A Study On The Architectural Form And Planning Structure Of Public Housing In Hong Kong Based On The Concept Of Compact City

China has been experiencing rapid urbanisation, particularly most of the large and medium-sized cities. Rural residents continuously migrate to urban areas, which caused disordered city sprawl. Under this pressure, the Chinese government increased the investment on the construction of indemnificatory housing to meet the living requirement of low-income residents and immigrants. As a result, the intensified conflicts of people and land lead to a series of issues including the invasion of farmland, the deterioration of natural ecology, the pollution of environment, and the waste of resources etc. Therefore, a solution of balancing the establishment of an efficient housing system with high quality and supporting facilities and the sustainability of land resources and natural environment is of profound importance. However, China lacks the experience of public housing, and a number of issues inevitably emerge during the course. It is necessary to learn from other cities that have delivered a mature system of public housing. Hong Kong is an excellent model that perfectly combined the urban development and the construction of public housing.Hong Kong has extremely high density of urban form. However, it adopts the urban spatial pattern of decentralised concentration, where nine new towns are exploited in the city. Meanwhile, it implements the policy of Multiple Intensive Land Use alongside the improvement of public transportation. All these measures and instruments allow the entire city to be developed in a low density and simultaneously ensure the preservation of large numbers of greens. Consequently, Hong Kong is not merely a city with high density presenting efficiency, concentration, convenience and abundance, but also a city with sustainable development providing favourable natural environments and comfortable residential areas. It has produced a unique urban form of a compact city constantly aiming towards sustainability. Convincingly public housing has played an important role in the progress.Public housing has been developing for about60years since the initial construction. It has constituted a powerful and mature government system, which offers comfortable and affordable houses to the families who need it and stabilises the society. In addition, it creates a new living style and superior residential environment. First of all, this study briefly analyses the reasons for structuring the urban form of compact city in Hong Kong and the characteristics thereof, from the perspective of compact city. It also summarises the general situation and the relevant policies of the public housing. Subsequently, it significantly elaborates the architectural form and planning structure of the public housing. In terms of the architectural form of public housing, the study focuses on the process of the development and evolution of plane and monomer interpreting the features and the reasons of emergence in different periods and revealing how the system presents the advocated concepts of economy, thrift, concentration and efficiency as a compact city. With regards to planning structure of public housing, the development and evolution of the architectural composition, amenities and outdoor environment are the main research areas. The study implies that the design of the public housing is not only for fulfilling the living demand, but also for bringing in abundance, convenience and comfortableness to residents and contributing a community with harmonisation, neighbourhood watch and care along with the progress of society and the improvement of living standards. Meanwhile, it applies the energy saving technology of cost efficiency to establish a green and sustainable residence. As social houses, the system has resolved the problem of housing supply for up to1/3of the population in Hong Kong and is affirmed by the society. Simultaneously it undertakes more social responsibilities. For example, it encouraged the infrastructure of new towns and successfully diverted the crowded population to New Territories; the unique architectural form and the planning structure constructed the new communities and the high-rising living environment with high density, which influenced the appearance of the city and the life style and fostered the behavioral custom of sustainability. These catalyze the achievement of sustainable development that is suggested by the theory of compact city.