Second court turns down developer’s appeal for Pearl Horizon plot

The Court of Second Instance has rejected a request filed by Polytex Corporation Ltd to overturn the government’s decision to take back the land plot where its high-end residence Pearl Horizon was to be built.
According to the court’s official website, the decision was made by Judge José Cândido de Pinho on Wednesday, but no other details relating to the verdict were uploaded by the court, or disclosed by the developer.
The government declared Polytex’s land grant for the Pearl Horizon plot invalid in the Official Gazette this January, stating that the company had failed to complete the residential project before its temporary concession, which carried a term of 25 years, expired on December 25 last year.
The dispatch indicated that the developer could file an administrative appeal to the city’s Court of Second Instance, as well as the Chief Executive.
Polytex is the local arm of the Hong Kong-based developer Polytec Group, which owns an 80 per cent interest in Pearl Horizon.
This is not the first time the developer’s request relating to the plot has been rejected by local courts. Last December 18, the company also filed an appeal to the Administrative Court, requesting to prolong its land concession and land-use terms on the land parcel. The appeal was turned down by the court this February.
The temporary land concession for Polytex regarding the Pearl Horizon site was granted by the then-Portuguese Government in 1990. The plot, located on Lot P in Novos Aterros da Areia Preta, is designed to house 18 towers of a total of 5,000-plus residential units.
Business Daily tried to contact the manager of Polytex, Chan Sai Tin, for more information on the court’s decision against the company, and to ask whether the company would file further appeals. However, the company executive was unreachable for comment before this story went to press.