor to live in small, overcrowded spaces, including ‘cage
apartments’ and on rooftops.
In these redevelopment processes, the state claims that redevelopment will help
rejuvenate the old districts and improve the living conditions of the residents. However,
few would argue that redevelopment is improving the livelihoods of the displaced small
shop-owners and lower-income tenants who are being forced into neighborhoods of
concentrated poverty. As in the West, the social cost of displacement has been a
secondary consideration in Hong Kong, although it has been increasingly gaining public
attention given the growing local protests.
In addition, there are gender dimensions to gentrification. In the past few decades,
women in Hong Kong have largely improved their cultural standing. There is an
increasing pool of women gentrifiers corresponding to the changing demography of
women and their socio-economic status. Gentrification has been stimulated by the
increased participation of women in the labor force. Particularly essential is the
increasing success of middle-class women in obtaining well-paid jobs. Gentrification has
also been stimulated by the changing demographic composition. Consistent with global
trends, there is an increase in the number of households with women living alone,
whether never-married, divorced, or widowed.
While the number of cases of success stories among women in Hong Kong is
increasing, these cases mask the reality of the fundamental structures of gender division
and inequality in this urban context. In Hong Kong, serious gender-based inequalities still
persist. Women are still lagging behind men in basic socio-economic and demographic
profiles, education, employment, occupation, and income. In addition to being agents of

311

gentrification, women are also among the “victims” who suffer most from gentrification.
As overrepresented among the poor, women are facing higher possibility of displacement
due to gentrification.
Up until now, there has been very little research focusing on this alternative
aspect in the interpretations of the gendered dimensions of gentrification. Many studies
around the world have consistently found that women are most likely to suffer from
poverty. In Hong Kong, we see similar risks. The quantitative and qualitative analysis of
this research suggests that women are the prominent sector of the urban population who
are most vulnerable to displacement, and this is evident in Hong Kong’s gentrification
processes. It is clear that women in different parts of the city are involved in or affected
by gentrification in different ways.
This research gives insight into the gender inequities associated with urban
redevelopment processes being experienced almost ubiquitously within global cities.
This research also provides useful information to local community members,
organizations and policy makers in Hong Kong interested in helping lower-income
women and single mothers, typical an underrepresented group, who are the most
burdened sub-group of these revitalization processes.
In addition, this research on gentrification in Hong Kong provides lessons and
insights into gentrification processes in global cities, and provides the literature a case
study of gentrification in a Chinese context. Hong Kong reveals diverse redevelopment
and upgrading processes but within a Chinese city, a contribution that is currently absent
from the existing gentrification literature. While there are similarities with the West, as in
the case of Kennedy Town, gentrification in Hong Kong is also shaped by the region’s

312

unique geography and history. Ultimately, however, gentrification in Hong Kong is
linked to wider economic and urban restructuring processes—capital accumulation in a
globalizing world, with the reorganization of labor markets and class conflict over
space—and Hong Kong parallels other Western global cities in this regard. As with other
global cities, the Hong Kong experience illustrates that the poor are increasingly
vulnerable to socio-economic urban reinvestment processes, where even the poor are
facing class struggles with other poor, but who have slightly higher incomes. Hong Kong
adds another case study to the global experience, a trend showing that cities are becoming
increasingly difficult for the poor to occupy.

313

APPENDIX

314

Figure A- 1 Hong Kong Tertiary Planning Unit Groups (2006)

315

Notes on Table 4-2.
1. Upper secondary education in Hong Kong is equivalent to high school education in the
U.S. context. According to the result of 1986 Population By-census, the upper secondary
includes Middle 4-5 in Chinese schools or Form 4-5 in English or Anglo-Chinese schools,
craft/apprenticeship courses in Technical Institutes. In 2006, the upper secondary
includes Secondary 4-5 or equivalent in all schools, Project Yi Jin and craft level.
2. Post-secondary - Degree course in Hong Kong is equivalent to a college degree in the
U.S. context. In 1986 by census, this is called Tertiary (degree course). It includes all first
degree and post-graduate courses of universities in Hong Kong and overseas. In 2006,
Post-secondary (degree course) refers to all first degree, taught postgraduate, and
research postgraduate courses in local or non-local institutions.
3. Median gross rent, Median Household income and personal income for main
employment are adjusted by CPI (Consumer Price Index) in order to make dollar values
between the 1986 Population By-census and the 2006 Population By-census comparable.
The dollar value in 1986 is adjusted by multiplying the discount factor (Composite CPI
(June 2006) / Composite CPI (Feb 1986)). CPI1986=0.454, CPI2006=1.024:
V1986adj=V1986 * (1.024/0.454)
4. Personal income for main employment is equivalent to per capita income in the US
context.
5. Professional refers to the total of professionals and associate professionals in 2006
while it refers to professional, technical and related workers in 1986. In 2006,
professionals include qualified professional scientists, doctors, dentists and other medical
professionals; architects, surveyors and engineers; vice-chancellors, directors, academic
staff and administrators of university, post-secondary college; principals and teachers of
secondary school; statisticians; mathematicians; system analysts and computer
programmers; lawyers and judges; accountants; business consultants and analysts; social
workers; translators and interpreters; news editors and journalists; writers; librarians and
members of religious orders. Associate professionals includes science technicians, nurses
and midwives, dental assistants and other health associate professionals; architectural,
surveying and engineering technicians; optical and electronic equipment controllers; ship
pilots and air traffic controllers; principals and teachers of primary school and
kindergarten/nursery; statistical assistants; computer operators; law clerks; accounting
supervisors; public relation officers; sales representatives; designers; estate managers;
social work assistants; superintendents, inspectors and officers of the police and other
discipline services; and performers and sportsmen. In 1986 professional, technical and
related workers include qualified professional scientists, doctors, dentists; architects,
engineers, surveyors; marine and aviation officers and engineers; university academic
staff; qualified teachers; economists, statisticians, mathematicians, system analysts,
computer programmers; lawyers, accountants; members of religious orders; writers;
artists, sportsmen, librarians, social workers; qualified nurses and mid-wives and other
para-medical workers; and other technicians. Overall speaking, Professional,
Administrative & Managerial Workers, Service Workers, and Craft & Related Workers
are not standardized between 1986 and 2006.
316

6. In 2006, craft & related workers include plant and machine operators and assemblers,
and craft and related workers. Plant and machine operators and assemblers include well
drillers and borers; ore smelting furnace operators; brick and tile kilnmen; sawmill
sawyers; paper makers; chemical processing plant operators; power-generating plant and
boiler operators; asbestos cement products makers; metal finishers and electroplaters;
dairy and other food processing machine operators; printing machine operators; machine
operators for production of textile, rubber and plastic products; assemblers; drivers;
seamen, and other plant and machine operators. Craft and related workers include miners
and quarrymen; bricklayers, carpenters and other construction workers; metal moulders;
blacksmiths; machinery, electric and electronic instrument mechanics; jewellery workers
and watch makers; potters; typesetters; bakers, food and beverage processors; painters;
craft workers in textile, garment, leather, rubber and plastic trades, and other craft
workers. In 1986, production and related workers, transport equipment operators and
laborers include foremen and supervisors in manufacturing and construction industries;
miners and quarrymen; wood, metal and chemical processors; food and beverage
processors, tobacco workers; textile workers; tailors, other clothing workers; shoemakers,
other leather workers; blacksmiths, tool-makers, fitters, machinists; radio and electrical
workers; printing and painting workers; musical instrument makers, other production
workers; brick-layers, carpenters, other construction workers; stationary engine operators;
hand packers, dockers, loaders; riggers, crane operators; seamen, drivers, and light-house
operators. Overall speaking, Professional, Administrative & Managerial Workers, Service
Workers, and Craft & Related Workers are not standardized between 1986 and 2006.
7. Clerical and related workers refer to clerks and elementary occupations in 2006. Clerks
include stenographers, secretaries and typists; bookkeeping, finance, shipping, filing and
personnel clerks; cashiers and tellers; and receptionists and information clerks.
Elementary occupations include street vendors; domestic helpers and cleaners;
messengers; private security guards; watchmen; freight handlers; lift operators;
construction laborers; hand packers; and agricultural and fishery laborers. In 1986,
clerical and related workers include executive officers in government service;
stenographers and typists; punching and computing machine operators; bookkeepers and
clerks of any kind; transport conductors, postmen, telephone operators, ship’s radio
officers, and flight radio operators. Overall speaking, Professional, Administrative &
Managerial Workers, Service Workers, and Craft & Related Workers are not
standardized between 1986 and 2006.
8. In 2006, manufacturing includes spinning of cotton and other yarn, weaving and
knitting of cotton and other fabrics; bleaching, dyeing, finishing; manufacturing of
wearing apparel, knitwear and other made-up textile goods; and manufacturing of carpets,
cordages, ropes and twines, food, beverage, tobacco, footwear, leather products, rubber
products, plastic products, wood products, printed matters and paper products, metal
products, machinery, chemicals, chemical products, and glass and pottery. In 1986,
manufacturing include spinning of cotton and yarn, weaving and knitting of cotton and
other fabrics; bleaching, dyeing, finishing; manufacturing of wearing apparel, knitwear
and other made-up textile goods; manufacturing of carpets, cordages, ropes and twines;
manufacturing of food, beverage, tobacco, footwear, leather products, rubber products,
plastic products, wood products, printed matters and paper products, metal products,
machinery, chemicals, chemical products, glass, and pottery.
317

9. In 2006, financing, insurance, real estate and business services include financing;
insurance; real estate; offices of lawyers, accountants, auditors, architects, surveyors,
advertising agents and data processing services. In 1986, financing, insurance, real estate
and business services: including finance, insurance, real estate; offices of lawyers,
accountants, auditors, architects, surveyors, advertising agents; data processing services;
chambers of commerce and trade unions.
10. Subsided public housing includes public rental flats and subsidized sale flats. Public
rental flats includes: Housing Authority rental flats (Group A); Housing Authority rental
flats (Group B); Housing Authority rental flats (Interim Housing / Tenants Purchase
Scheme /Buy or Rent Option); and Housing Society rental flats. Subsidized sale flats
include Housing Authority subsidized sale flats and Housing Society subsidized sale flats.

318

Table A- 1 Rotated Factor Pattern from the PCA with varimax rotation
Rotated Factor Pattern
Factor1 Factor2 Factor3 Factor4 Factor5 Factor6 Factor7 Factor8 Factor9
PFHEADED

0.99713 0.00236 -0.02402 0.00658 -0.01681 -0.01742 0.01165 -0.01062 0.01064

PHSH

0.99709 0.00596 -0.03654 0.01591 -0.03080 -0.01159 0.02529 -0.02328 0.01409

PAGE15

0.99698 0.00696 -0.03632 0.01935 -0.03878 -0.00852 0.02645 -0.01321 0.01368

PPOP

0.99660 0.00723 -0.03529 0.02400 -0.04093 -0.01044 0.02669 -0.02022 0.01411

PMALE

0.99630 0.00962 -0.03279 0.02203 -0.03004 -0.00143 0.01514 -0.01389 0.00363

PEMPLOYED

0.99613 0.00801 -0.03266 0.02778 -0.04283 -0.01401 0.03318 -0.02049 0.01911

PWRIR

0.99559 0.00003 -0.02689 0.01976 -0.03575 0.00591 0.02604 -0.00747 0.00597

PNMMALE

0.99556 0.02341 -0.04379 0.01327 -0.03026 0.00345 0.01337 0.01649 0.01348

PAGE024

0.99542 0.01219 -0.04123 0.02882 -0.05095 -0.01317 0.03066 -0.01920 0.01891

PHOUSING

0.99537 -0.00057 -0.02661 0.02191 -0.02102 -0.00133 0.01156 -0.01155 -0.00308

PTRADTIONAL 0.99494 0.03547 -0.03204 -0.00198 -0.01133 -0.00757 0.00151 0.00295 0.00227
PFEMALE

0.99444 0.00473 -0.03807 0.02775 -0.05516 -0.02172 0.04080 -0.03172 0.02803

PSIZE1OR2

0.99413 0.00359 -0.03852 0.00049 0.01165 -0.00771 0.01106 -0.00233 0.01562

PAGE2554

0.99295 -0.00054 -0.02334 0.04602 -0.04443 -0.00830 0.02966 -0.03003 0.01715

PSECONDARY

0.99203 -0.00353 -0.02756 0.06720 -0.03911 0.00809 0.02674 0.00584 0.00804

PMANUF

0.99196 0.03162 -0.01578 0.08164 -0.00302 0.01622 0.00581 0.02614 -0.02063

POCCUP6PLUS 0.98831 0.05506 -0.01319 0.02078 -0.06542 0.01428 0.00681 -0.01570 0.02268

319

Table A-1 (Cont’d)
PRENTER

0.98819 0.02388 -0.02964 0.07922 -0.03151 0.00606 0.06665 -0.01006 -0.00272

PCRAFT

0.98783 0.03304 -0.05569 0.04974 -0.02663 -0.00285 0.03565 0.00890 0.00807

PCLERICAL

0.98364 0.00226 -0.03607 0.06591 -0.07887 -0.00505 0.04313 -0.03629 0.04715

PNMFEMALE

0.98322 0.00212 -0.03607 0.11416 -0.06878 -0.03013 0.07027 0.00892 0.04875

PAGE55

0.98131 0.00636 -0.06205 -0.01727 -0.03095 -0.02634 0.03790 -0.00469 0.03347

PPERSON1

0.96461 -0.00267 -0.05987 -0.00256 0.03808 -0.02769 0.02300 0.02137 0.07007

POWNER

0.76121 0.08448 0.19073 -0.13487 0.06419 0.04624 0.04975 0.10857 0.00333

PFIRE

0.72701 -0.01123 -0.00541 0.38200 -0.04833 -0.16033 0.05943 -0.16649 0.24509

CCRAFT

0.08687 0.87475 -0.04195 0.17464 0.00504 -0.10308 0.20013 0.04542 -0.08012

CMANUF

0.10216 0.83170 0.13850 0.20459 -0.06893 -0.22341 0.14472 0.09252 -0.02445

COCCUP6PLUS 0.00755 0.65403 0.21901 0.05513 -0.27130 0.05501 0.04105 0.18383 0.23383
CFIRE

0.04521 -0.40657 0.23275 0.24235 0.17790 -0.35508 -0.07681 0.04416 -0.26489

CSECONDARY

0.06622 -0.54706 0.02110 0.31702 -0.24414 0.39857 -0.03251 0.18203 0.25470

CPROF

0.01359 -0.72837 0.30054 0.21898 0.18133 -0.26896 0.02265 0.04996 -0.13124

PEMPINCOME -0.06134 -0.77562 0.45784 0.26469 -0.04857 0.04989 0.07927 -0.16644 0.00805
CADMIN

-0.04584 -0.02663 0.82874 0.05324 -0.05131 -0.16625 0.06527 0.03454 -0.16470

CDEGREE

-0.04807 0.07678 0.81021 0.12560 0.01303 -0.35349 0.03501 0.03761 -0.11641

CPRIVATE

-0.11815 -0.11749 0.74727 0.08785 -0.07841 0.37631 -0.04140 -0.00257 0.15849

PRENT

-0.10396 -0.07309 0.64528 0.12856 -0.20022 -0.01435 -0.14859 -0.35996 0.24480

320

Table A-1 (Cont’d)
PHSHINCOME -0.04905 -0.41003 0.58242 0.55446 -0.27375 0.06761 0.15166 0.06759 0.01055
PADMIN

0.05437 0.01402 0.12677 0.79838 -0.04208 0.03968 0.10766 -0.06788 0.15465

PPROF

0.15878 -0.02221 0.11997 0.70990 0.01511 0.15154 0.13793 0.30623 -0.15255

PDEGREE

0.37978 -0.08360 0.02658 0.43337 -0.20455 -0.24005 0.16237 -0.32821 0.35260

CMAGE

-0.08961 -0.21106 -0.23109 -0.52635 0.40042 0.15197 -0.04716 0.18843 0.01135

CSIZE1OR2

-0.05829 -0.20409 -0.16265 -0.17432 0.88865 -0.07869 -0.02818 -0.01755 0.03163

CPERSON1

-0.09220 -0.05365 -0.13308 -0.03192 0.83761 -0.23111 -0.05769 0.02770 0.09844

CWRIR

0.08487 -0.30985 -0.03760 -0.17730 -0.05947 0.69233 0.20269 0.01970 0.05216

CCLERICAL

0.00657 0.04753 -0.18958 0.10023 -0.39653 0.58280 -0.08671 0.04927 0.40757

CFHEADED

0.07743 -0.06174 0.05524 -0.19129 0.03700 -0.63937 -0.07528 0.25796 0.02838

CRENTER

0.06951 0.48289 0.13860 0.17704 -0.04954 0.21090 0.74526 0.00016 0.05083

CPUBLIC

0.36734 -0.03907 -0.38687 -0.03689 -0.44920 -0.17155 0.52893 0.01505 0.07239

PPUBLIC

0.32424 -0.11190 -0.20279 -0.10799 -0.41123 -0.32811 0.49476 0.06901 0.17528

COWNER

0.00734 -0.13747 -0.04295 -0.28199 -0.02778 -0.18768 -0.83662 0.10643 -0.01319

CNMFEMALE -0.03877 0.00805 0.04872 0.22453 -0.14240 -0.25737 0.04731 0.77977 0.13996
CNMMALE

-0.07715 0.29503 -0.16224 -0.17739 0.14118 0.01025 -0.16783 0.77084 0.16079

C2PLUSHSH

0.05044 0.22964 0.15601 0.04004 0.28030 0.16378 0.22358 -0.02251 0.63463

P2PLUSHSH

0.05734 0.06762 -0.00584 0.04342 -0.09876 -0.04600 0.05696 0.10771 0.59123

PPRIVATE

0.03481 -0.16493 -0.11307 -0.02093 0.13276 0.14674 -0.14423 0.07858 0.40257

321

Table A-1 (Cont’d)
Variance Explained by Each Factor
Factor1

Factor2

Factor3

Factor4

Factor5

Factor6

Factor7

Factor8

Factor9

24.235447 4.327122 3.595350 2.837769 2.751734 2.481053 2.160043 1.842464 1.765139

322

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