20 July, 2009
The Board of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (the Authority) held its sixth meeting today (July 20). The Board agreed that the Stage 1 Public Engagement Exercise, which would last for three months, would commence at the end of September 2009.
The Chairman of the Board, Mr Henry Tang, said: "Chairman of the Consultation Panel of the Authority, Professor Stephen Cheung, has briefed members at today's Board meeting on the Consultation Panel's discussions on the preparatory work for the Stage 1 Public Engagement Exercise. The invaluable insight of the Consultation Panel, which comprises members from different sectors, has helped develop a sound public engagement plan."
Mr Tang continued: "The Board announced the appointment of three Conceptual Plan Consultants and the Project Consultant this morning. Members of the Board and the six committees of the Authority also attended the Consultation Panel meeting, which was open to the public, to meet with the newly appointed consultants. The Board attaches great importance to communication with its committees and the Consultation Panel, and is committed to enhancing the transparency of the WKCD project in order to keep the public abreast of the project's latest developments."
The relevant presentation material on the introduction given by the four consultants on their profiles, relevant experience and aspirations for the WKCD at the Consultation Panel meeting has been uploaded onto the Authority's website (www.wkcdauthority.hk).
After the Board has listened to the Consultation Panel's report on the Stage 1 Public Engagement Exercise, the Authority will fine-tune the consultation document. After the material has been approved by the Consultation Panel and the Board, the public engagement exercise will start in end-September.
Mr Tang said: "Starting from end-September, we will organise public consultation activities and a host of small-group meetings. As the development of the WKCD has far-reaching impact on our future generation, the first public consultation activity will target university and secondary school students. Our engagement targets will also include senior citizens, persons with disabilities and ethnic minority groups so as to deepen the reach of our engagement efforts."
Mr Tang added: "The content and positioning of the arts and cultural programmes to be initiated by the Authority will be determined by the arts and cultural experts to be appointed by the Authority. During the public engagement period, we will collect views from the public and stakeholders on audience building and programme planning. These views will be duly taken into account by the arts and cultural experts once they have arrived. These views will also help us prepare the development plan."
During the meeting the Board also heard the reports of its committees.
The Remuneration Committee agreed at its previous meeting to engage head hunters to assist in the open recruitment of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Executive Directors of the functional departments (including Museum Policy and Management Services, Performing Arts Policy and Management Services, Project Delivery, Marketing, Communication and Programming, Finance and Human Resources), General Counsel and Internal Auditor. The Authority is in the process of inviting bids for the head hunters, and it is expected to be completed before the end of this month. Recruitment will commence next month. It is anticipated that the CEO and other top-tier staff of the Authority will report for duty by the end of this year.
Also, the Performing Arts Committee and the Museum Committee have held meetings to discuss matters related to arts and cultural activities and programmes, which they will plan and organise on and off the WKCD site with a view to establishing a connection between the WKCD and the community as well as to nurturing and building audiences. They have also established sub-groups to work out proposed programmes and activities and make recommendations to the respective committee. It is expected that such activities could gradually commence towards the end of this year.
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