Donald Liao Poon-huai, one of Hong Kong’s most influential government architects and public housing visionaries who became the first Chinese official under British rule to serve as secretary for district administration, has died at the age of 96.
His family confirmed his death to the South China Morning Post on Friday, with one member saying he died peacefully on Thursday morning at home. Liao was surrounded by family and friends on his last evening.
“He lived a long, meaningful life and made good contributions to our community,” his son, Philip Liao Yi-kang, told the SCMP. “We will miss him dearly, but we find peace in knowing he is now with God in heaven.”
Liao, known as a pioneer of Hong Kong’s subsidised Home Ownership Scheme, was born in the late 1920s. He joined the government in 1960, embarking on a decades-long career that helped reshape the city’s urban landscape.
He served as Hong Kong’s first director of housing from 1973 to 1980. A visionary architect and civil servant, he played a key role in the design and development of several landmark early housing estates, including Ma Tau Wai and Wah Fu.
Donald Liao served as Hong Kong’s first director of housing from 1973 to 1980. Photo: P. Y. Tang
From 1980 to 1985, he served as secretary for housing and as chairman of the Housing Authority. He later became the first Chinese official under British rule to serve as secretary for district administration from 1985 to 1989.