One of the least understood practices in DB is HKR’s authority under the DMC to license any retained area to the Manager for use by the owners . CM uses this clause to justify charging owners and residents for vast areas within DB. The document below analyses what is and what is not possible under this clause.
Since the first residents moved in to Discovery Bay, CM has charged the owners and residents for the management and maintenance of the Beach, the Plaza, the cycle track, the hiking trails and more. Since 2002, CM has also charged for the management and maintenance of Central Park.
However, following a series of meetings with Lands Department and sharing of the above document on the Licence Clause, Lands Department intervened. Before HKR was allowed to put Amalfi on sale, it had to sign an Undertaking in favour of the Government and Lands Department that, from that point forward, HKR would bear sole responsibility for these areas. The Undertaking may be downloaded from the link below.
This action is saving owners and residents millions of dollars in management fees each year. Everyone who lives in DB will also have noticed how sharply the maintenance standard has fallen since HKR took over responsibility.