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Urban Renewal Authority (HK)

The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) is a Hong Kong-based statutory body, established in May 2001, dedicated to planning and implementing urban renewal projects. Headquartered in Central, its primary mission is to create quality and vibrant urban living by addressing urban decay and improving living conditions in older districts. The URA’s main activities encompass redevelopment, rehabilitation, preservation, and revitalisation of buildings and areas. It is significant for its "people first, district-based" approach and its crucial role in transforming Hong Kong’s urban landscape, including large-scale projects and heritage conservation.

Bamboo scaffolding and protective netting envelope older residential blocks undergoing repair work in Mong Kok. Photo: Silvia Siu

Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. Photo: Edmond So

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Hong Kong to set up new body to oversee building renovations in regulatory overhaul

New council will assign inspection consultants to property owners, handle tendering and evaluate performance as part of reforms following Tai Po blaze.

11 minutes ago

Hong Kong society

URA tells owners to avoid hiring lift company at centre of fire safety probe

23 Oct 2026 - 10:07PM

Urban planning

Editorial | Hong Kong is right to harness market forces for urban renewal

30 Aug 2026 - 9:28AM

Hong Kong economy

URA posts HK$338 million operating surplus after three years of losses

Chairman Chow Chung-kong reveals at URA’s 25th anniversary banquet that body has returned to profit in the 2025-26 financial year.

15 Aug 2026 - 3:56AM

Urban Renewal Authority chairman Chow Chung-kong addresses a banquet to mark the body’s 25th anniversary. Photo: Facebook/URAmity

Hong Kong society

Opinion | Hong Kong needs regenerated districts, not piecemeal renewal

The government should tie redevelopment of properties in old districts to Northern Metropolis development rights and create an urban regeneration authority.

6 Aug 2026 - 9:30AMvideocam

Hong Kong property

7 Hong Kong developers bid for waterfront Kowloon renewal project

Site for 1,200 flats, worth at least US$688 million, is part of urban renewal initiative linking Kowloon neighbourhoods to Kai Tak.

28 Jul 2026 - 4:01PM

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Claim that fire alarms would not have saved lives in Tai Po blaze draws rebuke

Judge says comments by lawyer for director of China Status Development and Engineering are ‘hardly acceptable’.

15 Jul 2026 - 9:12PM

Lawyer Aaron Chan is representing the director of China Status Development and Engineering at the hearing. Photo: Sun Yeung

Committee chairman Justice David Lok and member Chan Kin-por arrive at the City Gallery in Central for Wednesday’s session. Photo: Sun Yeung

Seven residential buildings at Wang Fuk Court were devastated in the fire. Photo: Elson Li

Hong Kong society

Opinion | Hong Kong’s urban renewal plan must include best of the past

The city’s tong lau arcades, high-density blocks and webs of skywalks have long been telling us what a humane, climate-aware city can look like.

31 May 2026 - 8:40AMvideocam

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Tai Po fire: tendering system can’t stop firms manipulating market, inquiry told

Urban Renewal Authority officials tell hearing that body lacks resources to combat bid-rigging linked to estates’ renovation projects.

1 May 2026 - 9:06AM

Hong Kong courts

16 Hongkongers sued for refusing to vacate homes in HK$15 billion URA project

Residents living on Nam Kok Road and Nga Tsin Long Road failed to hand over flats by October 17 and ignored second deadline on January 22.

5 Mar 2026 - 9:07PM

Residents and shops on Nam Kok Road are affected by the URA project. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Hong Kong property

Hong Kong developer Sino Land posts steady profit amid market improvements

Chairman Daryl Ng highlights the city’s encouraging property sales performance in the second half of 2025.

27 Feb 2026 - 7:53PM

Sino Group has two new residential projects in the pipeline: one in Tseung Kwan O and another in To Kwa Wan. Photo: Shutterstock

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Editorial | Hong Kong must tackle the long-standing lapses that led to Tai Po fire

The deep-rooted problems in building management, including bid-rigging, inflated costs and slack supervision, must be resolved once and for all.

29 Jan 2026 - 7:15AM

Hong Kong housing

Opinion | A home is more than a price tag. Hong Kong must remember this

Policymakers confronting the city’s ageing building stock should respect residents’ wishes and protect their interests.

25 Jan 2026 - 5:48PMvideocam

Hong Kong society

Bid-rigging clamp, smoke-free construction sites: Hong Kong Legco gets cracking

The Post looks into measures proposed in response to last year’s Wang Fuk Court fire.

15 Jan 2026 - 6:18PM

The eighth Legislative Council held its first meeting on Wednesday morning. Photo: Eugene Lee

Hong Kong society

Hong Kong’s embattled Urban Renewal Authority raises HK$8 billion in bond sale

Cash-strapped authority sells two tranches of bonds, one worth HK$5 billion with five-year term and other for HK$3 billion with 10-year term.

8 Jan 2026 - 12:30AM

This sale marks the URA’s return to the bond market for the first time since August 2024. Photo: Sun Yeung

Hong Kong economy

Good deal for all? Can Hong Kong urban renewal body’s payout review fix scheme?

Cash-strapped Urban Renewal Authority is reviewing compensation scheme for flat owners forced out by redevelopment. But is a wider rethink needed?

13 Nov 2025 - 8:31AM

Hong Kong housing

Editorial | Strike a balance when fixing Hong Kong’s urban renewal compensation

The Urban Renewal Authority should ease the concerns of affected owner-occupiers while putting its operations on a sounder footing.

27 Oct 2025 - 7:15AM

Hong Kong society

Hongkonger fights to save 60-year-old shop amid Kowloon City redevelopment

Instead of chasing a professional career, Tony Lam, 22, chooses to preserve his family’s business amid changes in old Kowloon City neighbourhood.

25 Oct 2025 - 6:27PMvideocam

Tony Lam, 22, at his family’s Lam Kee Grocery Shop in Kowloon City. Photo: Connor Mycroft

Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong’s URA eyes engaging developers early to reduce risk of failed tenders

Lawmaker suggests URA and developers could be allowed to enter market together when acquiring land lots.

13 Oct 2025 - 9:12PM

Hong Kong housing

Hong Kong to relax plot ratio rules to encourage private urban renewal

Scheme targets older areas in seven districts with bonus plot ratio and land premium vouchers to provide incentives for redevelopment.

10 Oct 2025 - 8:43PM

Hong Kong economy

Borrowing boost for Hong Kong urban renewal body as another deficit recorded

Urban Renewal Authority’s borrowing limit has been increased to HK$35 billion.

6 Oct 2025 - 9:25PM

The Urban Renewal Authority has a redevelopment project in To Kwa Wan. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Hong Kong housing

Cash-strapped Hong Kong urban renewal body set to reveal proposed payout changes

Development minister Bernadette Linn gives timeline for reviewing URA’s compensation mechanism, with consultation set for next year.

19 Sep 2025 - 10:25PM

A minister has said an urban renewal body’s compensation mechanism is not financially sustainable. Photo: Edmond So

Urban planning

Opinion | Hong Kong needs new thinking to regenerate ageing districts

Integrating high-value, old-district sites with market-driven renewal rights offers substantial social, environmental and economic rewards.

24 Aug 2025 - 9:30AM

Old Hong Kong

Ghost signs bring bygone Hong Kong back from the dead

The city’s fading past has become a passion project for a designer and photographer duo keen to share their otherworldly sightings.

25 Aug 2025 - 2:10PM

Hong Kong society

Discover Hong Kong’s Wan Chai: free literature-themed tour on write track

Participants can explore district’s historic buildings and other landmarks through the eyes of local writers during six sessions in August.

29 Jul 2025 - 7:31PM

A tour guide leads a group around historic sites in Wan Chai. Photo: Handout

Education in Hong Kong

Letters | Schools need more support to integrate talent visa dependants into Hong Kong

Readers discuss how to help new arrivals settle down in school, urban regeneration, and pet-friendly transport.

25 Jul 2025 - 11:30AM

Students head off after school in Fortress Hill in 2020. Photo: Dickson Lee

Hong Kong housing

Hong Kong’s URA may review cuts to residents’ compensation over redevelopment

New managing director Donald Choi says URA should have flexibility to adjust package, including offering cross-district resettlement.

18 Jul 2025 - 10:53PM

Hong Kong housing

Editorial | Urban renewal must be able to function in good times and bad

Statutory body tasked with redeveloping Hong Kong’s dilapidated districts and buildings needs a financing model that can withstand economic headwinds.

30 Jun 2025 - 6:30AM

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Urban Renewal Authority (HK)

Hong Kong to set up new body to oversee building renovations in regulatory overhaul

New council will assign inspection consultants to property owners, handle tendering and evaluate performance as part of reforms following Tai Po blaze.

URA tells owners to avoid hiring lift company at centre of fire safety probe

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Editorial | Hong Kong is right to harness market forces for urban renewal

URA posts HK$338 million operating surplus after three years of losses

Chairman Chow Chung-kong reveals at URA’s 25th anniversary banquet that body has returned to profit in the 2025-26 financial year.

Opinion | Hong Kong needs regenerated districts, not piecemeal renewal

The government should tie redevelopment of properties in old districts to Northern Metropolis development rights and create an urban regeneration authority.

7 Hong Kong developers bid for waterfront Kowloon renewal project

Site for 1,200 flats, worth at least US$688 million, is part of urban renewal initiative linking Kowloon neighbourhoods to Kai Tak.

Claim that fire alarms would not have saved lives in Tai Po blaze draws rebuke

Judge says comments by lawyer for director of China Status Development and Engineering are ‘hardly acceptable’.

Opinion | Hong Kong’s urban renewal plan must include best of the past

The city’s tong lau arcades, high-density blocks and webs of skywalks have long been telling us what a humane, climate-aware city can look like.

Tai Po fire: tendering system can’t stop firms manipulating market, inquiry told

Urban Renewal Authority officials tell hearing that body lacks resources to combat bid-rigging linked to estates’ renovation projects.

16 Hongkongers sued for refusing to vacate homes in HK$15 billion URA project

Residents living on Nam Kok Road and Nga Tsin Long Road failed to hand over flats by October 17 and ignored second deadline on January 22.

Hong Kong developer Sino Land posts steady profit amid market improvements

Chairman Daryl Ng highlights the city’s encouraging property sales performance in the second half of 2025.

Editorial | Hong Kong must tackle the long-standing lapses that led to Tai Po fire

The deep-rooted problems in building management, including bid-rigging, inflated costs and slack supervision, must be resolved once and for all.

Opinion | A home is more than a price tag. Hong Kong must remember this

Policymakers confronting the city’s ageing building stock should respect residents’ wishes and protect their interests.

Bid-rigging clamp, smoke-free construction sites: Hong Kong Legco gets cracking

The Post looks into measures proposed in response to last year’s Wang Fuk Court fire.

Hong Kong’s embattled Urban Renewal Authority raises HK$8 billion in bond sale

Cash-strapped authority sells two tranches of bonds, one worth HK$5 billion with five-year term and other for HK$3 billion with 10-year term.

Good deal for all? Can Hong Kong urban renewal body’s payout review fix scheme?

Cash-strapped Urban Renewal Authority is reviewing compensation scheme for flat owners forced out by redevelopment. But is a wider rethink needed?

Editorial | Strike a balance when fixing Hong Kong’s urban renewal compensation

The Urban Renewal Authority should ease the concerns of affected owner-occupiers while putting its operations on a sounder footing.

Hongkonger fights to save 60-year-old shop amid Kowloon City redevelopment

Instead of chasing a professional career, Tony Lam, 22, chooses to preserve his family’s business amid changes in old Kowloon City neighbourhood.

Hong Kong’s URA eyes engaging developers early to reduce risk of failed tenders

Lawmaker suggests URA and developers could be allowed to enter market together when acquiring land lots.

Hong Kong to relax plot ratio rules to encourage private urban renewal

Scheme targets older areas in seven districts with bonus plot ratio and land premium vouchers to provide incentives for redevelopment.

Borrowing boost for Hong Kong urban renewal body as another deficit recorded

Urban Renewal Authority’s borrowing limit has been increased to HK$35 billion.

Cash-strapped Hong Kong urban renewal body set to reveal proposed payout changes

Development minister Bernadette Linn gives timeline for reviewing URA’s compensation mechanism, with consultation set for next year.

Opinion | Hong Kong needs new thinking to regenerate ageing districts

Integrating high-value, old-district sites with market-driven renewal rights offers substantial social, environmental and economic rewards.

Ghost signs bring bygone Hong Kong back from the dead

The city’s fading past has become a passion project for a designer and photographer duo keen to share their otherworldly sightings.

Discover Hong Kong’s Wan Chai: free literature-themed tour on write track

Participants can explore district’s historic buildings and other landmarks through the eyes of local writers during six sessions in August.

Letters | Schools need more support to integrate talent visa dependants into Hong Kong

Readers discuss how to help new arrivals settle down in school, urban regeneration, and pet-friendly transport.

Hong Kong’s URA may review cuts to residents’ compensation over redevelopment

New managing director Donald Choi says URA should have flexibility to adjust package, including offering cross-district resettlement.

Editorial | Urban renewal must be able to function in good times and bad

Statutory body tasked with redeveloping Hong Kong’s dilapidated districts and buildings needs a financing model that can withstand economic headwinds.

Editorial | Hong Kong is right to harness market forces for urban renewal