Not long after Tom Yam returned to his native Hong Kong after 40 years abroad, he picked Lantau Island to settle in, drawn to its laid-back villages, wooded trails and scenic beaches that seemed a world away from the bustle of the city.
That may be about to change with a plan to build artificial islands off Lantau to ease congestion in Hong Kong, ranked as the world's least affordable housing market for a ninth year by the U.S. research firm Demographia.
The East Lantau Metropolis, to be built on 1,700 hectares (6.6 square miles) of reclaimed land, will have a central business district and up to 400,000 housing units, with the first of an estimated 1.1 million residents expected to move in by 2032.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.