On the eve of National Day, Tsing Fat Street Light Public Housing in Tuen Mun formally opened for occupancy, with some 4,200 waiting families receiving the keys to their new homes one after another. This comes on the heels of the key handover at Tuen Mun Yan Po Road just before the Mid-Autumn Festival — a second piece of good news in barely a month, the third estate in the SS N520 Light Public Housing project to be handed over, and a livelihood answer sheet the project team has laid before the nation on its birthday.The handover ceremony was attended and witnessed by Ms Winnie Ho, Secretary for Housing. Representatives of the Architectural Services Department and of all parties to the project jointly marked the start of delivery. AluHouse Chairman Eric Kwong and Director Paul Law attended as project participants, joining fellow guests in witnessing the moment.

A Window onto Mountain and Sea

A Key to a Fresh Start

Tsing Fat Street sits in Tuen Mun, backed by hills and facing the sea, in quiet surroundings. The estate comprises three 19-storey blocks providing about 4,200 units, in a mix of one- to two-person and four- to five-person layouts. All 5,040 residential and functional MiC modules for Tsing Fat Street were produced at AluHouse's Zhaoqing base, with detailed design and interior fit-out integrated in one place.

Ms Winnie Ho recorded the opening moment of handover day on social media: a family of three had lived in a tin-sheet dwelling for eight years, and on the day it was the parents who came to complete the formalities — "unlike when a child opens the door, it feels especially good when the grown-ups do". The first thing they noticed after moving in was how much room there was. Each unit has a private kitchen and bathroom, finished to a decorated standard before handover, with fixed fittings and furniture positions installed at the factory, so residents have no decorating or shopping to do; the child finally has a desk with room to spread out books. For families long renting older buildings or subdivided flats, the most immediate change is looking out of the window and seeing hills and sea instead of a neighbour's wall.

The estate has a public transport terminus and a waterfront area open to the public, with direct routes to Tuen Mun town centre and the Tuen Mun Road interchange. On handover day, four bus routes were already running from the terminus, served by both environmentally friendly buses and buses driven by female captains. About 2,000 square metres of floor area is given over to supporting facilities: a convenience store has opened first; a two-dish rice restaurant and a supermarket will follow shortly, alongside an electrical appliance stall for families to buy what they need, a self-service laundry, a fresh food store, a barber and an activity room. The operating body is well prepared and offers comprehensive support, so residents can get help whether they are changing schools or changing jobs — as the Secretary observed on site, "Light Public Housing is not just about accommodation; it is a massive social project", improving not only the living environment but the outlook for the future.

Tight Street, Open Sea: A Hard Build

Factory Modules Clear the Way

The Tsing Fat Street project stands on the Siu Lam waterfront, with hills on one side and the sea on the other. Living by the sea means passing three tests: wind, water and salt. The project strictly complies with Hong Kong's building requirements and standards. Every MiC box is tested for water tightness individually before it leaves the factory, and external aluminium cladding panels form an effective waterproof barrier. Aluminium is highly resistant to moisture and corrosion — exactly what a coastal setting demands — and offers outstanding long-term weather resistance.

To build the modules quickly and reliably, the project moved 95% of the work into the factory: the box structures, embedded mechanical and electrical services, and interior fit-out of all 5,040 MiC modules were completed as one at AluHouse's Zhaoqing base, leaving only lifting, connection and edge finishing on site, so the impact of on-site weather swings is kept to a minimum. More than 90 ITAP inspection points cover structure and finishes, each checked and accepted item by item before the modules leave the factory.

A hillside-and-seafront setting is a gift; standing up to the weather and lasting a long time is the builder's homework.