Hunghom Peninsula in Hong Kong: A Realistic Call for Corporate Social Responsibility (B)

The residential building complex of Hunghom Peninsula was built under the Hong Kong government’s Private Sector Participation Scheme (PSPS) program, which was intended to provide housing for middle class residents at a discounted price. Due to an economic downturn and a shrinking real estate market threatening property values, Hunghom was later sold to the private property developers who had originally built the complex. The developers, New World Development Company Limited (NWD) and Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited (SHKP), came up with a reconstruction proposal for Hunghom Peninsula: demolish and redevelop the area into a luxurious private estate. However, the intent to demolish the never-occupied Hunghom Peninsula came under heavy criticism from the public in large part because the demolition process would produce extensive environmental pollution, which went against the principles and social responsibilities of the various social groups and of the companies. Under the circumstances, the management team had to withdraw the demolition plan and revisit their decision. The developers reconsidered all the relevant parties’ interests and reexamined the place of corporate social responsibility, and ultimately abandoned the demolition plan and decided to conduct an extensive internal reconfiguration and renovation to upgrade the property to a medium-grade private housing estate standard. Case (A) describes the backgrounds of the Hunghom Peninsular Project and its developers, explores Hong Kong’s business environment and introduces the three options faced by decision makers. Case (B) reveals NWD and SHKP’s decisions and the opposition voices against their initial choice. Case (C), which examines how developers give in to pressures from protestors and changed their initial decision in favor of a more environmental option, brings the story to a close.