Fewer than 10 of the 200 houseboats docked at the marina on Lantau Island remain and most plan to leave by the end of the year
Four months ago, there were some 200 houseboats packed in this quaint Hong Kong marina. On Sunday there were fewer than 10, and the Post joined one of the last families sailing out.
Andrew Henderson, a 57-year-old pilot, his wife Nina Schulte-Mattler, a 51-year-old property agent, and their three children, are among the 200 families facing eviction from the Discovery Bay marina.
The marina, which began operating in 1989, will be closed by New Year’s Eve for a major renovation. All memberships will cease and all boats are required to sail out by then. It is not clear how the marina will operate or recruit new members when it reopens.
Ten of the Henderson family’s friends helped them move into the marina on May 1,2009. On Sunday, they were there again to help them move out, to the Kwun Tong Typhoon Shelter, a two and a half hours sail away.
“[The marina closure] has caused an awful lot of people huge amount of financial distress, as well as family distress, which is what we are suffering right now,” Henderson said. “We are having to move house, probably move school. We are having to do something with this boat… It’s caused us a great lot of family distress.”
Marina members were informed of the closure on August 31, four months in advance. Amid the backlash, the marina management offered them a three-month extension of stay at a price. Owners who did not sign the extension agreement but continued to berth their boats at the marina in the new year would face a hefty daily visitor fee.
