Housing and Development (Common Property and Open Spaces) Rules

Housing and Development Act

(Chapter 129, Section 27(1))

Housing and Development
(Common Property and Open Spaces) Rules

R 3

G.N. No. S 319/1988

REVISED EDITION 1999

(1st January 1999)

[21st October 1988]

Citation

1. These Rules may be cited as the Housing and Development (Common Property and Open Spaces) Rules.

Definitions

2.—(1) In these Rules, unless the context otherwise requires —

“common property” means so much of the developed land vested in or held in trust for the Board as is not comprised in the flats and includes —

(a)	the foundations, columns, beams, supports, walls, roofs, lobbies, corridors, stairs, stairways, fire escapes, entrances and exits of the buildings;
(b)	the roof and storage spaces;
(c)	the central and appurtenant installations for services such as power, light and water;
(d)	escalators, lifts, water-tanks, pumps, motor, fans, compressors, ducts and all other apparatus and installations existing for common use;
(e)	all the common facilities in the housing estate built for the use or enjoyment of all the residents of the estate;
(f)	car parks, recreational facilities, gardens and parking areas; and
(g)	all other parts of the land intended for the use or enjoyment of all the residents of the housing estate;

“housing estate” means any housing estate built on any land vested in or held in trust for the Board;

“HUDC housing estate” means any housing estate built on any of the parcels of land which are more particularly described in the First Schedule to the HUDC Housing Estates Act (Cap. 131);

“park” means to bring a vehicle to a stationary position and cause it to remain there for any purpose;

“parking place” shall have the meaning assigned to it in the Parking Places Act (Cap. 214);

“sign” includes all signals, warning sign posts, direction posts, banners and advertisements;

“vehicle” means a vehicle, whether mechanically propelled or not, intended or adapted for use on the road.

(2) These Rules shall not apply to any HUDC housing estate.

(3) Nothing in these Rules shall prohibit officers or employees of the Board acting in the discharge of their duties or any person acting with the approval of the Board from doing any act prohibited by these Rules.

No parking, dumping and erecting fixtures, etc.

3. No person shall —

(a)	park any vehicle on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate except in a parking place;
(b)	place, deposit, keep or leave or cause or permit to be placed, deposited, kept or left any material, article, object or thing on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate except in any place designated by the Board for that purpose; or
(c)	erect or instal any fixture, structure, object or material on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate.

3A. [Deleted by S 549/2000 wef 01/12/2000]

Power to detain and remove vehicles

4.—(1) Where a vehicle is parked on any common property or in any open space in contravention of any of the provisions of these Rules, or appears to have been abandoned on any common property or in any open space, any officer authorised by the Board (referred to in this rule as an authorised officer) may, in his discretion —

(a)	remove the vehicle to a place of safety or any other place and detain it thereat; or
(b)	prevent the removal of the vehicle without his consent by fixing an immobilisation device to the vehicle.

(2) Where any authorised officer has removed any vehicle to a place of safety or any other place under paragraph (1)(a) or fixed an immobilisation device to the vehicle under paragraph (1)(b), he shall, with reasonable despatch, give notice in writing to the owner of the vehicle as to the procedure by which the owner may secure the release of the vehicle, and such notice shall be served on the owner of the vehicle —

(a)	in the case where the vehicle has been removed to a place of safety or any other place, in accordance with the Act or where this is not possible, by posting it on any notice board maintained by the relevant Town Council that is nearest the part of the common property or open space where the vehicle was parked or found; or
(b)	in the case where an immobilisation device has been fixed to the vehicle, by affixing the notice onto the windscreen or any conspicuous part of the vehicle.

(3) No vehicle which has been removed and detained by an authorised officer under paragraph (1)(a) or to which an immobilisation device has been fixed under paragraph (1)(b) shall be released to the owner of the vehicle except —

(a)	by or under the direction of an authorised officer; and
(b)	upon the owner of the vehicle having paid all expenses incurred by the Board, and such other charges as may be imposed under these Rules.

(4) Any person who, without the authority of an authorised officer, removes or tampers with any notice affixed to a vehicle under paragraph (2)(b) shall be guilty of an offence.

(5) Any person who, without being authorised to do so in accordance with this rule, removes or attempts to remove —

(a)	any vehicle from any place at which it is being detained under paragraph (1)(a); or
(b)	an immobilisation device fixed to a vehicle under paragraph (1)(b),

shall be guilty of an offence.

(6) Where any vehicle which has been removed and detained by an authorised officer under paragraph (1)(a) or to which an immobilisation device has been fixed under paragraph (1)(b) is not claimed by the owner within one month of the date of its detention or immobilisation, an authorised officer may, after giving one month’s notice in the Gazette of his intention to do so, sell the vehicle by public auction or otherwise dispose of it in any manner as he thinks fit.

(7) Where a vehicle has been sold or otherwise disposed of under paragraph (6), the proceeds of the sale or disposal of the vehicle shall be applied —

(a)	firstly in payment of any expenses incurred in carrying out the provisions of this rule; and
(b)	thereafter in payment of all charges and fines payable under these Rules and the surplus, if any, shall be paid to the owner of the vehicle.

(8) In this rule, “immobilisation device” means any device or appliance designed or adapted to be fixed to any part of a vehicle for the purpose of preventing the vehicle from being driven or otherwise put in motion, being a device or appliance of such type approved by an authorised officer.

[S 549/2000 wef 01/12/2000]

Repairing, painting, etc., of vehicles

5. No person shall repair, paint, spray, test or service or cause or permit to be repaired, painted, sprayed, tested or serviced any vehicle on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate.

Obstruction of common property

6.—(1) No person shall obstruct or cause or permit to be obstructed the lawful use of any common property of the Board with any object, fixture or thing.

(2) The Board may remove any object, fixture or thing obstructing the lawful use of any common property of the Board.

(3) The Board shall immediately give written notice to the owner or the person having lawful possession of the object, fixture or thing removed and detained by the Board that he may, on payment of the expenses incurred by the Board, claim possession from the Board within 30 days of such removal and detention.

(4) If the object, fixture or thing removed and detained by the Board is not claimed by the owner or person having lawful possession thereof within 30 days of the removal and detention, the Board may dispose of it by public auction or otherwise and apply the proceeds of the sale to the expenses incurred by the Board in the removal and detention and the surplus, if any, shall be paid to the owner or person having lawful possession thereof.

Obstruction of rubbish chutes

7. No person shall throw or deposit or cause or permit to be thrown or deposited into any refuse chute in a building in a housing estate any object, material, thing or article which will or is likely to choke, clog or obstruct the free fall of refuse in the chute or cause any nuisance, annoyance or inconvenience to other occupiers in the building.

Damage to soil, turf, plant, shrub or tree

8.—(1) No person shall remove, cut, damage or dispose of any soil, turf, plant, shrub or tree or part thereof situated on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate.

(2) No person shall pick a shrub or plant or part thereof situated on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate.

Diversion of water supply

9. No person shall draw or divert or take any water from any water supply situated on the common property.

Display of signs

10. No person shall display any sign on any common property or in any open space within a housing estate.

Use of ponds and lakes maintained by Board

11. No person shall bathe, wade, wash, swim, fish in, or cause or permit any animal to enter or remove anything from, any pond or lake maintained by the Board.

Damage to Board’s property

12.—(1) No person shall remove, destroy or damage any property of the Board.

(2) No person shall remove earth or soil from any land belonging to the Board.

(3) The costs and expenses including administrative costs incurred by the Board in restoring the damaged property to its condition before such damage or destruction or in replacing earth, soil or any other property that has been removed shall constitute a debt due to the Board and shall be recoverable as such.

Penalty

13. Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with any of the provisions of these Rules shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000.

[S 398/2000 wef 01/09/2000]

Search within Legislation