Successful Completion of the Public Hearings on Zone Expropriation for the Qiaotou Science Park Development Project to Push the New Town Program Forward
The Kaohsiung City Government held four public hearings on zone expropriation at the Bais New World in Ciaotou Sugar Refinery and the stadium of the Yanchao Junior High School on March 27 and 28, 2021. The second phase of the Kaohsiung New Town Development Program has officially entered the development stage. The enthusiastic participation of the public at the public hearings indicates that the Kaohsiung citizens attach great importance to and look forward to this program, and expressed their support for this important national policy of the establishment of the Qiaotou Science Park.
The city government pointed out that the second phase of the Kaohsiung New Town Development Program, also known as the Qiaotou Science Park, occupies a total area of around 352.10 hectares, of which around 186.16 hectares are planned for an industrial zone, another 39.79 hectares for residential and commercial areas, and the remaining 126.15 hectares for green space, roads, and other public facilities, to respond to the needs arising from the return of overseas Taiwanese business people's investment in Taiwan due to the China-US trade war and the Ministry of Science and Technology's efforts in promoting the development of industries. Furthermore, the five major industries of semiconductors, aerospace, smart machinery, innovative technology, and smart biomedicine, will thus be introduced to this park to achieve the purpose of local education and local employment for people to reside locally, thereby balancing the development of the city.
In this program, the land user Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior, R.O.C (Taiwan), commissions the Kaohsiung City Government to handle the administrative work related to the zone expropriation work. To protect the citizens' right to adequate "housing," "property rights," and "social rights," the city government has developed a resettlement project with the Construction and Planning Agency, which specifies five major supporting measures for different groups of people, including the built land given priority for resettlement, the resettlement of factories, resettlement of gods, the relief measures for disadvantaged households, the resettlement for the Zhongqi Organic Agriculture Special Zone, while seeking the most appropriate relief measures from the central government to best protect the citizens' rights and interests.
According to the Kaohsiung City Government, the public hearings explained the necessity and the development purposes of the zone expropriation work, compensation standards, the ratios of compensation equivalent land, the application procedures of the compensation equivalent land, the land value tax and the land value increment tax credits and withholding, countermeasures for leases of farmland, other rights or measures for other burdens, and the settlement project. The majority of the citizens at the public hearings agreed with the development in the district, and expressed support for this important national policy of the establishment of the Qiaotou Science Park. They actively expressed their views, with the main focus on the issues of land prices, relevant resettlement plans, subsequent land allocation, the minimum development scale, and the intensity of land use. Some participants also inquired about issues related to their own rights and interests. The city government set up a consultation booth at the venue, with dedicated personnel responding citizens' questions one-on-one in detail to resolve their doubts.
After the public hearings, we will submit an expropriation proposal to the Ministry of the Interior, R.O.C (Taiwan) for approval. It is expected that the expropriation program will be announced at the end of October (2021), and the allocation of compensation equivalent land expropriated will be conducted in July 2022, to share the overall benefits arising from the development of the science park with the local residents.